More information is available about the upcoming CINS AGM

More information is available about the upcoming CINS AGM meeting in Winnipeg, the keynote speakers include Bob McDonald (CBC), the host of Quirks and Quarks: http://www.cins.ca/meetings/agm2011.htm

Candu Energy Ink to refurbish Argentinian nuclear power plant

Candu Energy Ink to refurbish Argentinian nuclear power plant with a $444 million deal, the deal involves the transfer of technology to Argentina: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110824-717097.html

Saskatchewan commits more funds for nuclear research

Great news, Saskatchewan makes more commitment in the field of nuclear research, this new funding follows the $30-million investment into the establishment of the centre for research in nuclear medicine and materials science that was announced earlier this year... This is great as without investments today, no impact can be made tomorrow! read more: http://www.thestarphoenix.com/health/Saskatchewan+government+partners+with+Hitachi+fund+nuclear+research/5307429/story.html

1955: reaching the goal of economic atomic power in Canada

Interesting historical read on what was happening in 1955 in reaching the goal of economic atomic power in Canada and construction of NRU for neutron scattering, isotope production and nuclear R&D: http://astheysawit.com/5468-1955-atomic-energy-in-canada.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=1955-atomic-energy-in-canada ... also this is where you could find the book "Atomic Energy in Canada 1955": http://www.bookbase.com/search?dealer_login=neylon&bookId=7110&method=POST

Deep River Science Academy in the news

Deep River Science Academy (http://www.drsa.ca/blog/) in the news:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJ0Qk80oY7E see also http://www.thedailyobserver.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=3232242 and http://www.drsa.ca/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Contact_Summer_2011_Eng.pdf for long partnership between DRSA and AECL at Chalk River... also see http://www.bclocalnews.com/vancouver_island_south/oakbaynews/news/127954738.html for a DRSA Student's recent achievement... Keep up the good work DRSA!

5 more instruments are completed at SNS

5 more instruments are completed at SNS (the Spallation Neutrons and Pressure Diffractometer, or SNAP; the Fine-Resolution Fermi Chopper Spectrometer, or SEQUOIA; the Single-Crystal Diffractometer, or TOPAZ; the Nanoscale-Ordered Materials Diffractometer, or NOMAD; and the just completed Hybrid Polarized Beam Spectrometer, or HYSPEC): http://www.labmanager.com/?articles.view%2FarticleNo%2F5040%2Farticle%2F-68-5M-Neutron-Project-Completed

Canadian Association of Physicists submits a brief to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance

http://www.cap.ca/sites/cap.ca/files/2011-cap-hcfc-brief-final.pdf

this is a must read document. From the Executive Summary:
"1. That the federal government augment the Granting Councils' budgets by a modest 5%, directed to their programs that support basic research. Cost about $120M p.a. 
2. That the proposed savings from the reduction in the Canada Graduate Scholarships program be used to fund doctoral scholarships and postdoctoral fellowships in universities and industry, by re-directing the funds to the existing Granting Council programs. Cost $17.5M p.a., funding for example 415 doctoral students and 250 postdoctoral fellowships each year. 
3. At a time when the federal government, like many others, is aggressively pursuing reductions in spending, that Canada emulate many European governments3 by recognizing the unique importance of government science and ensuring that all essential government research programs are funded appropriately to meet their mandates." ....
"What about government-funded large-scale research infrastructure? Government provides scientific infrastructure (and the expertise to operate it), which is used by multiple organizations. For example, the
Chalk River NRU reactor is an essential tool for universities and industry, including aerospace, automotive and manufacturing. Advanced materials characterization, using methods invented at Chalk River and adopted around the world, facilitates development of safer, more reliable, and less expensive products, improves Canada’s competitiveness, and opens new markets. Other large publicly-funded capabilities, vital for Canada’s competitiveness, include intense X-rays at the Canadian Light Source, muon beams for materials characterization at TRIUMF, and various metallurgical facilities at the CANMET Materials Technology Laboratory."...
"In summary: Our future depends on greatly improving Canadian innovation. Basic academic research (necessarily funded by government) in physics and other areas is a crucial driver of innovation, particularly as Canadian industry’s in-house R&D spending is modest. Canadian and foreign experts agree on the importance of increasing support for basic research. Just the academic companies spun-off from Canadian basic research much more than repay the government funding. Basic research and highly trained personnel
are the bright spots in Canadian innovation -- we must continue to nurture and grow them, at the same time as encouraging more applied efforts. We must also take great care not to lose critically important research capabilities within government itself." 

AECL successfully completes retubing of Korean reactor

AECL successfully completes retubing of Korean reactor! not an easy task! Congratulations to all!!! "Production manager Al Stewart said the Wolsong 1 project proved that there is future commercial viability in retubing existing CANDU reactors.
"That plant is up and running," said Mr. Stewart, who hosted most of the 210 employees here over the weekend. "It's a real success story for AECL and KHNP and the people of this area that contributed to that."
Each calandria tube is made of zirconium alloy and is approximately six metres long and 13 centimetres in diameter. Heavy water coolant is circulated between the reactor and the steam generators through the end fittings on the reactor's fuel channel assemblies. The first-of-a-kind refurbishment project involved the development of hundreds of specialised tools and systems." ... read more:  http://www.thedailyobserver.ca​/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3257632    and this is the link to the restart of the reactor a few days ago: http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C_Korean_Candu_restarts_after_refurbishment_2907114.html

6th grade students debate nuclear energy

6th grade students debate nuclear energy and form an informed, educated and well-thought of opinion based on sound research they perform!!! I wonder why couldn't some government and media members do research even at the same level before forming their opinion??? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v​=dnd2R6mcD2s

CINS 2011 Annual General Meeting

CINS AGM meeting Oct 28–30, 2011 first announcement: http://www.cins.ca/

CNA Visits AECL’s Chalk River Laboratories

if you are interested to know what is happening at Chalk River Labs in addition to neutron scattering, perhaps this two-part report by CNA written after a visit to the facility might give you some ideas: http://talknuclear.ca/index.ph​p/2011/08/cna-visits-aecls-cha​lk-river-laboratories/ and part two: http://talknuclear.ca/index.ph​p/2011/08/cna-visits-aecls-cha​lk-river-laboratories-part-two​/

Richard Osborne to Receive Sievert Award

Another great honour for another Deep River resident! this time the International Radiation Protection Association has selected Dr. Richard Osborne, retired from AECL in 1998, to receive the 2012 Sievert Award for his outstanding contributions in the field of radiation protection. He founded and was first president of the Canadian Radiation Protection Association in 1979 and was awarded a life membership in 2008. The award is only presented once every four years in honour of Rolf M. Sievert, a pioneer in radiation physics and radiation protection: http://irpa.sfrp.asso.fr/index​.php?option=com_content&view=a​rticle&id=482%3Arichard-osborn​e-to-receive-sievert-award&cat​id=1%3Alatest ... also see: http://www.crpa-acrp.ca/en/new​s.php?extend.58.2 and http://www.crpa-acrp.ca/pdf/Ri​chard_Osborne_short-CV.pdf ... Congratulations to Dr. Osborne for this well deserved recognition!

China forges ahead with its nuclear power plans

China forges ahead with its nuclear power plans rightly investing in perhaps the only energy source that could allow the growing demands of energy in China be satisfied while burning less coal... In light of recent announcement that a second reactor using new Chinese design began operation near Hong Kong (http://nuclearstreet.com/nucle​ar_power_industry_news/b/nucle​ar_power_news/archive/2011/08/​09/second-reactor-using-new-chine​se-design-begins-operation-nea​r-hong-kong-080902.aspx), here is the nuclear power profile of China: "Mainland China has 14 nuclear power reactors in operation, more than 25 under construction, and more about to start construction soon. Additional reactors are planned, including some of the world's most advanced, to give more than a ten-fold increase in nuclear capacity to at least 80 GWe by 2020, 200 GWe by 2030, and 400 GWe by 2050. China is rapidly becoming self-sufficient in reactor design and construction, as well as other aspects of the fuel cycle."... Read more: http://www.world-nuclear.org/i​nfo/inf63.html

Nuclear power research programs awarded $39 million

Significant research funds allocated for nuclear power research and education in US: "The Department of Energy (DOE) said that it has awarded up to $39 million in research grants aimed at developing nuclear energy technologies and training and educating the next generation of leaders in the U.S. nuclear industry. The grants will support up to 51 projects at 31 colleges and universities around the country. Other universities, industry leaders, and national laboratories will serve as collaborators and research partners." I am not aware of similar funds in Canada, if you are aware of similar funds in Canada, please post... http://www.power-eng.com/artic​les/2011/08/nuclear-power-rese​arch-programs-awarded-39-milli​on.html

The Globe and Mail: Companies vie for iconic Chalk River reactor

Here is a recent G&M article discussing the future of NRU at Chalk River Labs... with the sale of the CANDU arm of AECL already decided and announced, it is now time to consider the future of Chalk River Labs as well as NRU. It is clear that NRU cannot be run forever even if its license is extended for another several years it doesn't change the fact that it is 54 years old. Considering it takes several years to design and construct a new reactor, it is quite urgent that a decision is made to replace this reactor. A national dialouge is required to decide whether the replacement will be at Chalk River or at University of Saskatchewan or both. The precious time is wasted if such dialouge and decision is further delayed... From the article: "It will depend on whether Ottawa decides the site is a centre for badly needed innovation or a nuclear burden on the public purse. The federal government intends to end the production of isotopes after 2016, but the future of the reactor's research functions remains unclear"... and "This is the only place in the country, and one of a handful in the world, that produces those tiny subatomic particles and has facilities to shoot them at different materials to see what happens. Without a place to do that, researchers say, the country could lose a source of made-in-Canada innovation and leave its scientists with no choice but to ply their trade elsewhere."... "CRNL Partners, a group that includes EnergySolutions Canada, SNC Lavalin, AMEC NSS, Kinectric and Wardrop, which are all involved in the nuclear supply chain, announced earlier this year it's interested in a public-private partnership with the federal government to manage Chalk River's lab.
It hasn't yet submitted a formal bid. It has an office in nearby Deep River, but still isn't officially incorporated. But according to the federal government's lobbyist registry, EnergySolutions Canada and its partners plan to bid on a contract "for the management and operation of the Chalk River Laboratories facility that is expected as part of the Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) restructuring.""... "A partnership of CH2M Hill Canada, Babcock and Wilcox and the Battelle Memorial Institute has also thrown its hat informally into the ring.
"We've got a very good team and we're eager and interested to propose on it as soon as the final details come out," said Tom Searle, president of CH2M Hill Canada. The Colorado-based engineering company does large-scale site remediation; Babcock and Wilcox does design and construction for energy facilities, including nuclear sites; Battelle is one of the world's largest research and development organizations and manages the Oak Ridge National Laboratory for the U.S. Department of Energy."... Read more: http://license.icopyright.net/​user/viewFreeUse.act?fuid=MTM2​NDM1MjY%3D

100 years of the nuclear atom

This year marks 100 years since Rutherford published his ground breaking paper on nuclear structure of atoms (E. Rutherford. The Scattering of α and β Particles by Matter and the Structure of the Atom. May 1911, Philos. Mag, 21:669-688). Rutherford working at the time at University of Manchester conducted an experiment studying scattering of "alpha particles" shot through a thin layer of gold. Extreme angles of the deflection indicated that while the nucleus contains virtually all of the mass of the atom, it only takes up one-billionth of the volume of the atom!!! ... read more: http://dilipkumar.in/articles/legends/100-years-of-the-nuclear-atom-ernest-rutherford-8217-s-revolutionary-discovery.html ... also did you know that from 1898-1907 he did his research at McGill University in Canada together with Harriet Brooks (http://www.museevirtuel-virtualmuseum.ca/edu/ViewLoitLo.do;jsessionid=A685208F43120480FB11702A9CC12E34?method=preview&lang=EN&id=4007), a pioneering female nuclear physicist at a time when it was extremely difficult for women to pursue careers in science, and Frederick Soddy (http://www.cna.ca/curriculum/cna_atomic_theory/fredericksoddy-eng.asp?bc=Frederick%20Soddy&pid=Frederick%20Soddy) who also won a Noble Prize in Chemistry 1921. They discovered that atoms could be transformed and that each atom potentially carried a tremendous amount of energy. For this work he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1908 (http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/1908/rutherford-lecture.html) "for his investigations into the disintegration of the elements and the chemistry of radioactive substances." As a bemused Ern often told friends, the fastest transformation he knew of was his transformation from a physicist to a chemist.... this 1908 Nobel Prize was awarded for his work in Canada... read more: http://www.rutherford.org.nz/biography.htm

Scientific American: radiation from cell phones and other electronic devices as well as x-rays are compared

A cool graphic showing radiation from cell phones and other electronic devices as well as x-rays, from Scientific American: http://www.scientificamerican.​com/article.cfm?id=graphic-sci​ence-electromagnetic-bombardme​nt&WT.mc_id=SA_facebook