The Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) is a provincial treasury board crown corporation engaged in research and technology development on behalf of the provincial government and private industry. It focuses on applied research and development projects that generate profit. Some of its funding comes from government grants, but it generates the balance from selling products and services. With nearly 300 employees and $137 million in annual revenues, SRC is the second largest research and technology organization in Canada.

The SLOWPOKE is a family of low-energy, tank-in-pool type nuclear research reactors designed by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) beginning in the late 1960s. John W. Hilborn is the scientist most closely associated with their design. They are beryllium-reflected with a very low critical mass, but provide neutron fluxes higher than available from a small particle accelerator or other radioactive sources.