Despite the challenges that we have faced, this past year has been successful for the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Texas A&M University. The strength and perseverance of our faculty, staff and students have shone through, proving that our nuclear engineering family can do anything we set our minds to.
Our faculty and former students continue to conduct remarkable research and meet unchartered milestones. We are happy to welcome Dr. Warren “Pete” Miller, who served as the assistant secretary for nuclear energy in 2009, as a professor of practice. Former student Dr. X. George Xu ’94 was awarded the Edith H. Quimby Award for Lifetime Achievement in Medical Physics, and he credits his nuclear professors for providing him with the tools he needed to establish an innovative and renowned research career.
Our students have also displayed exemplary scholarship and research throughout the year. Last September, Los Alamos National Laboratory sponsored Aggies Invent, a competition in which students have only 48 hours to tackle various challenges. The challenge last year was nuclear security. Events like these not only allow for multidisciplinary collaboration across departments, but also help increase awareness of complex nuclear issues and expand education to the public. You can read more about our faculty and student accomplishments inside.
I hope you enjoy the overview of our department and enjoy learning how our students, staff and faculty continue to innovate and position us at the forefront of nuclear engineering and science with award-winning research and recognition. We look forward to continually pursuing innovations to benefit society across a broad range of areas and working with our former students and friends to take our department to new frontiers.
Sincerely,
Dr. Michael Nastasi
Professor and Department Head of Nuclear Engineering
Sallie and Don Davis ’61 Professorship in Engineering