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PNNL researcher selected for prestigious symposium
Eric Smith
(Original high-resolution image.)
Eric Smith, a radiation detection instrumentation specialist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been invited to participate in the 2008 U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium in September.
This is the sixth year in a row a PNNL staff member has been invited to attend the annual symposium, which brings together a select group (fewer than 100) of the nation's outstanding young engineers (between 30-45 years old) from industry, academia and government to discuss pioneering technical work and leading-edge research in various engineering fields and industry sectors. Attendees are selected based on having "demonstrated accomplishment in engineering research and technical work with recognizable contributions to advancing the frontiers of engineering."
Smith is a senior research scientist/engineer at PNNL advancing science and developing technologies in the area of applied radiation detection. His achievements include:
· National recognition for technical contributions and leadership in the development and evaluation of radiation detection systems for national security and in the development and use of simulation tools for detection scenario analysis.
· Active in developing next-generation sensor technologies for nuclear fuel cycle safeguards.
· Leads a high-visibility, multi-organization effort to develop modeling and simulation tools necessary to evaluate the Advanced Spectroscopic Portal systems for the Department of Homeland Security's Domestic Nuclear Detection Office.
· Technical lead of the DOE Global Nuclear Energy Partnership Safeguards Enhancement Study.
· Current research projects also include the development of advanced radiation transport methods using coupled deterministic-Monte Carlo methods, and the exploration of lead slowing-down spectroscopy for irradiated nuclear fuel assay.
· Taught the "Nuclear Science in Homeland Security" course at the IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium for the last three years and has been an invited speaker at venues ranging from highly technical to community-oriented.
Smith was awarded the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society Radiation Instrumentation Early Career Award in 2006, and was nominated and selected to Senior Member status during that same year. He also received the DOE Outstanding Mentor Award in 2002.
The Frontiers of Engineering Symposium will be hosted Sept. 18-20 by Sandia National Laboratories at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. It gives early-career engineers an opportunity to learn about cutting-edge developments in fields other than their own. The goal is to facilitate collaborative work and the transfer of new approaches and techniques across fields.
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is a DOE Office of Science national laboratory where interdisciplinary teams advance science and technology and deliver solutions to America's most intractable problems in energy, national security and the environment. PNNL employs 4,000 staff, has an $855 million annual budget, and has been managed by Ohio-based Battelle since the lab's inception in 1965.
Contacts: Mary Anne Wuennecke, PNNL, (509) 375-2447
