In this interview, Conner discusses his childhood and early education in rural Texas, and his developing interest in science. He moves on to discuss his undergraduate and graduate experience at Rice Institute; his enrollment in the U.S. Navy; the rise in war-time and post-war academic interest in nuclear physics; his work at Los Alamos National Laboratory; his impressions of Tom Bonner at Rice Institute and Los Alamos; and his work with Cockcroft-Walton accelerators. Additional topics discussed include: nuclear physics, x-ray spectroscopy, the Vela Program, and federally funded artificial satellite programs in general.