I got my associate’s degree in mathematics and chemistry.  I have not yet finished my bachelor’s degree.  I was once a physics major, but I changed it to computer programming. 

I enlisted in the US Navy as a data processing technician.  I voluteered for Naval Intelligence, where I prepared threat and target data for pilot briefings. (I subsequently learned that N.A.V.Y. stands for ‘Never Again Volunteer Yourself!)

I later worked at a nuclear power plant as a Senior Nuclear Engineering Technician in Risk Assessment.  I examined piping and electrical diagrams and built computerized logic models to determine failure probabilities. (Figure the odds!)

At another nuclear power plant, I developed computer applications for the geiger counter swingers.  I was cross-trained as one of them in order to do so. 

I counted radioactivity in contaminated soil.  I processed paperwork for radioactive waste shipments.  During emergency drills, I tracked theoretical radioactive plumes.  I prepared data and graphs for environmental impact reports.  The REAL radioactive plume from Chernobyl sure spiked my graphs that year!

You could say I know a little bit about the downside of nuclear fission.

I retired early because of poor health.  I am not quite a Stephen Hawking wanna-be, though I used a wheelchair at one time, and respect the man tremendously.  I spend my time researching science and science-fiction topics on the Internet.