ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Mar 2026
Jan 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
April 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Going Nuclear: Notes from the officially unofficial book tour
I work in the analytical labs at one of Europe’s oldest and largest nuclear sites: Sellafield, in northwestern England. I spend my days at the fume hood front, pipette in one hand and radiation probe in the other (and dosimeter pinned to my chest, of course). Outside the lab, I have a second job: I moonlight as a writer and public speaker. My new popular science book—Going Nuclear: How the Atom Will Save the World—came out last summer, and it feels like my life has been running at full power ever since.
K. Serdula, J. Young
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 22 | Number 1 | May 1965 | Pages 40-50
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE65-A19761
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The neutron diffusion and integral scattering properties of graphite have been measured by the pulsed-neutron-source technique. Measurements were performed on assemblies with geometric bucklings from 0.0036 to 0.0151 cm−2. The time of attainment of asymptotic neutron-energy spectra was determined from transmission measurements. Results from these latter measurements indicated that the minimum thermalization time, for the assemblies investigated, was ≈ 2 msec. Asymptotic ‘average’ neutron velocities, measured both internally and externally, were obtained as a function of assembly size. Results indicated that an asymptotic neutron spectrum did not exist for assemblies with B2 ≈ 0.015 cm−2 at a time 2 msec after the neutron pulse. A value of the diffusion cooling coefficient, C = 45.6 ± 4.7 × 105 cm4/sec was derived from the measured ‘thermal’ neutron decay constants.