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ORNL Review v19n4 1986.pdf

ORNL Review v19n4
  • Sizing Up Contaminated Properties: A Saga of ORNL's Western Pioneers. Employees at ORNL's new office in Grand Junction, Colorado, have surveyed hundreds of radon-emitting properties for DOE's Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project. The office also is responsible for several innovations that are expected to save the project millions of dollars.
  • Genetic Risks of Using Ethylene Oxide. New ORNL studies on the mutagenicity of ethylene oxide in mice suggest that regulations may be needed to limit brief exposures to the gas, which is widely used by health care workers to sterilize medical supplies.
  • Human Gene Therapy: A Look at a Cutting Edge of Biomedical Science. Gene therapy—implanting appropriate genes in cells to correct genetic disorders—is being considered for widespread use in humans with inherited diseases. The author, who is a member of a national committee that considers the technical, ethical, and social implications of this biomedical technology, discusses the technical merits and problems of human gene therapy and current recommendations on its future use.
  • Survey Sampling: A Useful Tool for Scientific Investigation. Scientists at ORNL have used statistics and survey sampling to ensure accuracy in their research results. Examples include determining the proportion of transuranic wastes in waste mixtures and estimating the size of fish populations at various sites. The author presents a primer on conducting a survey.
  • Nuclear Sleuthing at ORNL: A New Look at Neutron Activation Analysis. Scientists at ORNL have helped develop neutron-activation analysis, which has been used for 50 years to identify and quantify elements, such as uranium, in materials. They will advance the science at the expanded NAA facility at the High Flux Isotope Reactor.
  • ORNL's Forays into Forensic Activation Analysis. In the 1960s ORNL activation-analysis experts helped evaluate the evidence from the Kennedy assassination and two highly publicized murder trials.

Departments

  • News Notes. ORNL's involvement in CERN physics experiment; plans for ACTO, a nuclear-plant advanced controls facility; another Large Coil Test Program milestone.
  • Technical Capsules. ORNL's three IR 100 award-winning projects; new method of detecting wear in motor-operated valves; designing a reactor for space.
  • Take a Number
  • Awards and Appointments