Dr. Siegfried Hecker and Dr. Farheen Naqvi join the faculty in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Texas A&M University, effective Aug.16, where they will contribute their robust knowledge of and experience in nuclear security.
Hecker will serve as a professor of practice and Naqvi will serve as a research assistant professor. Both will work closely with the Center for Nuclear Security Science and Policy Initiatives (NSSPI) at Texas A&M as NSSPI Faculty Fellows to advance the department’s commitment to nuclear safety and nonproliferation.
Hecker brings international nuclear security expertise
Hecker is an internationally recognized expert in plutonium science, global threat reduction and nuclear security. He joins the department after a tenure at Stanford University, where he served as a professor emeritus in the Department of Management Science and Engineering and a senior fellow emeritus at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI).
He previously served as the fifth director of Los Alamos National Laboratory and co-director of the FSI’s Center for International Security and Cooperation.
Hecker’s current research interests include nuclear nonproliferation and arms control, nuclear weapons policy, nuclear security, the safe and secure expansion of nuclear energy, and plutonium science.
He will guest lecture in the department and other areas across campus, such as The Institute for Science, Technology and Public Policy at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M.
“I will focus on the importance of the interplay of technology and policy on all things nuclear — from nuclear energy to nuclear weapons,” Hecker said. “I also plan to work with students and postdoctoral fellows on projects of nuclear technology and their implications for nuclear policy.”
Naqvi brings wealth of radiation detection and detector development
Naqvi joins the department after serving in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering as a research scientist.
During her term, she applied her knowledge of radiation measurement, detector development and computational analysis to focus on building technologies to mitigate nuclear terrorism and weapons.
“By mitigating the dangers of nuclear smuggling or nuclear weapons, we are making an effort to make the world more secure,” Naqvi said.
She will teach nuclear security policy courses in collaboration with Dr. Sunil Chirayath, professor of nuclear engineering and NSSPI director.
“I am very interested in and looking forward to teaching nuclear policy courses,” Naqvi said. “I am also excited to learn from some of the great faculty at this stage in my career.”
With their combined experience, Naqvi and Hecker bring expertise to support the College of Engineering’s mission to serve Texas, the nation and global communities by preparing graduates to meet the complex technical challenges of society.
“My overriding career objective has been to make the world a safer and more peaceful place. Getting nuclear right is crucial to that objective,” Hecker said.