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Division Spotlight
Fusion Energy
This division promotes the development and timely introduction of fusion energy as a sustainable energy source with favorable economic, environmental, and safety attributes. The division cooperates with other organizations on common issues of multidisciplinary fusion science and technology, conducts professional meetings, and disseminates technical information in support of these goals. Members focus on the assessment and resolution of critical developmental issues for practical fusion energy applications.
Meeting Spotlight
Conference on Nuclear Training and Education: A Biennial International Forum (CONTE 2023)
February 6–9, 2023
Amelia Island, FL|Omni Amelia Island Resort
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
February 2023
Nuclear Technology
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January 2023
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Nuclear energy: enabling production of food, fiber, hydrocarbon biofuels, and negative carbon emissions
In the 1960s, Alvin Weinberg at Oak Ridge National Laboratory initiated a series of studies on nuclear agro-industrial complexes1 to address the needs of the world’s growing population. Agriculture was a central component of these studies, as it must be. Much of the emphasis was on desalination of seawater to provide fresh water for irrigation of crops. Remarkable advances have lowered the cost of desalination to make that option viable in countries like Israel. Later studies2 asked the question, are there sufficient minerals (potassium, phosphorous, copper, nickel, etc.) to enable a prosperous global society assuming sufficient nuclear energy? The answer was a qualified “yes,” with the caveat that mineral resources will limit some technological options. These studies were defined by the characteristic of looking across agricultural and industrial sectors to address multiple challenges using nuclear energy.
Larissa Shasko, Michaela Neetz, Margot Hurlbert, Jeremy Rayner, Dazawray Landrie-Parker
Nuclear Technology | Volume 208 | Number 6 | June 2022 | Pages 935-946
Technical Paper – Special section on the Nuclear, Humanities, and Social Science Nexus | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2021.1996842
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Social learning aims to produce a change in both understanding and behavior on the part of individuals that diffuses to wider social units and communities of practice. This paper asks: What lessons from the social learning literature can be applied to research and public engagement with respect to radiation exposure risk? Five key lessons were assembled, and recent survey results were used to demonstrate how these lessons can be applied to outline a risk communication strategy that includes, but is not limited to, well-designed engagement. The marked divergence between public and “expert” opinion on radiation exposure risk remains at the heart of current debates over the role of nuclear energy in tackling climate change. Earlier literature tended to be dismissive of the risk gap, siding with the experts and branding the public “radiophobic.” We show how applying the findings of the literature review to the design and analysis of the survey can overcome shortcomings of past approaches and build on strengths. This paper seeks to demonstrate the importance and interrelated nature of mixed-methods studies where quantitative and qualitative analysis is combined. This includes avoiding overly binary approaches of study and finding ways to open up conversations and exchanges. This exploration of social learning and public engagement highlights the potential barriers nuclear energy faces in contributing to the future energy mix and challenges current practices to be more perceptive to the spectrum of public positions to radiation exposure risk.