Halpern Centre, 11:30 am to 1 pm

Presenter:  Dr. Thomas Ruth.
In 2009, the Canadian reactor at Chalk River (NRU) was shut down for an extended period and again in 2010 for more than a year. Along with other reactor shut-downs around the world, the supply of medical isotopes used in the diagnoses of diseases of the heart and cancer were severely disrupted. These disruptions have caused Canada to lose its role as leader in the supply of these isotopes. This talk will describe the events that led to this crisis and what is being done to alleviate the shortages. The talk is suitable for the general public.
Thomas Ruth is Emeritus Senior Research Scientist at TRIUMF and at the British Columbia Cancer Research Centre. He holds Adjunct Professorships in Chemistry at SFU, Physics at UVic, and Medicine at UBC. He is a leader in the production and application of radioisotopes for research in the physical and biological sciences. Dr. Tom Ruth has been appointed to serve as the Canadian representative member of the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency's Standing Advisory Group for Nuclear Applications .
This is the first in the Spring 2014 SFURA seminar series and will take place at 11:30 a.m. in the Halpern Centre.  All members of the SFU community are welcome to attend these events. The talks are free and no registration is required.