A report to the Governor and the General Assembly, February, 1960

GEORGIA NUCLEAR ADVISORY COMMISSION
A Report to the Governor and the General Assembly February, 1960
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I;;, , :., ~ (:iirY uf GEOrtGIA
JUN7 '61
LIBRARIES

NUCLEAR ADVISORY COMMfSSION

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ATLANTA . GEORGIA

February 24, 196'0 .

The Honorable S. Ernest Vandiver Governor of Georgia State Capitol Atlanta 3, Georgia
My dear Governor: I am pleased to submit to you and the General
Assembly a brief report concerning the activities of
the Georgia Nuclear Advisory Commission during the
past year. This report covers the period from
February 1, 1959, through February 1, 1960. Sincerely,
~ Chairman

GEORGIA NUCLEAR ADVISORY COMMISSION -

Governor Ernest Vandiver. Ex-Of-Ficio Attorney-General Eugene Cook . Ex-Officio

Mr. Frank H. Neely , Chairman
Mr. Harllee Branch, Jr. , Vice-Chairman (Leg/slat-/on and Inter-State Coo_Perst/ on)

Mr. Robert B . Wa I lace, Secretary
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AGRICULTURE
Dr: C . C. Murray, Cha / rrnan Dr: George King Hon. Phil Campbell Mr. Wm . J . Estes Hon. John Duncan

INDUSTRY
Mr. R. W. Middlewood, Chcrurman Mr. D. B. Lawton Rep. Chappelle Matthews Mr. Howard Callaway Hon. J . M. Cheatham

MEDICINE
Dr: Bruce Schaefer, Cha 1rman Dr: John Venable Dr: John T. Godwin Dr: Harry B. O'Rear Dr: Morgan Raiford

EDUCATION
Dr: W . M . Suttles. Cha;rman Dr. 0 . C. Aderhold Dr. E. D. Harrison Hon. Ebb Duncan
Hon. Robert 0 Arnold
Dr. Claude Purcell Mr. A . L. Fe Id m a n Dr: Harmon Caldwell

RESEARCH
Dr: J . E. Boyd , Cha ; rman Dr: W . B . Harrison
Mr: Morris M . Bryan. Jr. Mr: Ott.ley McCarty Hon. George L. Smith, II
Consultant : Dr: W. G. Pollard. Execvt/re /);rectCY
or t he 0 .;-f ,f;dge l nstdw-te
or !VNclear S rwd/e s . Inc.

HISTORY

The Georgia Nuclear Advisory Commission was created by the

t9SiGeorgia General Assembly under House Resolution 24-50a. Its

responsibilities were defined by this resolution as follows:

1. To be alert to new developments in nuclear science and

related sciences, and to consider their impact upon the

'State of Georgia and the well-being of its people.

2. To advise the Governor and the General Assembly of Georgia

concerning new developments, opportunities, and needed

legislation relating to nuclear energy and its applications.

3. To disseminate information and provide technical liaison

concerning new developments so that potential benefits to

the-state may be fully realized in the minimum time.

4. To promote basic education and research on which the

optimum development and use of nuclear energy depend

so strongly.

During this year the Commission was reorganized, and fifteen

new appointees were sworn in at a special ceremony presided over by the

Governor on December 10, 1959.

The new members are Mr. William J. Estes, President ,

Empire Seed Company of Haralson; Representative John P. Duncan, Jr.,

of Macon; Mr. R. W. Middlewood, manager of Lockheed Nuclear Products

of the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation of Marietta; Mr. Howard Callaway,

member of the Board of Regents of Hamilton; Mr. J. M. Cheatham, presi-

dent of Dundee Mills of Griffin; Dr. John Venable, director of the Georgia

Department of Public Health; Dr. John T. Godwin, director of laboratories

of St. Joseph 1s Infirmary of Atlanta; Dr. Harry B. 0 1Rear , acting presi-

dent of the Medical College of Georgia of Augusta; Dr. Morgan B. Raiford

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of the Ponce de Leon Infi rmary of Atlanta ; Chancellor Harmon Caldwell of the University System; Mr . Morri s M. Bryan , Jr ., member of the Board of Regents of Jefferson; Mr. Ottley McCarty , manager of Audichron of Atlanta; Mr. A. L. Feldman , pres i dent of -Puri tan Chemical Company of Atlanta; Speaker of the House , George L. Smith, II, of Waynesboro , and special consultant Dr . W . G . Pollard, executive director of the Oak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies of Oak R i dge , Tennessee.
Reappointed to the Commi ssion were Mr. Frank H . Neely , Chai rman of the Board of R i ch 1s , Inc. , of Atlanta, renamed the Commission Chai rman ; Mr . Harllee Branch , Jr ., presi dent of The Southern Company of Atla nta , renamed Commi ssi on vice chai rman; and Mr. Robert B . Wallace , Jr ., Head of Publi cati ons at Georgia Tech , renamed Commission secretar y. Also , Dr . C. C . Murray , dean and coordinator of the College of Agriculture at The Uni versity of Georgia of Athens; Dr . George King, director of The Uni vers i ty of Georgia 1 s Experiment Stations ; Commi s ~ioner of Agri culture Phil Campbell ; Mr. D . B . Lawton, plant manager for General Electric Corporation in Rome; Chairman of the House Committee for the University S y stem , Chappelle Matthews of Athens; Dr. W. Bruce Schaefer , immediate past president of the Medi cal Associati on of Georgia of Toccoa; Dr . William M . Suttles , Dean of Students at Georgi a State College of Business Admini strati on in Atlanta; Dr . 0. C. Aderhold , president of The University of Georgia in Athens ; Dr. E. D . Harrison , pres i dent of the Georgia Institute of Technology of Atlanta ; Member of the House Education Committee, Ebb Duncan of Carrollton; Mr. Robert 0. Arnold, Chairman of Board of Regents of Covi ngton ; State Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Claude Purcell of Atlanta; Dr . James E . Boyd , Director of Georgia Tech1s Engineering
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Experiment Station of Atlanta; and Dr. William B. Harrison, director of Georgia Tech's Reactor Project.
EDUCATION COMMITTEE - Chairman, Dr. William M. Suttles During the past year the Commis sian concentrated most of its
efforts in preparing four special reports under the general title, "Governor's Conference on Education. 11 These reports were made by task forces of interested Georgia citizens and covered the following general areas: Report I , Educational Television; Report II, Teacher Education; Report III, Testing, Counseling , and Guidance; and Report IV , Vocational Education.
This work was carried out by a special steering committee under the chairmanship of Mr. A. L. Feldman, president of the Puritan Chemical Company. Other members of the steering committee included Dr. WilliamSuttles, ChairmanoftheEducationCommittee; Dr. 0. C. Aderhold , president of The University of Georgia; Dr. Harmon W. Caldwell, Chancellor of the University System of Georgia; Dr. Claude L. Purcell, State Superintendent of Schools; Dr. H. Sam Shearouse, Director of Instruction, State Department of Education; and Dr. Doak S. Campbell, President Emeritus of Florida State University, who acted as Coordinator of Studies for the reports.
Two of these reports have already been printed and distributed to you and the members of the General Assembly as well as to educators throughout the State, school board members, businessmen and industrialists who attended the Governor 1 s Conference on Education in 19 58, newspaper editors, and leading educators throughout the country. The final two reports will be distributed in March, 1960, to the same mailing list. Here are the highlights of these reports:
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Report I - Educational Television :...:..--.:.--
Task Force members include Chairman Harvey H. Walters, Secretary-Manager of Georgia Press Association; Mr . Cerard L. Appy, A.ssociate Director , Center for Continuing E d ucation, University of Oeorgia; Dr. William Lo Bowden , Regional Programs Associate, Southern Regional Education Board; Reverend Richard Orme Flinn, Jr . , Carrollton Presbyterian Church; Mr. George Goodwin, Vice President, First National Bank; Mrs. Mary Grubbs, Coordinator Educational Television, State Department of Educati on; Mr. Paul Gupti ll , 9th Grade Science Teacher, Atlanta Public Schools; Mr. Walter Harrison, Publisher, Millen News, Millen, Georgia; Mr. Kelly Mosley, Assistant Vice President, Southern Bell Telephone Company; Mr. William Neal, Liller , Neal, Battle & Lindsey; and Mr. Lee Rogers , Director of Public Relations, Lockheed Aircraft Corporation.
This report summed up the impact that educational television was having in improving the quality and extending the scope of education. It suggested a pro gram of action designed to make educational television available to the entire State of Georgia. The recommendations of the Task Force were supported by sound evidence of the effectiveness of educational television, and they were set forth in relationship to a possible time schedule.
Report II - Teacher Education Task Force members included Chairman, Dr. James E . Greene,
Head of Graduate Studies , School of Education, University of Georgia; Mr o Robert F . Adamson , Executive Vice President, Citizens and Southern National Bank; Miss Marjorie Crouch, Georgia Teachers College; Dr. Warren G. Findley, Assistant Superintendent , Pupil Personnel Services, Atlanta Board of Education; Mr . Edgar J. Forio, Vice President, The Coca Cola Company; Mr. E o C. Hammond, Secretary, Georgia Power Company;
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Dr . -Robert E . Lee , -President , Georgia State College for Women; :Miss Mary Ellen Perkins , Coordinator, Teacher Education, Sta-te Depart ment of Education; Dr . Lloyd B. Raisty, Vice President, Federal Reserve :B,ank ; Mr. W. L . Rob i nson , President, Fulton County Board of Educc;~.tion; :Mr. W . A. Thompson, Vice President, Personnel, Southern Bell Telephone & Telegraph Company; and Dr. Judson C . Ward , Jr., Dean of Faculties, Ernory University.
This report was made from a source book put together by members of the staff of the College of Education at the University of Georgia. It pointed out that the recruitment and the education of greater numbers of young people of high intellectual and moral quality for the profession of teaching is a matter of great concern to the State. The report also pointed out that the education of a competent teacher is a complex process. It cannot be accomplished in a vacuum. It is conditioned by many factors that are affected by the public attitude toward teachers, by the conditions under which the teacher must work, by the promise of reasonable security, and a reasonable standard of living. The report concluded with the following statement: "Reduced to its simplest terms, the problem of securing and maintaining an adequate supply of capable , well-educated teachers can be solved only by -determined activity on the part of the citizens of the State. No amount of well-wishing or appeal to idealism can convince our brightest young people that it is to their best interest to dedicate their lives to teaching unless they can be assured of complete social acceptance and reasonable financial security. The better school systems have long since learned that if they provide for these conditions, they can select their teachers with discriminati on. 11
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-Report III - Testing , Counseling, and Guidance (now being published) Task Force members included Chairman J. Ralph Thaxton, president, Valdosta State College; Dr, Cameron Fincher, Director of Testing and Counseling , Georgia "State College of Business Adminh;tration; Dr. J. R. Hills , Director of Testing and Guidance , Regents, University System of Georgia; Mr. Alva B. Lines , General M -anager, Southeastern
Films; Dr. -s. Walter -Martin , President , Emory -University; Dr. Joseph
E. Moore , Professor of Psychology , Georgia Institute -of Technology; Mr. William Nall , Director of Testing and Guidance, R. E. Lee Institute; Mr. -R . D. Pulliam , Chi ef , Gui dance and Testing , State Department of Education; Mr. J. C . Shelor, Vice President, -Fulton National Bank; Dr. Trawick -Stubbs , State Health Department ; and Dr. Carl A. Whitaker, Atlanta Psychiatric Clinic. This report pointed out that a basic concept of our school systems is that they provid-e for each child the education that is appropriate to his own peculiar needs , aptitudes and capabilities.
It is recognized that different individuals are endowed with different nati ve talents and abilities. They come from widely differing environments and influences. They learn at different rates, and they study under varying conditions. Thus , with pupils of a given age group who pursue essentially the same course of study, we may findva-ria-tions of accomplishment covering a range of three or four school grades or years.
Under such conditions many pupils with special talents are not challenged and developed. ---such pupils often fail to continue on to higher institutions where they might have become successful scholars. Many of them do not even graduate from high school. Conversely, many pupils who do not possess the requisites of scholarship insist on pursuing a course des1. gned for college entrance and scholarly development. The frustration
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of such pupils when they fail to make the grade is often tragic in its consequences .
Many others, who though not potential scholars, might pursue courses that would be appropriate to their talents and interests. They might be taught to become intelligent and economically competent citizens. Instead , they drop out of school often because the course of study has little meaning for them.
These conditions led the Commi ssion to conclude in the report that there is need for greater emphasis upon testing , counseling , and guidance in our schools o For that reason this report reviewed the entire testing , counseling , and gui dance problem and suggested practicable means for improvement in these areas.
Report IV - Vocational Education (now being published} Task Force members included Chairman Henry A. Stewart , Sr. ,
Cedartown , Georgia; Mr. Brunswick A. Bagdon, Regional Director, Bureau of Labor Statistics , U o S . Department of Labor; Mr . T. A. Carmichael , Director of Negro Education; Mrs o Maria M. Mallett, Assistant Chief, Reports and Analysi s Section , Georgia Department of Labor; Mr. J. F. Murdock, Superi ntendent, Floyd County Schools , and Mr. John Henry Woodall, Sr . , President, Georgia Cushion and Wrapper Company.
Thi s report dealt with the problems that will accompany the anticipated development of the State of Georgia, especially the problem of providing the necessary manpower to operate industrial plants, assure maximum agricultural production, service the essential utilities and appliances, and operate facilities of transportation, communication, and distribution of goods .
These vari ous services will require greatly increased numbers
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of skilled and professionally trained individuals and relatively -smaller num bers of unskilled workers. In order to meet the demand for -these trained workers, two alternati ves present themselves: 1) train larger numbers of our own citizens , or 2) attract trained workers from other states. So long as there are youths and adults in our own State who can be adequately trained for gainful employment, it would seem that the wisest course would be to use every reasonable means to train our own citizens.
Georgia has maintained vocational education in its public school program since 1917. Many fine results have been achieved, especially in the older programs of agriculture and home economics. The newer programs in business education , di stributive education , industrial arts, and trade and industrial education have made substantial beginnings.
Because of the great urgency of our manpower needs , the Georgia Nuclear Advisory Commission has given special attention to this phase of our educational pro gram.
The report of this Task Force i s being published in the hope that it will stimulate the people of Gear gia to greater activity in providing adequate education for vocational competence of the youth and adults of Georgia.
The compiling , editing , publication, and distribution of these four reports was a herculean task and one that the Commission could not have accomplished without the devoted efforts of the members of the_task forces and the support of Governor Vandiver.
RESEARCH COMMITTEE - Chairman , Dr. J. E. Boyd Georgia has made considerable progress during the past year
with new facilities for research in the nuclear areas. These new facilities include the Radioisotopes and Bioengineering Laboratory at Georgia Tech,
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the new Research Reactor soon to be c-onstructed at Georgia Tech, the nuclear facilities at The University of Georgia (these will be treated in the section on agriculture) , and Lockheed's new reactor and other research facilities (these will be treated in the section on industry) .
Georgia Tech's Radioisotopes and Bioengineering Laboratory was completed and occupied in early 1959. It presently has over $500,000 in research contracts and is overflowing with excellent teaching and research personnel and superior equipment.
As a result of acquiring this facility , Georgia Tech has developed research projects during the past year in nuclear ceramics, upper atmosphere particle collectors , basic nuclear physics , industrial applications of radioisotopes, modification of chemical substances by radiation , and many other areas of nuclear education and research .
The Research Reactor design specifications have been completed and should go out for bids very soon. The facility is not completely financed as yet, but Tech has hopes that it will be before the contract is let. Georgia Tech is seeking other sources of support in order to maintain the biomedical facilities connected with the reactor.
The Nuclear Advisory Commission firmly believes that these important research facilities at Tech will continue to attract top teachers and researchers. We also believe that these facilities will be a magnet to industry and will eventually help to rais~ the per capita income of this State.
AGRICULTURE COMMITTEE - Chairman, Dr. C. C. Murray Although the direct use of atomic power in agriculture is still
in the picture, at present it is the side or indirect effects of controlled atomic fission that are of most importance. This is particularly true for agricultural and biological research. The ionizing radiation developed by
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the atomic reaction itself and by the by-products of the reaction i s currently having a tremendous impact upon research and development in both agriculture and industry.
The value and significance of ionizing radiation to scientific advancement have been recognized since the turn of the century, but it has been only since the development of atomic reactors that radioisotopes (sources of ionizing radiation) have been available in sufficient quantity and at a low enough cost for practical use. Personnel engaged in agricultural and biological research have been quick to employ radiation as a valuable research tool. Here are a few examples of its use in Georgia:
During the past year, The University of Georgia has begun operations with a Cobalt 60 field irradiation facility. It is being used for the purpose of irradiating a wide variety of plants for inducing genetic changes through mutation. This research will aid farmers, nurserymen and horticulturists. The University is also experimenting with this facility on insects and similar pests with an eye on the curbing of the effects of such pests on crops.
"Scientists at the University had a great deal of prior experience in these areas by using the facilities at the AEC installation in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
This committee would like to point out that the development of the Research Reactor at Georgia Tech will open up new vistas in the use of radioisotopes, particularly in the field of nutrition. The University of
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Georgia researchers will be able to obtain radioisotopes of a much shorter half-life than they are now able to get from Oak Ridge, Presently, University researchers are using radioisotopes to study the physiology, chemistry, and nutrition of both plants and animals, but they are limited in the scope
of their operations because of the unavailability of prime short life radioisotope~
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Other areas in wh i ch radi oisotopes have great potential are food processing and food preservati on. Here , agai n , the Georgia Tech Reactor will be of great benefit to University of Georgia researchers in their wo r k .
MEDICINE COMMITTEE - Chai rma n , D r .Bruce Schaefer During the past y ear , the Geo r gi a Nuclear Advi sory Commis-
sion , along with the Southern Regiona l Educati on Board and the Oak Ridge Institut e of Nu c lea r-s t udi es , co - sponsored a spe cial 11 Conference on the Medical Uses of Nuclea r Rea cto r s. " The conf erence was held in Atlanta
on Februa r y 16 , 1969 , and f eat ured as speakers nati onal leaders i n the
fi eld of nuclear medicine . Over 65 representa t i ves from the leading medi c a l s c hools i n the Southeast a nd the l a rger hospitals i n the area attended the conference.
It i s the opi n i on of thi s commi t t ee tha t it i s most i mportant that Georgia T e ch se c ure an addi t i onal m i lli on dollars i t needs to complete the medi cal secti on of the nuclear reactor. There i s ample Federal money available for resear c h projects once the reactor i s completed. The commi ttee , along with the Commi ss i on , a nd Georgia Tech are trying to secure thi s money.
During the past year , more and more phys i cians in the State turned to the use of r a di oi sotopes for specia l treatment. Presently , four Cobalt uni ts are in operation in the State, two in Atlanta and two 1n Augusta . These units are bei ng used mostly in the treatment of cancer and are helping people to live a great deal longer .
At the present t i me , students , interns and residents are receivi ng trai n ing i n the cli n i cal appli cati on of radioi sotopes at both Emory Uni versi ty Hospital and the Talmadge Memorial Hospital i n Augusta.
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INDUSTRY COMMITTEE - Chairman , Mr . R . W . Middlewood One of the most tangible benefits coming from the peaceful
uses of nuclear energy is the utilization of radioisotopes by industry to reduce production costs , improve products , and to create new and better uses of materials .
Industrial programs started growing in 1~5() when approximately
:ro-o i ndustr i al firms were exploring the uses of radioisotopes as industrial
tools . Today more than 25CJO firms (including many Georgia firllls) are using isotopes in producti on , controls , and inspection. It is anticipated that future growth will be even greater as the benefi ts are demonstrated and become known generally to industry and management.
Some of the most interesting and important uses of radioisotopes are found in radiography where metal sections and parts can be examined up to 12 inches thickness of steel. Radioactive tracing techniques have been used in the automobile industry , the aircraft industry, and the chemical and petroleum industries , with some of the most publicized uses being the improvement of automotive lubricants and machine tools through wear studies.
The most important industry application to come to light is in the general field of non- destructive testing and gaging. In this field, Lockheed Nuclear Products has been especially active in research and development to close a very important gap in isotopes gaging techniques.
Until this time there have been three major methods used in gaging m a te r i als. These are :
( l) The penetration gages where radiation penetrates a given thickness of material and is detected on the opposite side with an intensity proportional to the density or thickness of the sample.
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(2) A reflection gage used primarily in the paper an-d plastics industry where a weekly penetrating radiation i s used to gage thickness on variations of thin coatings on thin materials. Penetration gages do not have the sensitivity fo-r this type of applicati on .
(3) The neutron activation gage , used primarily by the growing nuclear industry , where secondary effects of neutron bombardment of materials are used to measure density , chemical composition , moisture content , and variations of material composition.
Still a fourth area i s the Compton Backscatter technique currently being developed for the At omic Energy Commission by Lockheed Nuclear Products. This g.age will enable non- destructive testing and inspection of reasonable thick and dense materials where access is only possible on one side of the material. Examples of the use of such a gage are inspection and maintenance of power plant boilers and heat ex-changers , inspection of defects in metal casting , inspection and maintenance of oil well casings , and inspection of pipe lines and pipe transmission systems.
Many other uses are envisioned for thi s type of gage , and the general interest in the application of this type of device is rapidly growing.
LEGISLATIVE SUBCOMMITTEE - Chairman , Harllee Branch, Jr. At a. special m.eeting of the Legislative Subcommittee on
January 6 , 196 0 , the agenda consisted of the following items: ( 1) The uniform code for radiation protection and inspection. (2) The possibility of an increased Workmen's Compensation Coverage B ill to specifically cover radiation accidents. (3) The Southern Interstate Nuclear Compact.
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Attending the meeting presided over by the Subcommittee chairrnan were r e presentative s of the State Department of Public Health, the Attorney General's Office , Representative Chappelle Matthews, and Representative J . Ebb Duncan of the General Assembly, and the Commission secretary .
After a di scus sian of the items on the agenda, the following recommendations were specifically made by the subcommittee and have been adopted by the Georgia Nuclear Advisory Commission:
( l) Since suffici ent authority i s invested in the Public Health Department , the Public Utility Commission, the Department of Agri culture , and other State agencies to protect the people of Georgi a under existing regulations, there is no need at the present for a specific code concerning radiation protection and inspection. However, officials of the State Department of Public Health have prepared a tentative bill in c a se it i s ever needed by the State.
(2) On the advi ce of the Georgia Workmen's Compensation Commission , the Georgia Nuclear Advisory Commission recommends that there be no specific nuclear legislation in the Workmen 1s Compensation area . Again, existing regulations cover this area.
(3) The Commiss i on looks with favor upon the Southern Interstat e Nuclear Compact and feels that properly administrated, it could well serve the advance of the nuclear industry in the South .
As the Commi ss i on learns more about Georgia's nuclear problems , it may suggest legislation for future
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