The Atomic Show Podcast includes interviews, roundtable discussions and atomic geeks all centered around the idea that nuclear energy is an amazing boon for human society.
Food irradiation can prevent food borne illness caused by microorganisms like eColi. Shane and Rod discuss the technology, motivation, and controversy surrounding the application. It is possible to almost completely eliminate a number of different pathogens from food by treating that food with exposure to electron or gamma radiation. The process is approved by the…
Thorium is a nuclear fuel source with a lot of potential. Kirk Sorensen blogs at Energy from Thorium; he talked with Rod and Shane on December 5, 2006 Thorium is a heavy metal that is not directly useful as a nuclear reactor fuel. In certain kinds of reactors, however, it can provide high quality heat…
Rod Adams and Shane Brown discuss the properties of polonium. They move on to the hazards of mining and transporting coal. Polonium talk is all over the news media because of the recent poisoning death of Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB agent living in the UK. The tale is one suitable for a John Le…
George Stanford talks about sodium cooled fast reactors George Stanford earned his PhD in experimental nuclear physics from Yale University and then spent his professional career doing nuclear reactor safety research at the Argonne National Laboratory. One of his special interest was the sodium cooled fast reactor program. He worked on the Experimental Breeder Reactor…
Making Deserts Bloom – Nuclear Power in the Middle East Shane and I chatted about recent announcements by Morocco, Algeria, UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia that they have been talking with the International Atomic Energy Agency about developing nuclear power programs. All of the countries have indicated that they are interested in using nuclear…
Interview with Professor Rodney Ewing – Department of Geological Science and Nuclear Engineering at the University of Michigan On November 2, 2006, I chatted with Professor Rodney Ewing of the University of Michigan. Dr. Ewing has been studying methods for disposal of used nuclear materials for more than 25 years. He made a recent speech…
Interview with Dr. Regis Matzie – Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Westinghouse. On November 2, 2006, Rod Adams talked with Dr. Regis Matzie, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Westinghouse. Dr. Matzie has been a key participant in the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor and several other advanced nuclear power system development…
Mixed bag of atomic (and a few non-atomic) topics – enjoy! Shane and I have had a few busy days in our day jobs, so this show is a zero prep show with a variety of topics including long term storage of used nuclear fuel, the design and operation of Fermi’s CP-1, Steorn’s claim of…
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…
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…
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…
Impressions of talk by the Nuclear Energy Institute President. Shane and I start off the show by congratulating the voters in Sweden for their recent election of a new government. The leaders of the parties that seem likely to form the new coalition government have declared that they will not shut down any of Sweden’s…