Current News

Latha Vasudevan, Section President

The Academic, Industrial, and Research Radiation Safety (AIRRS) Section of the Health Physics Society (HPS) is still seeking nominations for the following positions. Self-nominations are always encouraged.

1. Secretary-elect (one-year term as secretary-elect, two-year term as secretary, 2024–2027)
2. Director (three-year term, 2024–2027)

Board members are expected to attend monthly/quarterly Executive Board meetings to discuss planning for a special session at the annual HPS meeting, AIRRS initiatives, AIRRS awards, and any other special projects that may come up. More information on officer roles is listed on the AIRRS website.

Please submit your nominations (including a brief biosketch) to the AIRRS Section officers by 7 May 2024 to be considered for the ballot. All officers and Board members must be HPS members in good standing to run.

Deanna Baker, Health Physics Journal Editorial Assistant

Did you know that you can earn two continuing education credits for reviewing an article in the Health Physics Journal?

Reviewers have an important job in assessing a submitted manuscript. The reviewers will evaluate a manuscript's scientific or technical merit, originality, practicality, interest to our readers, and conformance with our author guidelines. Reviewers decide if a manuscript should be accepted, revised, or rejected. It is important that reviewers complete a timely evaluation of a manuscript, and we ask that be done within two weeks.

Reviewers are invited to review a manuscript from a member of the Health Physics Editorial Board through the Editorial Manager system—an email invitation is sent with links to accept or decline the invitation.

If you are interested in serving as a reviewer, please contact Deanna Baker with your contact details as well as a short bio and a few keywords to ensure that you are invited to review papers in your areas of expertise.

Also, there is a reviewer tutorial on the home page of the Editorial Manager site (see screenshot). This is a helpful resource and answers a lot of questions reviewers might have.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff will hold a public meeting 8 May 2024 to discuss the license termination process for the historic Nuclear Ship Savannah, docked in Baltimore.

The meeting is scheduled for 6–7:30 p.m. Eastern time onboard the NS Savannah. Members of the public may participate in person, online via Microsoft Teams, or by phone. The ship is located at Pier 13, Canton Marine Terminal, at 4601 Newgate Ave. in Baltimore.

The US Maritime Administration (MARAD) submitted its license termination plan for the ship in October 2023. The NRC staff accepted the plan and a related license amendment request for formal review in December 2023. At the public meeting, the NRC staff will discuss the license termination process and receive public comments on remaining cleanup activities described in the license termination plan.

The plan addresses remaining remediation activities and final radiological surveys or scans to ensure that any residual radioactivity will be within allowable limits of NRC regulations. The NS Savannah's reactor was removed in 2022 and transported to a nuclear waste disposal facility.

The NS Savannah was removed from service in November 1970 and the fuel was removed from the ship in December 1971. As the first and only nuclear-powered commercial vessel, the ship is a registered National Historic Landmark. MARAD's intent is to decommission the NS Savannah in a manner that minimizes any physical impacts on the ship's structure. Unlike a land-based nuclear power plant, the NS Savannah is waterborne, mobile, and of historic significance, presenting unique aspects for decommissioning.

Written comments on the license termination plan may be submitted through the federal rulemaking website, www.regulations.gov, under Docket ID NRC-2024-0060, or by mail to Office of Administration, TWFN-7-A60M, US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Program Management, Announcements and Editing Staff. The deadline for filing comments is 3 June 2024.

More information about the decommissioning of the NS Savannah is available on the NRC website.

Rachel Nichols, Section President

The Women in Radiation Protection (WiRP) Section is soliciting nominations for Board Member (2024–2027) and Secretary-elect (Secretary-elect 2024–2025, Secretary 2025–2027). To nominate someone or yourself, submit a brief biosketch directly to Rachel Nichols by 1 May 2024. Self-nominations are encouraged!

The WiRP Section would also like to solicit nominations for the 2024 Inclusivity in Health Physics Award. Submit nominations to Rachel Nichols by 1 June 2024. The Inclusivity in Health Physics Award is given annually by the WiRP Section to a member of the Health Physics Society who, in the past year, has made significant efforts in widening participation and promoting inclusion within health physics and related disciplines. Such efforts might include (but are not limited to) (1) improving the experience, involvement, and/or development of under-represented persons and/or (2) fostering attitudes, relationships, or environments that are welcoming and accessible to all. Nominees may be at any career stage and are not required to be a member of the section. Self-nominations are encouraged. The package for this award should include:

• Letter of nomination including why the person is deserving of this award
• At least two letters of support
• Nominee's one-page biosketch

The electronic version of the program for the IRPA 16/69th HPS Annual Meeting is now available on the meeting website.

Click here to take a look at the program and see all the wonderful oral presentations that will be given at the meeting, which will be held in Orlando, Florida, 7–12 July 2024.

Click here to register for the IRPA 16/69th HPS Annual Meeting.

Craig Little, Nominating Committee Chair

As most of you know, the Health Physics Society (HPS) is governed by its Board of Directors. To keep that system viable, the Nominating Committee needs willing candidates to agree to be considered for the open positions of Treasurer-elect (2 candidates) and Board member (4 candidates). Please help us!

Individuals, committees, chapters, and sections can suggest names of willing nominees. If you have an associate or colleague who has been active in HPS and wants to try being a Board member or an officer, encourage them to submit their name; ask their section, chapter, or committee do it; or do it for them. If they've run before, but not been chosen or elected, we encourage trying again by letting the committee know of that interest. To submit a nomination or receive more information, contact a member of the Nominating Committee or committee Chair Craig Little. 

It is time to register for the upcoming IRPA 16/69th HPS Annual Meeting, taking place from 7–12 July 2024 at Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Florida.

As a reminder, all presenters are required to register for the event by 15 May. After this date, registration rates will increase, so we encourage you to secure your spot as soon as possible. Nonpresenters should also take advantage of the lower rate before the 15 May price increase. Please register here.

The hotel block for the meeting is selling out quickly. The nights of 6, 11, and 12 July are already fully booked, so we recommend making your reservations for the remaining nights before the block is completely sold out. To reserve your room, please make your reservation here.

We understand the significance of networking and staying up to date with the latest developments in the field, and the IRPA 16/69th HPS Annual Meeting offers the perfect platform for this. Don't miss out on this opportunity to connect with industry experts, gain valuable insights, and contribute to the advancement of radiation safety.

If you have any questions or need assistance with registration or hotel reservations, please feel free to reach out to our dedicated support team at hps@BurkInc.com.

We look forward to welcoming you to the IRPA 16/69th HPS Annual Meeting and creating a memorable and fruitful experience for all attendees.

Health Physics Society (HPS) member Harvey Earl Palmer died in March 2024. Earl's obituary can be found on the HPS website In Memoriam page.

HPS Web Operations

Look at these great books! These are what we have received so far for the Health Physics Society (HPS) Publications Booth book drawing that will be held at July's IRPA 16/69th HPS Annual Meeting in Orlando. Make sure you come visit us in the exhibit hall Monday through Wednesday for your chance to win.

Each year, we gather new copies of health physics-related books and then hold a drawing to give the books away—free!—to many lucky winners. This year's meeting, being held 7–12 July 2024 in Orlando, Florida, will be bigger than ever and will include a great number of international attendees. We would like to offer a larger selection of books this year and are asking you for your help.

This is your chance to share your knowledge with students and health physicists and to promote your book to people who may not have heard of it yet. If you have edited or authored a book related to health physics and would like to donate new copies for this year's Publications Booth drawing, contact News Editor Mary Walchuk.

Thank you to the authors, editors, and publishers who have donated nearly $3,500 worth of books (and more are coming):

• American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer – Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin (available from Penguin Random House, ISBN 9780375726262)
• An Introduction to Radiation Protection in Medicine – Edited by Jamie V. Trapp and Tomas Kron (available from Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, ISBN 9781584889649)
• The Atomic City Girls – Janet Beard (available from HarperCollinsPublishers, ISBN: 9780062666710)
• At Work in the Atomic City: A Labor and Social History of Oak Ridge, Tennessee – Russell B. Olwell (available from The University of Tennessee Press, ISBN 13: 978-1-57233-644-5, ISBN 10: 1-57233-644-7)
• City Behind a Fence: Oak Ridge, Tennessee 1942–1946 – Charles W. Johnson and Charles O. Jackson (available from The University of Tennessee Press, ISBN: 978-0-87049-309-6)
• Dead Hot – M.K. Coker (available from Amazon, ISBN-10: 1545120609, ISBN-13: ‎978-1545120606)
• Decommissioning Health Physics: A Handbook for MARRSIM Users, Second Edition – Eric W. Abelquist (available from Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, ISBN: 9780367867133)
• Environmental Health, Fourth Edition – Dade W. Moeller (available from Harvard University Press, ISBN: 9780674047402)
• Fundamentals of Health Physics & Radiation Protection – Dr. Philip C Fulmer (available from Amazon, ISBN-13: ‎979-8989597901)
• The Girls of Atomic City – Denise Kernan (available from Simon & Schuster, ISBN: 978-1-4516-1752-8)
• The Health Physics Solutions Manual, Third Edition – Thomas E. Johnson (available from Pastime Publications, ISBN: ISBN-10: 1929169051, ISBN-13: 978-1929169054)
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks – Rebecca Skloot (available from Penguin Random House, ISBN 978-1-4000-5218-9)
• Khan's The Physics of Radiation Therapy, Sixth Edition – John P. Gibbons (available from Wolters Kluwer, ISBN: 9781496397522)
• Laser Safety Management – Ken Barat (available from CRC Press, ISBN 9780824723071)
• Low Dose Radiation: The History of the U.S. Department of Energy Research Program – Antone L. Brooks (available from WSU Press, ISBN: 978-0-87422-354-5)
• Principles of Nuclear Radiation Detection – Geoffrey G. Eichholz and John W. Poston (available from Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, ISBN: 9781315895970)
• Radiation Answers: Answers to Your Questions About Radiation and You – Health Physics Society (out of print, ISBN: 978-0-9825161-0-2)
• Radiation Protection: The Essential Guide for Technologists, Second Edition – Thomas E. Johnson (available from Pastime Publications, ISBN-10: 1929169-16-0, ISBN-13: 978-1929169160)
• Radiation Protection: The Essential Workbook for Technologists – Thomas E. Johnson (available from Pastime Publications, ISBN-10: 1929169078, ISBN-13: 978-1929169078)
• Radiation Protection: Solutions Manual – David J. Dolan and Thomas E. Johnson (available from Pastime Publications, ISBN-10: 1929169153, ISBN-13: 978-1929169153)
• Radiation Protection: The Essential Guide for Canadian Technologists – Thomas E. Johnson and Francis E. Tourneur (available from Pastime Publications, ISBN-10: 1929169-17-7, ISBN-13: 978-1929169-17-7)
• Radiation Protection: The Essential Workbook for Canadian Technologists – Thomas E. Johnson and Francis E. Tourneur (available from Pastime Publications, ISBN-10: 1929169-21-4, ISBN-13: 978-1929169-21-4)
• Radiation Protection: Canadian Solutions Manual – David J. Dolan, Francis E. Tourneur, and Thomas E. Johnson (available from Pastime Publications, ISBN-10: 1929169-18-4, ISBN-13: 978-1929169-18-4)
• Radiation Protection in Medical Imaging and Radiation Oncology – Edited by Richard J. Vetter and Magdalena S. Stoeva (available from Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, ISBN: 978-0-367-57521-2)
• Radiation Risks in Perspective – Kenneth L. Mossman (available from Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, ISBN: 9780367453435)
• Radioactive Air Sampling Methods – Edited by Mark L. Maiello and Mark D. Hoover (available from Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, ISBN: 9780849397172)
• Radiobiology for the Radiologist, Eighth Edition – Eric J. Hall and Amato J. Giaccia (available from Wolters Kluwer, ISBN-13: 978-1-4963-3541-8, ISBN-10: 1-4963-3541-4)
• The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women – Kate Moore (available from Sourcebooks, ISBN: 978-1-4926-5095-9)
• X-Ray Imaging: Fundamentals, Industrial Techniques and Applications – Harry E. Martz, Jr., Clint M. Logan, Daniel J. Schneberk, and Peter J. Shull (available from Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, ISBN: 9780849397721)

Do you have professional health physics books you no longer use but that would be helpful to someone else in the field? As you clean out your office, consider listing the books you want to share on the HP Professional Book Sharing page on the Health Physics Society (HPS) website.

Are you looking for professional health physics books, but have a limited budget? Peruse the titles on the HP Professional Book Sharing page and see if any fit your needs. Then contact the person giving away the book to arrange shipping. The book giver and receiver are responsible for arranging and paying for shipping.

To have a book that you want to give away listed on the page, email HPS News Editor Mary Walchuk a photo of the cover; the title, author, publisher, and publication date; and your email address and we will list your book(s).

The April short course offerings have been posted on the Short Courses page of the HPS website. Information on the following courses is available:

Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) School and Refresher Class—RSO Services, Inc.

MARSSIM for Managers Online Training Course—ORAU's Professional Training Programs

Gamma Spectroscopy—ORAU's Professional Training Programs

Facility Decommissioning Training Course—Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Laser Safety Officer (LSO) Training—Kentek Corporation

Certification Review Course Part II and Self Study Course Part II—Bevelacqua Resources

Written by Peter Aina, University of Miami
Edited by Johnson Aina, HPS Student Support Committee

The Student Support Committee is proud to showcase another outstanding graduate student, Peter Aina, who is a chemical engineering PhD student in the Department of Chemical, Environmental, and Materials Engineering, University of Miami. We hope you get to know Peter through learning about his background and current PhD research.

Peter is a third-year PhD student working under Dr. Fateme Razaei, PhD. He obtained his bachelor's in chemistry with emphasis on physical/analytical chemistry for environmental applications at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria. His undergraduate research was focused on the removal of heavy metals in industrial wastewater using an eco-friendly adsorbent. Here he developed a passion to pursue his master's degree in chemistry at Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla where he was exposed to the use of advanced analytical techniques such as GCMS, LC-MS/MS, and NMR, amongst others. He applied his newly acquired knowledge towards evaluation of bromide ion in Ohio State drinking water and characterization of hydrogels.

Peter developed a porous material (UiO-67) for the removal of radioactive iodine (¹²⁹I) in industrial wastewater. The ¹²⁹I was immobilized using UiO-67 and consolidated in a type III cement. This consolidation offers a permanent trap, where the radioactive iodine was kept in a "sealed loop." Hence, it's difficult for this radioactive iodine to leach back and cause secondary contamination in the environment. Through this opportunity, Peter was able to publish his findings in the ACS applied materials and interface and applied engineering materials.

Peter also led a team that was comprised of three undergraduate research assistants on another project, which is centered on the development of a novel bifunctional material which functions as both absorbent and photocatalyst. This bifunctional material absorbs volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in indoor air and destroys adsorbed VOCs in the presence of visible light. He led a US Department of Defense funded project on the design and fabrication of a 3D-printed catalytic filter that protects military personnel and first responders against the lethal effect of chemical warfare agents. This project involves synthesis of reactive polymeric material and investigation of chemical warfare agent destruction mechanism using NMR.

Peter is expected to graduate in the fall of 2024. He looks forward to obtaining a full-time appointment at any national laboratory where he can adequately apply his skills to bolster the national security of the United States. Peter seeks to participate in projects that would allow him to contribute a greater understanding of the protection of military personnel against Type-G and Type-X nerve agents while applying this knowledge to a variety of high-priority projects (e.g., forensics, weapons, medicine, and energy). Through the combination of his chemical engineering, radiation protection, and chemistry backgrounds, Peter hopes to convey the importance of these technologies in an effective manner.

Kris Hyatt, Chapter President

Together again! The Rio Grande Chapter of the Health Physics Society (RGCHPS) held its technical meeting in Santa Fe, New Mexico, 17–18 March 2024—the first since the pandemic in 2020. The RGCHPS, founded in 1962 in New Mexico, represents professionals working in government, national laboratories, universities, and medical facilities or as consultants, among others.

 

On a rather cold Sunday, with Groves' and Oppenheimer's statues covered with snow, the meeting kicked off with a presentation from Bob May, ES&H director at Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility for over 30 years and the main speaker of the 2024 RGCHPS Technical Meeting. May presented the invited lecture "Accelerators and Electron Accelerator Radiation Safety."

The first day of the meeting also included presentations from Ken Groves, who delivered "Duck & Cover, It's Back Again"; Steven Rademacher, who discussed the "Palomares Dose Reconstruction – Part 1"; a talk from our sponsor, Mirion Technologies; and the concluding presentation from Glen McDuff, "Underground Nuclear Testing."

Over 23 attendants joined the meeting, most representing Los Alamos and Sandia National Laboratories. The meeting program focused on accelerators and included presentations from experts from the field!

The second day started with a talk from John Bliss, titled "Response to the Harborview Research and Training Building (Seattle) Contamination," followed by a presentation on "The NCRP: Who, What, and Why?" by Jeff Whicker. Several talks from our sponsors, Ludlum Measurements and Berthold Technologies, were also delivered, followed by a presentation from Mike Duran on "Interactions between Accelerator Safety Order 420.2D and 10CFR835 Occupational Radiation Protection."

 

The program concluded with additional discussions on the "Palomares Dose Reconstruction – Part 2" by Steven Rademacher, a student presentation from Nick Wehmann on "Evaluation of the Domino Micro-Structured Semiconductor Neutron Detector for Applications in Nuclear Material Measurements," a talk from Kirk Rector on "Modern Day Alchemy at LANL," and the last presentation, delivered by John Klumpp, on "The Use of the QUIC-DEPDOSE Application in a Radiological Emergency."

 

The RGCHPS Technical Meeting concluded with a chapter business meeting round table, where new chapter officers were elected: President-elect Esteban Gonzalez, President Kris Hyatt, Secretary Matthew Hill, Treasurer Steven Rademacher, and Directors Jonathan Reynolds, Nicholas Wehmann, and Richard Hacker. Congratulations to new officers and thank you to all speakers and those who attended the 2024 RGCHPS Technical Meeting—you made it a fruitful meeting, filled with questions and relevant discussions!

Thomas Johnson, Student Branch Advisor

Colorado State University sent four students to the Institute of Emergency Radiation Medicine at Hirosaki University in a new collaborative exchange program over spring break (10–19 March 2024). The students were able to perform a dicentric chromosome assay on irradiated cells, conduct health physics training, and visit the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant site. Future collaborative student exchanges have already been planned, as well as a plan to create a new graduate course to be offered in English based on the students' trip. The new course is estimated to be offered in spring of 2025 for one credit. If you are interested in attending this new course, please contact Dr. Thomas Johnson at Colorado State University.

Brant Ulsh, CHP, PhD, Health Physics Editor in Chief

For the May issue of the Health Physics Journal, we again look to our northern neighbors in Canada. The last time we did a special issue highlighting radiation sciences and research was 2019. A lot has happened in the world since then, and I am excited to check in with our Canadian colleagues. This issue gives readers a good snapshot of Canadian work in our field and presents abstracts from the 2023 conference of our sister organization, the Canadian Radiation Protection Association. I think readers will be surprised to learn about the diverse, cutting-edge radiation research going on in Canada. Much credit goes to David Niven for assembling this issue and (as always) to the journal's staff, Deanna Baker and Mary Gene Ryan, working with David to pull this off. I hope you enjoy this very special issue from our friends up north!

Add the dates of the following Health Physics Society meetings to your calendar. Check the Meetings and Conferences page of the website for the most current information.

• 2024 IRPA 16th International Congress/69th HPS Annual Meeting
  7–12 July 2024, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, FL
• 70th HPS Annual Meeting
  13–17 July, 2025, Monona Terrace Convention Center, Madison, WI
• 71st HPS Annual Meeting
  5–9 July 2026, Gaylord National Harbor, MD

HPS Section Awards

Accelerator Section

 

Academic, Industrial, and Research Radiation Safety Section

 

Professional Education Program

Continuing Education Lectures

 

Professional Enrichment Program

 

Professional Development School

 

Bingo in the Exhibit Hall

 

Photos courtesy of Edward Wallace unless otherwise indicated

Elda Anderson Breakfast

 

2023 Members Meeting

 

IRPA 16 Planning Meeting

 

Science Teacher Workshop

 

Public Information Committee

 

Speaker Ready Room

 

Registration Desk

 

HPS Garage Sale

 

Student Travel Grant Recipients

 

Out and About in National Harbor

 

 

 

 

Military Health Physics Section

 

Women in Radiation Protection Section

Photos courtesy of Edward Wallace

Photos courtesy of Edward Wallace

 

 

AAHP Distinguished Membership 2023
Kenneth Skrable, George Chabot, Kathryn Pryor, Kim Kearfott, Frazier Bronson,
Paul Ziemer, Ruth McBurney, Richard Toohey, Ken Kase, and Kent Lambert

 

Photos courtesy of Edward Wallace

Homeland Security and Emergency Response Section

Homeland Security and Emergency Response Section Award
Jacob Kamen

 

Military Health Physics Section

John C. Taschner Leadership Award
Jeffrey S. Caudill

 

Superior Civilian Service Award
Julie A. Clements

 

Young Military Health Physicist of the Year Award
Aure J. Stewart

 

Women in Radiation Protection Section

Inclusivity Award
Lisa Manglass

 

Photos courtesy of Edward Wallace unless otherwise indicated

Elda E. Anderson Award
Deepesh Poudel

 

Elda E. Anderson Award Acceptance Speech

Deepesh Poudel

Good afternoon,

I feel quite anxious at giving speeches, and even contemplated just waving from my seat, but I feel like it is important for me to step out of my comfort zone and express my gratitude to the wonderful people who have helped me get to where I am.

First on the list are Dr. Richard Brey and Dr. Jason Harris, my professors at Idaho State University. In 2010, I was an undergrad at Idaho State University enrolled in the biology program, but I also wanted to study physics, chemistry, and more. I was flipping through the undergraduate catalog and stumbled upon the health physics program—it had a little bit of everything I wanted to study: physics, biology, computer science, and mathematics! I emailed Dr. Brey right away, talked to him for an hour, talked to Dr. Harris, and I was convinced right there that it was the right field for me. Three degrees in health physics and 12 years later, here I am accepting this incredible honor! I am so grateful to Dr. Brey and Dr. Harris for not only teaching me the fundamentals of health physics, but also instilling in me the love for the field and for always, always being there for me, no matter what I needed.

I must also express my gratitude to Eric Krage, my classmate from Idaho State University, who encouraged me to "get out there" and got me into this addicting—and rewarding—path of volunteering for the Society.

I want to thank my current and past bosses at Los Alamos National Laboratory—Dr. Milan Gadd, Stephanie Archuleta, Jeff Hoffman, and Maria Nappi—for their relentless efforts to overcome the challenges of my foreign nationality and ensuring I could continue my work at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). I am so thankful that my team lead at LANL, Dr. John Klumpp, thought I was the right fit for the job—I am very grateful that he provides an exceptional working environment that allows me to learn and grow. I am so grateful to have gotten a chance to work with Dr. Luiz Bertelli and Dr. Ray Guilmette and for the opportunities to continuously bother them with many questions. I am grateful for the opportunities to collaborate with incredible people in the field: Sergei Tolmachev, Guthrie Miller, Dunstana Melo, Maia Avtandilashvili, Sara Dumit, and George Tabatadze—I have learned so much from them! I am very grateful to Dr. Thomas Johnson for working with me together on many of the things I do for the Society.

I want to thank Dr. Charles Wilson from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) for convincing me that I am a suitable candidate for this award and for putting together the nomination package. I am also thankful to Dr. Emily Caffrey—my role model when it comes to service for the Society—for writing the letter of support. I want to thank Dr. Craig Little and many of the people I mentioned earlier—Drs. Brey, Caffrey, Harris, Johnson, Tolmachev, and Wilson—for their supporting letters.

I would not be standing here without the support of my wife Ramila—her boundless love and her constant presence have been my source of strength. She believes in me more than anyone else does—perhaps not as much as my team leader but definitely more than myself. I am thankful to have someone like her by my side for the last 15 years, constantly reminding me of my potential. I am thankful to my parents for allowing me to leave Nepal to pursue a better future in the Unites States. Now that I am a father myself—I have a 2-year-old—I understand the pain and suffering my parents endured in letting me come to a country thousands of miles away, where I knew no one and barely spoke the language. I am so glad they made that sacrifice for me.

Finally, I want to thank the Health Physics Society that has given me so much over the last decade or so, from travel grants to scholarships and fellowships, but most importantly, for the network it exposed me to and for the opportunities it provided me. I hope to give back to the Society as much as it has given me.

I also hope to be able to live up to the expectations of the award. I was at the award breakfast on Monday, and I looked around at the remarkable individuals who have previously received the award, including my own professors and other individuals I deeply admire. I am incredibly humbled, and I can't help but acknowledge that I still have much to learn and accomplish on my journey! To me, the award is more of a reminder of what I still must do than it is a testament to my accomplishments so far.

Thank you!

 

Elda Anderson Breakfast

 

Founders Award
David Connolly

 

Geoffry G. Eichholz Outstanding Science Teacher Award
Ann Marie Dubick

 

Fellows of the Health Physics Society

 

Lectureship Awards

 

HPS 50-Year Members

 

 

50-Year Affiliate Member: ORTEC

 

Student Fellowships

Burton J. Moyer Fellowship
Bryanna Wattier, Clemson University

Health Physics Society Fellowship
Anilu Diaz, Francis Marion University

Health Physics Society Fellowship
Heechan Lee, Georgia Institute of Technology

Robert Gardner Memorial Fellowship
Ignacio Bartol, Georgia Institute of Technology

Robert S. Landauer, Sr., Memorial Fellowship
Dmitri Margot, Georgia Institute of Technology

Richard J. Burk, Jr., Fellowship
Annelise Gonzales, Clemson University

J. Newell Stannard Memorial Fellowship
Emmanuel Mate-Kole, Georgia Institute of Technology

Dade W. Moeller Scholarship
Suman Shrestha, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Dade W. Moeller Scholarship Memorializing Kelly Austin
Anna Manfredo, Illinois Institute of Technology

F. Ward Whicker Scholarship
Jonathan Whipple, Oregon University

 

Student Travel Grant Recipients

Sherry Adadi, Georgia Institute of Technology

Johnson Aina, Idaho State University

Andrea Alipio, University of Santo Tomas

Samuel Arnold (AIRRS), University of Alabama at Birmingham

Eric Ofosu Asare, University of Ghana-School of Nuclear and Allied Sciences

Melissa Bailey, Oregon State University

Alex Baty (Decommissioning), University of Alabama at Birmingham

Ridhita Binte Borhan (Decommissioning), University of Massachusetts Lowell

Chandler Burgos (AIRRS), Purdue University

Christine Dulohan, University of Santo Tomas Graduate School

Mohammad Omar Faruque Fahim, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Jacob Farkas (Decommissioning), Purdue University

David Gonzalez, Georgia Institute of Technology

Thomas Grier, Purdue University

Philip Gyan, KEPCO International Nuclear Graduate School

Christina Hewett, Illinois Institute of Technology

Chukwuka James, Alcorn State University

Elif Kara, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München

Maruf Hassan Khan (Decommissioning), Purdue University, West Lafayette

Joeun Lee, Purdue University

William Lynn (Decommissioning), University of Alabama at Birmingham

Arielle Miller (Medical Health Physics), University of Alabama at Birmingham

Martin Murungi, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Stephen Reed, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Andrew Rosenstrom, Georgia Institute of Technology

Ricky Sahagun, Purdue University

Abdullahi Shittu, King Abdulaziz University

Lancer Smith (Medical Health Physics), University of Alabama at Birmingham

Sarah Sublett, Colorado State University

Theodore Thomas, Purdue University

Yi Wei, Georgia Institute of Technology

Paige Witter, Colorado State University

 

Photos courtesy of Edward Wallace unless otherwise indicated

Plenary Sessions

 

Internal Dosimetry Session

 

American Academy of Health Physics Special Session

Thank you to the following publishers and authors who donated books for the Publications Booth book drawing in the exhibit hall at the 68th Health Physics Society Annual Meeting. If you would like to purchase one of the books, links for ordering are provided.

• Dead Hot: A Dakota Mystery – M.K. Coker (available at amazon.com, ISBN: 978-1545120606)
• Environmental Health, 4th Edition – Dade Moeller (available from Harvard University Press, www.hup.harvard.edu, ISBN: 978-0674047402)
• The Essential Physics of Medical Imaging, Fourth Edition – Jerrold T. Bushberg, J. Anthony Seibert, Edwin M. Leidholdt, Jr., and John M. Boone (available from Wolters Kluwer, ISBN: 978-1975103224)
• The Essential Physics of Medical Imaging Study Guide – Jerrold T. Bushberg, J. Anthony Seibert (available from Wolters Kluwer, ISBN: 978-1975103262)
• The Health Physics Solutions Manual, 3rd Edition – Thomas E. Johnson (available at amazon.com, ISBN: 978-1929169054)
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks – Rebecca Skloot (available at amazon.com, ISBN: 978-1400052189)
• Low Dose Radiation: The History of the U.S. Department of Energy Research Program – Antone L. Brooks (available from Washington State University Press, wsupress.wsu.edu, ISBN: 978-0-87422-354-5)
• Laser Safety Management – Ken Barat (available at CRC press, ISBN 978-0824723071)
• Laser Safety: Practical Knowledge and Solutions – Edited by Ken Barat (available at IOP Publishing, Inc. [ebook, PDF, Kindle], Barnes and Noble (hardcover), Online ISBN: 978-0750355049, Print ISBN: 978-0750355001
• Radiation Protection: The Essential Guide for Technologists – Thomas E. Johnson (available at Pastime Publications, ISBN: 978-1929169061)
• Radiation Protection: Solutions Manual – Thomas E. Johnson and David J. Dolan (available at Pastime Publications, ISBN: 978-1929169153)
• Radiation Protection: The Essential Workbook for Technologists – Thomas E. Johnson (available at Pastime Publications, ISBN: 978-1929169078)
• Radiation Protection: The Essential Guide for Canadian Technologists – Thomas E. Johnson and Francis E. Tourneur (ISBN: 978-1929169177)
• Silent Source – James Marshall Smith (available at amazon.com, ISBN: 978-1939398703)

Jessica Joyce, Mentorship Committee Chair

The Health Physics Society (HPS) Mentorship Committee was happy to host a group of motivated individuals at the 68th HPS Annual Meeting for this year's early-morning Challenging Health Physics Questions (CHPQ) event! Participants worked in small groups to solve written health physics questions about ion chamber detectors, neutron activation, and internal dosimetry. Each question was designed to take 30 minutes to solve and relied on provided information as well as foundational health physics concepts. Volunteer coaches Deepesh Poudel, Thomas Johnson, and Zachariah Tribbett provided coaching and grading. Want to challenge yourself? Reach out to the Mentorship Committee to get a copy of this year's CHPQs or plan to join us for the next event.