By: Ted Rockwell Introduction: This op-ed was originally submitted to the Washington Post. The editors determined that the proper place for it was as a letter to the editor, but of course it is much too detailed and lengthy for that venue. Since the Post did not choose to do anything with it, Ted gave [...]
The need for more rational radiation protection standards
A frequent commenter on Atomic Insights is a very experienced nuclear professional who often keeps me on my toes by sharing thoughts that are fairly common in our community. I have recently been posting quite a number of blogs on the need to revise radiation protection standards to base them on a more accurate model [...]
A Plea for Common Sense – Radiation Protection Rules Need Amendment
This post was written by Ted Rockwell. A Plea for Common Sense New lessons are beginning to emerge from Fukushima. Each new problem leads to heaping on additional safety requirements. But some contradictions are beginning to raise questions: Amid tens of thousands of deaths from non-nuclear causes, not a single life-shortening radiation injury has occurred. [...]
What should “Radioactive Wolves” teach critical thinkers?
Radioactive Wolves, the first episode of the 30th season of PBS’s Nature, documents current conditions in the area that was forcibly evacuated following the uncontrolled radioactive material releases caused when the operators at the Chernobyl nuclear power station conducted a poorly planned experiment and blew up their power plant. In the absence of human beings, [...]
Devastating review of Yablokov’s Chernobyl: Consequences of the Catastrophe for People and the Environment
Sometime before December 2009, someone at the New York Academy of Sciences decided to print a Greenpeace sponsored book titled Chernobyl: Consequences of the Catastrophe for People and the Environment in a publication called the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. The roots of the decision remain murky. Within a few months after [...]
Radioactive Wolves – Coming to PBS Nature on October 19, 2011
One of the persistent propaganda myths about using nuclear energy is that hypothetical accidents that release radioactive material will have dire consequences that render vast areas of land uninhabitable for centuries. It is a good thing for wolves, deer, and boars that they cannot read antinuclear propaganda or watch television. You see, we have done [...]
Arnie Gundersen – Still spreading unwarranted fear far and wide
New Data Supports Previous Fairewinds Analysis, as Contamination Spreads in Japan and Worldwide from Fairewinds Associates on Vimeo. In his most recent video, Arnie Gundersen calmly, but inaccurately, explains why people should remain fearful of extremely low levels of radiation and radioactive materials. He sounds so knowledgeable and is so often quoted by people who [...]
Jaczko defends incorrect 50-mile evacuation order at Fukushima
On March 16, five days after the Fukushima Daiichi reactors were shutdown in the wake of a large earthquake that was followed by a tsunami, Gregory Jaczko, the Chairman of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, announced that he was recommending that all Americans within fifty miles of the nuclear power station evacuate the area. That [...]
Did radiation dose provide protection from pancreatic cancer for President Carter?
President Jimmy Carter, was born on October 1, 1924 into a family that developed a depressingly high rate of pancreatic cancer. His father, brother and two sisters died of the disease, and his mother also suffered from it. Alone among his siblings, Jimmy, now 86 years old, escaped that fate and attributes his good health [...]
As Fukushima gets moved from 5 to 7 remember that 0 (deaths) is still an applicable number
The overreaction and stoked fears about the events at Fukushima continues. One month ago today, I wrote an article titled Nuclear plant issues in Japan are the least of their worries that exposed my ignorance of the differences between various kinds of containment designs and was a bit too optimistic about the eventual releases of [...]