As Canada's nuclear university, McMaster is advancing cleaner energy technologies and life-saving radiopharmaceuticals.
When the Canadian government launched a $1.7 billion program to recruit international scholars, McMaster’s wish list included a married couple at an American university.
Suzanne Lapi and Jonathan McConathy – a chemist and a clinician – had played key roles in making the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) a research powerhouse in radiopharmaceutical science, a multidisciplinary field where researchers are unlocking new and better ways of diagnosing and treating cancer and other diseases.
While plenty of other universities were courting the pair, Lapi and McConathy wanted to come to Canada’s Nuclear University and help take McMaster’s world class radiopharma program to the next level.
As the world looks to meet rising energy needs, a small but powerful nuclear technology has taken centre stage: small modular reactors (SMRs).
SMRs are driving a new era for the nuclear industry but putting them into widespread use will require overcoming complex challenges.
At McMaster, researchers are tackling some of the key questions shaping SMR deployment globally, from mitigating corrosion in reactor components and strengthening containment structures to managing waste and exploring the business case for SMRs.
Mikayla Woodward didn’t plan on pursuing a career in nuclear. She did her bachelor’s degree in computer science and cybersecurity in South Carolina and was set on finding a job at a tech company after graduation.
That all changed when she did an internship at First Nations Power Authority (FNPA) and met McMaster engineering professor, Dave Novog. He asked her if she’d ever thought about doing a master’s degree.
“I hadn’t, but I knew McMaster would be the place to go,” says Woodward.
She decided to take the leap and is currently pursuing her master’s in nuclear engineering with Novog, joining a growing network of students and researchers at McMaster helping shape the future of nuclear energy.
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