Nuclear research in Norway

During a year spent in Norway as a Fulbright research scholar, I attended two scientific conferences which, between them, perhaps cover the scope of physics there. One, the annual meeting of Norsk Fysisk Selskap (the Norwegian Physical Society), was national in character and rather like an American Physical Society meeting minus some of the congestion and simultaneous sessions. The other, the first international conference on nuclear reactors, represents a step toward future scientific cooperation in that field. It was attended by delegates from nineteen different nations, and was arranged by JENER, the Norwegian‐Dutch “Joint Establishment for Nuclear Energy Research”. This account of physics in Norway (and some observations about Sweden) is as viewed through the eyes of a guest for the year at the JENER nuclear reactor laboratory—but first perhaps we should start back at the Fysisk Selskap meeting and visit some of the institutions whose work was reported.