TAMU ANS Student Chapter Helps Local Scouts with Merit Badge

On Saturday, October 24th, The Texas A&M Chapter of the American Nuclear Society (ANS) hosted local Boy Scout Troop 743 to help them complete the requirements for the Nuclear Science Merit Badge. ANS Scouting Coordinator, Wes Deason, organized and planned the event. Wes, a former Eagle Scout, was “excited to help ANS host its first merit badge workshop.”

Scouts spent their entire day at A&M learning about nuclear science. They learned about nuclear interactions, radiation, radiation safety, careers in nuclear science and engineering, and related topics. Scouts also toured the Nuclear Science Center (NSC), located close to campus. Scouts completed all of their requirements for the merit badge during the day-long event.

Texas A&M ANS plans to continue to host this event in the future, and bring in troops from across the state.

Pictured in photos: William Sames and Wes Deason with the troop in front of the Nuclear Science Center (left); Wes Deason teaching troop about nuclear science (right).

Dercher Wins NEUP Fellowship

Andrew Dercher, a graduate student in the TAMU Nuclear Engineering Department, has been awarded a fellowship through the Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy as part of their Nuclear Energy University Programs (NEUP). Dercher is currently working with Dr. Vierow on improvements to the decay heat removal system for gas-cooled fast reactors. He is originally from Radnor, Pennsylvania and earned his B.S. in Nuclear Engineering at Penn State.

According to the Office of Nuclear Energy, "The scholarships and fellowships granted under the NEUP program will help to recruit and train the next generation of nuclear scientists and engineers – a critical need as the nation moves toward greater use of nuclear energy to meet our energy needs and address the global climate crisis." In 2009, the NEUP program awarded 76 scholarships and 18 fellowships (approximately $2.9 million) to U.S. nuclear science and engineering students. The fellowship awarded to Dercher provides $150,000 over three years.

Also included in this award announcement were three undergraduate scholarship recipients from Nuclear Engineering: Michael Hackemack, Jesse Johns, and William Sames. Each will receive a one-year award of $5000.

Charlton To Present Science Café Tonight

Dr. William Charlton, Associate Professor in the Department of Nuclear Engineering, will speak on "Nuclear Power and the Risk of Nuclear Proliferation" on the October Science Cafe session to be held at 7 p.m. today (Oct. 20) at Revolution Cafe & Bar (downtown Bryan). Science Cafe started in Fall 2007, as an effort to bring science back to the public.

Wagoner Awarded HPS Fellowship

David Wagoner, a 2nd year Health Physics Masters student in the department, has recently been awarded the 2009-2010 HPS Robert Gardner Fellowship. This fellowship was established by Catherine C. Gardner and is sponsored jointly by the Gardner Fund and by the Health Physics Society. The award includes $5000 in support and a travel grant to attend the 2010 HPS Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Wagoner is currently working with Dr. Braby in investigating low-energy photon quality factors. He is originally from Charleston, SC , and has a B.S. from Frances Marion University.

Goddard wins INMM Student Paper Award

TAMU Nuclear Engineering student Braden Goddard won the J. D. Williams Student Paper Award at the 2009 Annual Meeting of the Institute for Nuclear Materials Management (INMM), which was held in Tucson, Arizona July 12-16, 2009. His paper, "Real-Time Detection of UREX+3a Extraction Streams for Materials Accountancy," was co-authored by Dr. Charlton and Dr. McDeavitt and was in competition with 32 other student papers. Goddard was also awarded a cash prize of $1000.

Nuclear Safeguards Education Portal (NSEP) Launch

This week marked the official launch of the Nuclear Safeguards Education Portal, a group of Distance Education modules aimed at providing education and outreach to those with an interest in enhancing security of nuclear materials and facilities. NSEP is maintained by the Nuclear Security Science and Policy Institute (NSSPI) at Texas A&M University and was developed through the work of Dr. William Charlton, D. Grant Ford, Jr., Dr. Wen-Hsing Hsu, Kelley Ragusa, and Dr. Daniel Reece. Funding for NSEP was provided by the Office of Nonproliferation and International Security (NA-24) of the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).

NSEP is continually under development with new educational offerings becoming available periodically. The modules currently being offered include "Basic Nuclear and Atomic Physics," "The Commercial Fuel Cycle: Beginner's Course," and "Basic Nuclear Detection." Visit the NSEP website.

TAMU NE Undergrads Attend Safeguards Training at ORNL

Several TAMU nuclear engineering juniors visited Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Safeguards Laboratory during the week of May 26-29, 2009 for Nuclear Material Safeguards Nondestructive Assay Techniques education and practical training, hosted by the Nuclear Security Science and Policy Institute(NSSPI). Students learned about applied nondestructive assay measurement techniques in nuclear material safeguards, discussed nonproliferation issues with NSSPI and ORNL staff, and gained first-hand experience in measuring special nuclear material using state-of-the-art technologies. In addition, students visited unique ORNL facilities such as the Spallation Neutron Source, the X-10 Graphite Reactor, and Canberra's high-purity germanium crystal growing facility. The group was accompanied by Dr. John Poston and NSSPI staff members D. Grant Ford and Claudio Gariazzo.

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