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The human factor in licensing and operating the next generation of nuclear plants
As human factors specialists working at the intersection of human performance and nuclear operations, we are witnessing one of the nuclear sector’s most significant transitions in decades. The emergence of small modular reactors, microreactors, and other advanced designs is reshaping the industry’s landscape. Digital instrumentation and controls, passive safety systems, and increased automation are creating opportunities for greater safety margins and more flexible operation. These same features also fundamentally redefine what it means to “operate” a nuclear plant. Interactions among human roles, automation, and passive systems shape how people maintain awareness, exercise judgment, and intervene when necessary. These developments affect both operational realities and the regulatory foundations on which nuclear safety is built.
Christopher Edwards, Ralph C. Smith, John Mattingly, Alyson G. Wilson
Nuclear Technology | Volume 211 | Number 11 | November 2025 | Pages 2832-2845
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2025.2462370
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The rapid localization of radioactive material in an urban environment is of critical importance to secure radiological sources and prevent radiological attacks. We consider the inverse problem of inferring the three-dimensional location of stationary and moving radiation sources given a set of measurements from an array of radiation sensors. A feedforward neural network is employed to quickly infer the location of the radioactive source. We optimize the weights of the neural network using Nadam gradient-based optimization. This method of source localization lacks the prediction intervals given by other techniques, such as Bayesian inference, but it is extremely fast, so it enables real-time predictions. We utilize this advantage to track the position of a moving radioactive source within a simulated urban environment.