Go Blue. Go Atomic Insights
The Atomic Insights web site has a new BLUE logo and color scheme. We like to think that BLUE is the new GREEN.
Power Politics over Russian gas production
As the temperatures cool and the leaves fall, it is again time to think about the implications of dependence on Russian natural gas for home and commercial heating. On October 21, 2006, the BBC published a story titled Russia-EU’s ‘gas tag-of-war’ that paints a picture that makes me believe it is time for Europeans to…
The growing line of countries interested in nuclear power plants
Christine Spolar wrote an article for the Chicago Tribune that was published on Wednesday, October 18 titled More nations clamor for nuclear energy. Here is the lead from the article: When more than 100 ambassadors gathered at the United Nations nuclear agency to mark its 50th year of juggling global arms and energy demands, organizers…
Atomic Show Number 33 – Pebble Power
On Atomic show #33, Shane and I cover history, technology and future prospects for pebble bed reactors. We chatted about the following projects – AVR, THTR, PBMR, HTR-10, and Adams EnginesTM. Check it out and let me know what you think.
The Atomic Show #033 – Pebble Power (pebble bed reactors)
Pebble bed reactor history and future At the request of several listeners and blog readers, Shane and I decided to focus this podcast on the graphite and heavy metal “pebbles” that form the basic fuel element for a number of currently proposed reactor types. We talk a bit about the inventor of the pebble bed…
Smoking Gun Part 4 (direct anti-nuclear comment from Dick Armey, who is advocating coal instead)
Dick Armey is a former US Congressman (Republican) who now serves as the chairman of FreedomWorks, a conservative, issues-based organization founded in 1984 that includes “full time staff in ten states and over 800,000 grassroots volunteers nationwide.” (quote from the organization’s “About Us” page). The tag line for the group’s web site is “Lower taxes,…
Adams Atomic Engines, Inc. site update – comments requested
We have made some changes to the Adams Atomic Engines, Inc. web site to make it easier to navigate. We have also added some new graphical elements and updated a few of the pages with more current information. If you have any thoughts or comments on the results, please let me know. I think I…
The Atomic Show #032 – Uranium mineral collector – Ruth Sponsler
Chat with a uranium mineral collector and nuclear power supporter Ruth Sponsler is an amateur mineral collector, a resident of the beautiful mountains of North Carolina and an active supporter of the use of nuclear energy. She blogs at We Support Lee. Shane and I invited her onto the show to talk about her unusual…
BP's Alternative Energy vision versus Adams Atomic Engines's vision
While catching up on some reading on The Energy Blog, I came across a post about a speech given on September 27, 2006 by BP’s Vivienne Cox. Ms. Cox was speaking to the Los Angeles World Affairs Council about her company’s investments in “clean electricity”. The speech is enlightening and I encourage you all to…
The Atomic Show #031 – Uranium resources and mining techniques
Uranium resources and mining Uranium is a relatively common metal. The quantity that is readily available for human use is far larger than the quantity that would be required to fuel a vastly larger base of nuclear reactors than the one that is in operation today. The Uranium Information Center has published an excellent briefing…
High Temperature Reactor (HTR) Conference 2006
It has been a crazy, busy week for me – so much has been happening that I almost missed the news coming out of South Africa at the HTR Conference 2006. It is still a busy time, so I will simply point out that Google News indexes South African news web sites. Searching with “pebble…