Douglas Waller

The Nuclear Emergency Search Team (NEST), established in 1975 by the Department of Energy, provides technical assistance to the FBI in the event of a terrorist threat involving nuclear weapons. Members of NEST are trained to detect radioactive material and dismantle nuclear weapons. In the following viewpoint, Douglas Waller maintains that NEST has helped expose fraudulent nuclear threats and is prepared to deal with real incidents of nuclear terrorism. Waller writes for Time magazine.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Waller, what steps does NEST take to locate a nuclear bomb"

2. Why are radiation detectors difficult to operate, according to the author"

3. What methods could NEST use to dismantle a nuclear device, in Waller’s view? It might be hard to picture at this juncture in...