What was going on when I was born?

When they were planned during the 1960's, the five nuclear power plants under construction in Washington State were considered the most efficient and economical way to provide electrical power for the Pacific Northwest. But now, the nuclear power industry's biggest project is also its biggest headache. Thirteen years after construction began on the first of five plants, none has been completed. Work schedule delays, regulatory snarls, huge cost overruns and financing problems have plagued the project, and its cost has been raised from a projection of $6.6 billion in 1970 to an estimate, released last week, of $23.9 billion.

The United States and Iraq agreed today on a Security Council resolution that ''strongly condemns'' the Israeli attack on Iraq's nuclear reactor and urges Israel to open its nuclear plants to international inspection. The draft resolution is expected to be unanimously approved by the Council at Text of draft resolution is on page A10. an open meeting tomorrow, Western diplomats said. This would not mark the first time that the United States has used the word ''condemn'' to describe an Israeli action. In 1968 the Council unanimously condemned Israel's commando raid on Beirut International Airport.

The Treasury Department is reopening an investigation into the role that Norman B. Ture, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Tax and Economic Affairs, played in arranging a Treasury contract for an economic forecasting model that Mr. Ture had developed and partly owned. Details of the investigation into the $230,000 noncompetitive contract arranged earlier this year were supplied by Arnold Intrater, the department's assistant general counsel and a participant in the inquiry. Projections of Tax Impact Earlier, Mr. Ture (pronounced too-RAY) had been cleared by Mr. Intrater and other lawyers in the general counsel's office of any violation of Federal conflict-of-interest laws and regulations. These bar personal financial interests that conflict, or might appear to conflict, with Government duties. The economic forecasting model in question, after some modification, is intended to predict, through a complex system of mathematical equations and concepts, the effects of the Administration's tax policies on the nation's economy. Among other things, such predictions are used to sell those policies to Congress and the public.

The House of Representatives voted today to keep the Legal Services Corporation alive but to slash its funds drastically and impose stringent restrictions on the activities of lawyers financed by the corporation. The 245-to-137 vote to continue the independent, federally financed program for two years represented a rebuff for the Reagan Administration, which wants to abolish the program. But the corporation's supporters said that the reduction of funds, to $241 million a year from the current level of $321 million and some of the restrictions would make it more difficult to serve the needs of the poor. Before the final vote late this afternoon, the House amended the bill reported by the Judiciary Committee to tighten existing restrictions on the representation of illegal aliens and homosexuals. The House voted yesterday to bar federally financed lawyers from bringing class action lawsuits against Federal, state or local government agencies and severely restrict their lobbying activities in Congress and state legislatures.

Associate Justice Potter Stewart announced today that he would retire July 3 after 23 years on the Supreme Court, and the Reagan Administration moved to fill the vacancy before the end of the summer. The unexpected retirement of Justice Stewart, who has often been a swing vote between ideological camps, created the first High Court opening since 1975, as Justice Stewart has seen himself as a lawyer rather than a philosopher, focusing on fact and precedent instead of theory. News analysis, page A14. well as an opportunity for President Reagan to appoint a conservative, as he is expected to do. 'High Priority' to Campaign Vow In the Presidential campaign last year, Mr. Reagan also said he would name a woman to fill ''among the first Supreme Court vacancies in my Administration.'' Today a senior White House aide said that Mr. Reagan would place ''high priority'' on fulfilling that commitment with this appointment, but he cautioned that the pledge ''doesn't guarantee'' that a woman would be found.

A safe, effective vaccine against foot and mouth disease, one of the world's most economically serious infections of livestock, has been developed using gene-splicing techniques, the United States Department of Agriculture announced yesterday. ''We believe this to be the first production through gene-splicing of an effective vaccine against any disease in animals or humans,'' Agriculture Secretary John R. Block said in the announcement made in Washington and also in Sacramento, Calif., where he was visiting. Savings of Billions Seen He added that use of the new vaccine could mean an annual saving of billions of dollars and an increase in the world's supply of meat. Foot and mouth disease, also known as hoof and mouth disease, is considered one of the most serious diseases of livestock throughout the world. It is caused by a virus that seldom kills but produces sores in the mouths and on the feet of cows, sheep, pigs, goats and other cloven-hoofed species, weakening them and reducing their agricultural value. Presence of the highly contagious virus anywhere interferes with trade in animal meat and animal products. In rare cases the virus can be transmitted to humans, producing fever as well as sores.

Beside the Wailing Wall, the Holo- caust is remembered A2 Begin gives more time to U.S. envoy for his peace mission A2 State Department responds to re- port on Salvador arms A3 Russian says China's monitoring role with U.S. is "disgraceful" A3 Peking says arms for Taiwan threaten U.S.-Chinese relations A3 Around the World A4 Small Italian party ready to form a coalition Cabinet A4 Southeast Asian parley calls for Cambodian solution A5 Black Africans are increasingly critical of U.S. Africa policies A7 Senators open inquiry into Israel raid on Iraqi nuclear reactor A8 Text of U.N. draft resolution on Is- raeli raid on Iraqi reactor A10 Government/Politics Unions give Democrats $200,000 as leader scorns Rep. Gramm A16 White House scales down goals as another budget battle looms A17 City budget process proves a little less painful than usual B3 Assembly defeats an anti-cult bill B3 Recruiting stepped up for Correc- tion Dept. personnel B3 Vandalism by resentful officers acknowledged by McGuire B3 General Around the Nation A12 2 distinct kinds of riders clash on the L.I.R.R. in summer B1 Salmon returning to Connecticut River in record numbers B1 The Region B2 Officer indicted in fatal shooting of fleeing man B3 Health/Science European Space Agency rocket poised for liftoff A13 Weekend Weekender Guide C1 A walk in Poe's Manhattan C13 Where to pick your own strawber- ries C14 Crosstown fair Sunday on 52d Street C14 Theater: Broadway C2 "Fasnacht Day" at Meat and Potatoes Company C3 "How It All Began" at the Pub- lic C3 "Heebie Jeebies" at WestSide Arts C4 Screen: "Superman II" opens C8 "Stevie," with Glenda Jackson C8 At the Movies C10 "Coup de Sirocco" at Cinema Studio 2 C10 "Numero Deux" at Carnegie Hall Cinema C12 Music: Weavers reuniting at Hud- son River Revival C3 Indian classical music at Town Hall C12 Instrumental rock-and-roll re- gains popularity C26 Mary Lou Williams memorial concert C26 Art: Shakespeare exhibition at American Museum C1 Chinese paintings galleries open at Met Museum C1 Auctions C22 Zorach and Trajan shows at Za- briskie Gallery C20 Books: Publishing C24 "How It Feels When a Parent Dies" by Jill Krementz C25 Restaurants C18 TV Weekend C26 Obituaries Arthur Cooperman, headed com- pensation board B6 Zerna A. Sharp, originator of Dick and Jane texts B6 George Katona, economist, pio- neer in consumer psychology B6 Style The Evening Hours B4 The outlook for feminism is de- bated at a Vassar conference B4 The latest in furs on a day for biki- nis B4 A fight for affirmative action B4 Sports Scott heads premier field in 1,500 meters at national meet A18 Tracy Austin advances to semifi- nals of tournament in England A18 Thorpe shoots 66 to lead U.S. Open by a stroke A19 Dave Anderson on Jack Nick- laus's son, Jackie A19 Talks resume today between base- ball players and the owners A19 Greg Page is a heavyweight boxer with heart A19 Roosevelt Raceway seeks aid as summer meeting opens A20 Board's bid for contempt charges against two ex-riders rejected A20 Thorpe, surprise Open leader, is accustomed to surprising peo- ple A21 Court reverses ruling on baseball fan's risk of injury A22 Strike evicts Mariners' manager from home away from home A22 Features/Notes Notes on People B7 News Analysis Linda Greenhouse on the Supreme Court career of Potter Stewart A14 Walter Sullivan discusses deci- sions on birth defects B7 Steven Rattner assesses Britain's economic future D6 Editorials/Letters/Op-Ed Editorials A26 Weapons are not a policy Knowing justice when you see it Bring the controllers to earth An error-conditioned bill Letters A26 Tom Wicker: Amtrak turns the corner A27 Flora Lewis: continuity of the state A27 Richard Portes: Poland and American bankers A27 Charles R. Morris: New York needs true crisis A27

The Atlantic salmon, cut off from spawning grounds here before the American Revolution by encroaching development, is returning to the Connecticut River system in record numbers. By nature's terms, the reappearance of the food and game fish is tentative in scale, but to New England conservation officials it sustains the hope that depredations caused by man can be overcome by man. About 450 fish have been counted so far this spring at five trapping points in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont - more than twice last spring's 175 and many times more than those of previous years. The increase is due to cleaner water and a 15-year restoration program involving the stocking of smolts and the construction of fish ladders, enabling the salmon to climb the dams that have long cut them off from their upstream spawning grounds.

WORLD'S LARGEST FLAG UNFURLED: The stars and stripes of what is said to be the largest flag in the world stretching across a softball field in Central Park yesterday. The 411-by-211-foot flag was put on display by the Great American Flag Fund to help raise $650,000 to build special rigging that would allow it to be raised and lowered on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. Stars of the two-acre, seven-ton, nylon-tafetta banner are 13 feet wide.

With appropriate dexterity, the American Craft Museum, at 44 West 53d Street, is turning itself into a studio to celebrate its 25th anniversary. Starting today and continuing through Sept. 6, five artisans can be seen at work: Elsbeth Woody will construct a series of nine-foot-tall columns of clay, using a kiln in the museum's rear courtyard; Tommy Simpson will build a wooden room with wooden furniture and toys; Deborah Aguado will make objects, mostly jewelry, of metal and other materials; Richard Yelle will paint on glass and piece glass fragments together, and Leora Stewart will work at two massive frame looms. Admission is $1 (50 cents for children, students and the elderly). Information: 397-0630. SINGING IN THE PARKS The Metropolitan Opera is saluting summer by singing in the parks again. Tonight at 8:30, in Marine Park, Brooklyn, the Met will present Puccini's ''Tosca,'' with Galina Savova as Tosca, Carlo Bini as Cavaradossi and Peter Glossop as Scarpia. Tomorrow, same time, the site will be Cunningham Park in Queens, and the work, Saint-Saens's ''Samson et Dalila,'' with Viorica Cortez as Dalila), Richard Cassilly as Samson) and Louis Quilico as the High Priest. Also on the tour circuit this weekend is the 54-piece Guggenheim Concert Band, which is appearing tonight and Sunday at Damrosch Park in Lincoln Center and tomorrow at Seaside Park in Brooklyn. All concerts start at 8. ART OF THE BOOK ON 60TH ST.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said today that, acting on a request by the Israeli Government, it had advised Israeli scientists last Oct. 9 about the amount of damage that would be inflicted on a nuclear reactor by 1,000-kilogram (2,200-pound) bombs. Bombs of that size were apparently used by Israeli planes June 7 to destroy an Iraqi nuclear reactor that was nearing completion near Baghdad. Tonight, a spokesman at the Israeli Embassy said the visit in October had nothing to do with the attack on the Iraqi installation.

AT NATURAL HISTORY By JOHN RUSSELL IN biographical terms, Shakespeare ranks very high indeed -just a notch or two below Homer, that is to say - among the big men who got clear away. It was so at the time when people first began to wonder what he was like. Several hundred years later, the position has changed not at all. We have the name of the first known purchaser of one of Shakespeare's plays, and that is about it. As to whether Shakespeare traveled in Italy during the years in which London was ravaged by the plague, we haven't the faintest idea. Nor has time turned up a copy of ''Love's Labours Won,'' a play listed in Shakespeare's lifetime but never heard of since.