Recently the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette published an editorial supporting the expansion of nuclear power production in Arkansas. The editorial correctly noted that nuclear power is "safe, clean and reliable." We know this is right because, since the mid-1950s, the U.S. Navy has deployed nuclear-powered ships without a single significant mishap. The Navy's submarines and aircraft carriers get their power from the kinds of "micro-reactors" the editorial mentioned.

A challenge to the growth of nuclear power in Arkansas (and elsewhere in the U.S.) is a dearth of people qualified to do the work. Linked to this is the persistently disheartening news from our schools and universities. Preparation for work in the nuclear field is demanding and serious. Whatever is happening at most of our universities, seriousness and high standards aren't prominent. As with technical fields generally, nuclear power aspirations outstrip our capacity to produce people capable of meeting them.

Just as the Navy has proven that nuclear safety--day after day, decade after decade--is possible, we can also look to the Navy to help meet the country's growing need for people capable of working in the field of nuclear power. I........

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