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Division Spotlight
Young Members Group
The Young Members Group works to encourage and enable all young professional members to be actively involved in the efforts and endeavors of the Society at all levels (Professional Divisions, ANS Governance, Local Sections, etc.) as they transition from the role of a student to the role of a professional. It sponsors non-technical workshops and meetings that provide professional development and networking opportunities for young professionals, collaborates with other Divisions and Groups in developing technical and non-technical content for topical and national meetings, encourages its members to participate in the activities of the Groups and Divisions that are closely related to their professional interests as well as in their local sections, introduces young members to the rules and governance structure of the Society, and nominates young professionals for awards and leadership opportunities available to members.
Meeting Spotlight
ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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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General Kenneth Nichols and the Manhattan Project
Nichols
The Oak Ridger has published the latest in a series of articles about General Kenneth D. Nichols, the Manhattan Project, and the 1954 Atomic Energy Act. The series has been produced by Nichols’ grandniece Barbara Rogers Scollin and Oak Ridge (Tenn.) city historian David Ray Smith. Gen. Nichols (1907–2000) was the district engineer for the Manhattan Engineer District during the Manhattan Project.
As Smith and Scollin explain, Nichols “had supervision of the research and development connected with, and the design, construction, and operation of, all plants required to produce plutonium-239 and uranium-235, including the construction of the towns of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Richland, Washington. The responsibility of his position was massive as he oversaw a workforce of both military and civilian personnel of approximately 125,000; his Oak Ridge office became the center of the wartime atomic energy’s activities.”
Gregory Mathieu, Amélie de Hoyos, (Inst de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire), Sitakanta Mohanty, Stuart Stothoff, Michael Muller (CNWRA)
Proceedings | 16th International High-Level Radioactive Waste Management Conference (IHLRWM 2017) | Charlotte, NC, April 9-13, 2017 | Pages 380-388
Simulations that combine flow modeling with radionuclide transport modeling provide insights into the performance of a hypothetical geologic repository for radioactive waste. Key parameters driving performance can be identified and quantified using probabilistic sampling of the model parameters. This paper presents a probabilistic framework, referred to as the MC-MELODIE hydrologic flow and contaminant transport model, for analyzing flow and transport behavior in the context of intermediate level long-lived (ILLLW) and high-level (HLW) disposal in a deep geological formation at the Meuse/Haute-Marne (MHM) site in France. The flow and transport framework includes nested, but separate, simulations with common parameters in order to consider small-scale features (detailed drift and shaft configurations) within the repository formation while also considering large-scale (regional) release. Specific analyses use one-million-year simulations with a conservative tracer and assuming instantaneous failures and steady flow to examine the effect of repository layout on radionuclide transfer to the surrounding aquifers through the host formation and engineered features, and to illustrate how uncertainties in far-field conditions and potential future human activities may affect the fate of released radionuclides.