On February 11, 1939, a Letter to the Editor titled "Disintegration of Uranium by Neutrons: a New Type of Nuclear Reaction" appeared in the science journal Nature. The letter provided the first theoretical explanation for the splitting of the atom, and coined a new term in physics: fission. The woman who co-authored the letter, and co-discovered the power of nuclear energy, is perhaps not quite as well-known as some of her contemporaries. Elise Meitner-how could hers not be a household name?

Soon after declaring that it would end the Yucca Mountain repository project, the Obama administration created the Blue Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future to reevaluate the nation's nuclear waste program and policies. The commission was asked to recommend improvements to the waste program and the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA), and to make general recommendations on the path forward. The commission was specifically instructed to not address the Yucca Mountain project, or any specific project or site. The commission's final report was released this month.

Hands-on activity during a November 2011 ANS Teachers Workshop

The American Nuclear Society's Center for Nuclear Science and Technology Information and the ANS Outreach Department will be sponsoring a one-day teacher workshop on Sunday, February 26, in Phoenix, Ariz. The workshop-Detecting Radiation in Our Radioactive World-is intended for science educators (including biology, chemistry, earth science, physics, physical science, life science, environmental, and general science teachers) at the high school and middle school levels. The workshop will be held prior to WM2012, the international waste management conference that takes place annually in Phoenix.

There's not much new happening in DC right at the moment, so this month I'll discuss something that's going on in the state of California. That is, a proposed ballot initiative to shut the two remaining nuclear power plants-the two-unit Diablo Canyon and the two-unit San Onofre-in the state.

Today is National Nuclear Science Day, an event celebrating nuclear science and technology. The American Nuclear Society is proud to be a sponsor of this full-day event at the Illinois Institute of Technology that features world-class nuclear experts in many fields of nuclear science and technology. The experts, during presentations during the day, are explaining what nuclear is all about during live internet webinars and question-and-answer sessions for students in grades 5-12 (and other interested parties).

National Nuclear Science Week-a week-long celebration to focus local, regional, and national interest on all aspects of nuclear science-has nearly arrived! On January 23-27, events and activities will be held across the United States to recognize the benefits of nuclear science and technology and to introduce the next generation of  scientists and engineers to the applications of nuclear technologies to everyday life. The National Nuclear Science Week website serves as the clearinghouse for next week's activities and is chock-full of great ideas for  how to learn, teach, and celebrate nuclear science and technology.

The January issue of Nuclear News magazine is available in hard copy and electronically for American Nuclear Society members (must enter ANS user name and password in Member Center). The issue contains the following stories:

It's time to welcome the next generation of nuclear scientists, engineers, artisans, technicians, health professionals, and the myriad other nuclear experts of the future-and celebrate our remarkable nuclear science and technology achievements to date-with National Nuclear Science Week, January 23-27, 2012!

Once upon a time...

I recently joined the latest social media phenomenon-"Pinterest"-after some good old-fashioned peer pressure from my pals. Basically it is an online scrapbook, where you can collect images from all over the Internet and organize or "pin" them under categories like "recipes to try" or "ideas for the garden" on your personal page. There is very little text and not much user-to-user interaction. You just browse thousands of images of party dresses, wedding ideas, art, or whatever you or other users have uploaded to the site. Essentially it's a whole lot of eye candy.

On March 21, 2011, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a renewal of the operating license for the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant for an additional 20 years. Vermont Yankee's original license would have expired on March 21, 2012, and its state-issued Certificate of Public Good does expire on that date. Most commentators agree that March 21 will not be the last day the plant operates, but the date does give opponents a focal point, and they are planning some kind of civil disobedience on that day. The question remains: Who are "they"?

A so-called scientific article issued on December 19 by Joseph Mangano and Janette Sherman purports that an estimated 14,000 excess deaths in the United States are linked to the radioactive fallout from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors in Japan. The article, published in the International Journal of Health Services, is available by clicking here.

What questions do young people have about nuclear power? Recently, Howard Shaffer and I had two opportunities to hear their questions for ourselves.

In the past week, two exciting new art-based initiatives in the nuclear sector have come to my attention. I am thrilled about both and want to share them with my fellow American Nuclear Society members.

December 15, 1852, was the birthday of French physicist Antoine Henri Becquerel, who discovered a completely unknown property of matter in March 1896.

American Nuclear Society scholarship applications for the 2012-2013 academic year are now online! Since ANS was established in 1954, it has promoted the awareness and understanding of nuclear science and technology (NS&T). To further that mission, ANS administers scholarships each year that support the development and education of those who will research and implement future applications of NS&T.

On Thursday, December 1, 2011, the University of Chicago's Energy Policy Institute at Chicago (EPIC) released a study titled Small Modular Reactors - Key to Future Nuclear Power Generation in the U. S..

University student sections of the American Nuclear Society are very involved in reaching out to the public, including teaching young students about nuclear science and hosting public forums. With the resurgence of the nuclear energy industry, nuclear engineering enrollments at universities are increasing and thus ANS student sections are becoming more involved.

On December 2 in 1942, Enrico Fermi, Leo Szilard, and their colleagues achieved the first man-made, sustained, controlled nuclear chain reaction-in a squash court beneath the football grandstand of the University of Chicago's Stagg Field. That event occurred 69 years ago today!

And wins a Nobel Prize