Think tank forms at Los Alamos

[Rose Siding]

A group of prominent Los Alamos scientists, in the hopes of shaping national arms control policy, have formed a think tank. Proposing new treaties isn't out of the question for this ambitious mix of physicists and weapons designers.
In recent weeks, the Los Alamos Center for International Nuclear Security Studies received its nonprofit organization status and can now begin seeking grants from foundations.

"Keeping nukes away from terrorists is the biggest priority for everybody," David Thomson, a retired nuclear physicist and the group's chairman, said in an interview Friday.

The group will solicit proposals from the greater Santa Fe and Los Alamos area that could be as complex as the verification of nuclear weapons to something as simple as bringing a guest speaker to New Mexico. The center then will award funding and publish reports.

"Although progress has been made in reducing the danger of nuclear weapons through arms reduction and nonproliferation treaties, the worldwide existence of tens of thousands of nuclear warheads, mostly unrestricted and unverified by any treaty, remains as a potentially catastrophic international threat," according to the group's board of directors. "The Los Alamos Center was created to aid the U.S. arms control community in their response to these threats by studying and developing nuclear security solutions based on proposals and activities from the Los Alamos area."

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