NRC NEWS

 U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

 Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200

 Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 E-mail: opa@nrc.gov 

Web Site: http://www.nrc.gov

 

No.: 06-005 January 9, 2006

 

NRC’S ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON REACTOR SAFEGUARDS ELECTS NEW

CHAIRMAN, VICE CHAIRMAN AND MEMBER-AT-LARGE

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS)

has re-elected Dr. Graham B. Wallis as Chairman, Dr. William J. Shack as Vice-Chairman, and John

D. Sieber as Member-at-Large. The ACRS advises the Commission independently from the NRC staff

on the safety and safeguards aspects of nuclear facilities and the adequacy of safety standards.

Dr. Wallis was appointed to the ACRS in 1998. He received his bachelor’s degree in 1957 in

mechanical sciences from Cambridge University. He received his master of science degree from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology and later earned M.A. and Ph.D. degrees at Cambridge

University. Dr. Wallis is the emeritus Sherman Fairchild Professor of Engineering, Thayer School of

Engineering, Dartmouth College. Previously, he’d served in a variety of academic positions in the

United States and abroad, including several positions at Dartmouth, where he also served as interim

dean of engineering from 1994-1995. His consulting experience includes Creare, Inc. and Hypertherm,

Inc.

Dr. Shack was appointed to the ACRS in 1993. He received a bachelor’s degree in civil

engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in applied

mechanics from the University of California-Berkeley. Previously, Dr. Shack was an assistant

professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and

later joined the Argonne National Laboratory, where he is currently associate director of the Energy

Technology Division. His work has included measurement and modeling of residual stresses, fracture

mechanics analyses of stress corrosion crack growth, assessment of leak-before-break behavior in

piping systems, and fatigue of reactor materials.

Sieber was appointed to the ACRS in 1999. He received his B.S. M.E. degree from Carnegie

Mellon University. He also attended Purdue University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. 

He has served as a member or director of: the Electric Power Research Institute, Nuclear Electric

Insurance Limited, Nuclear Energy Institute, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and the

Westinghouse Owners Group. He was senior vice president and chief nuclear officer at Duquesne Light

Co. prior to retirement. Sieber has been the president of Northmont Consulting, Inc., since 1994. His

primary activities include nuclear plant assessments, management oversight, event analysis, root cause

determinations, and operational and human performance analysis.
The other members of the ACRS are:

Dr. George E. Apostolakis, professor, Nuclear Engineering Department, Massachusetts Institute

of Technology, Cambridge, Mass.;

Dr. Mario V. Bonaca, retired director, Nuclear Engineering Department, Northeast Utilities,

Waterford, Conn.;

Dr. Richard S. Denning, senior research leader and adjunct professor, Battelle Memorial

Institute and The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio;

Dr. Thomas S. Kress, retired head of Applied Systems Technology Section, Oak Ridge National

Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tenn.;

Dr. Dana A. Powers, senior scientist, Nuclear Facilities Safety Department, Sandia National

Laboratories, Albuquerque, N.M.; and

Dr. Victor H. Ransom, professor emeritus, Purdue School of Nuclear Engineering, West

Lafayette, Ind.

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