The World Nuclear Association has posted a useful, but not terribly dramatic, video comparing the carefully studied health impacts of Chernobyl versus Fukushima. The primary lesson gleaned from post-Chernobyl analysis is that drinking milk that is heavily contaminated with I-131 can lead to an increased rate of thyroid cancer. That lesson was learned and mitigations…
Joris, a frequent contributor to Atomic Insights discussions, provided the following story in a recent comment. I have lightly edited his comment, mostly to provide some white space with paragraph breaks. I hope his remarks provoke thought and discussion. As Atomic Insights readers know, I firmly believe that the success – so far – of…
The Heritage Foundation has produced a factual, inspiring, visually appealing documentary titled Powering America. As the title suggests, it is focused on the United States and our energy choices, but the need for power is universal and the options are essentially the same all around the world. Here is the trailer: Powering America Trailer from…
The Friends of the Earth (FOE) has developed a 30 second television advertisement that uses Fukushima as a hypnotic code word to spread fear, uncertainty and doubt about new nuclear power plants. It has purchased time slots in all of the major media markets in Iowa, where legislation is being considered to give the Public…
In the weeks leading to the one year anniversary of the demise of the Fukushima Daiichi power station, there have been a number of articles from the usual suspects that seek use the word “Fukushima” as a hypnotic code word that is supposed to result in fear and trembling. Individuals like Karl Grossman, Helen Caldicott…
As a South Central Virginia resident, I have something in common with the people in the Pacific Northwest who are concerned about the impact of coal exports from the US. Numerous coal laden trains pass through Lynchburg every day, many of them headed to the large coal terminal in Newport News. I can hear the…
The world would be a better place if more people thoroughly understood how the balance between supply of a commodity and demand for that commodity worked to establish market prices. The improvement would be even more impressive if customers learned how to take action to shift the balance into their favor instead of allowing the…
As a lazy man who likes to repurpose his work whenever possible, I want to share a note that I just sent to some of my nuclear friends who question my analysis about the actions of fossil fuel interests to restrain the growth of nuclear energy. Rod, I have never been a big fan of…
Why have the efforts to restrict nuclear energy development been so well supported for so many years? My theory is that hydrocarbon marketers have had a strong financial motive for supporting any group that seeks to reduce the supply of energy. Even when those groups seem to be fighting against the hydrocarbon industry, they are…
Last night, CNN Presents aired a completely one sided and inaccurate portrayal of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. It extensively quoted both Arnie Gundersen and Bernie Sanders and included a staged interview that made the Nuclear Regulatory Commission look both incompetent and unresponsive. That episode is scheduled to be repeated tonight. Here is a…
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is one of the most venerated engineering institutions in the United States. Its pronouncements and considered opinions have a significant influence on our government’s policy, especially in such important fields as energy. In recent years, the MIT Energy Initiative, a multi-disciplinary team led by Professor Ernie Moniz has issued…
I am deeply troubled by the sabre rattling over the issue of Iran developing nuclear energy capabilities. Tiny efforts like mine on Atomic Insights may not matter much, but it is time to do all I can to shift the conversation away from war mongering to something that is a more productive and positive use…