A number of surveys and polls, such as Bisconti Research and University of Michigan surveys, have found steady or growing support for nuclear energy among Americans during the past several years. The Pew Research Center on Aug. 5 reported its nuclear-related findings from its survey conducted in May with a representative sample of U.S. adults. The results show 56 percent of respondents favor the construction of additional nuclear power plants in the United States.

That level of support is similar to last year’s findings (57 percent support) and is up substantially from the 43 percent, 50 percent, and 54 percent that Pew Research reported in 2020, 2021, and 2022, respectively.

Women including Marie Skłodowska-Curie, Lise Meitner, Chien-Shiung Wu, and Katharine Way were key pioneers in nuclear science and technology, but today the visibility of women in the nuclear sector remains low. Women make up just one-quarter of people employed in the nuclear sector, and for STEM positions in that field specifically, they make up just one-fifth of the workforce. About 8,000 of those women responded to an a survey from the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency, and their responses have been captured in Gender Balance in the Nuclear Sector, a new report from the OECD NEA.