Horizon

[joe-90]

Did anyone watch it? Apparently radiation is far less dangerous than first thought.

In Chernobyl just 47 people died from radiation poisoning and most of them were the brave men that went in to sort it out.

Low level radiation actually seems to INCREASE the resistance to cancers by making the immune system more reisitant to them.

So it's a green light to nuclear power stations.

Are you for them?

We should already have made up our minds on our power generation as the cost of oil has hit a new high of $74 per barrel. In 2001 it was around $20 per barrel.

What are we waiting for? Let's make up our minds and get to work.


joe

 

[2scoops0406]

More investment in fusion is required.

 

[joe-90]

Too dangerous. It's like riding an H-bomb.



joe

 

[Gary_M]

I wonder if statistics are being manipulated a little (perhaps as a government ploy to get us to accept Nuclear power stations more readily)

One of my friends is a doctor in Minsk and she has seen a HUGE increase in throat and thyroid cancers within Belarus - particularly in younger people. Also she has told me about MASSIVE increases in the number of children that are being born with very alarming disfigurements.

I didn't see Horizon, but wonder if they addressed these issues, and if so, how did they explain the increase in the incidences of these issues since the Chernobyl disaster - or did they totally bypass these facts?

Also, from what she has told be - there was a bit of a 'hush up' about actual deaths because the price of 'raw fuels' was, and is very high in some of the effected countries (in debt to Russia for a very large amount of money)- therefore it was not in their governments interests to turn people away from the concept of nuclear power.

I have a few friends in Russian and former Russian countries and it is always very interesting to see how OUR news reports issues - it is often quite different than how they hear things Not that I am cynical about politics of course

 

[joe-90]

I think your friend is talking it up.

The cloud of radioactive material drifted over Holland and Denmark - nowhere near Belarus. My brother lived in Denmark since Chernobyl - but there are no problems there.
They dealt with the issue of thyroid cancer amongst children and the number was just six.

Have a look on the BBC website -

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/5173310.stm

joe

 

[WoodYouLike]

I didn't see Horizon, but wonder if they addressed these issues, and if so, how did they explain the increase in the incidences of these issues since the Chernobyl disaster - or did they totally bypass these facts?

They did, collected lots of small animals (and collected lot of control animals). Checked their DNA and didn't find any more changes in genes than in the control group.

Point they made was: since Hyroshima all scientist have been working with the so-called No-Threshold Limits exposure and risk factors for cancer in regards of radiation. This line only got as low as 200 (forgot the name of the factor) below that they figured it would drop in a ongoing line to 0 risk.

Chrenobyl exposed people to lower (x-factor again) and now they are finding lesser risk to develop cancer than predicted. Hence the statement: is radiation risk lower than everyone has always claimed?

Other thing they showed: areas where there are natural higher levels of radiation lesser people develop cancer than in areas where there are lower levels of natural radiation, hence the statement: does some exposure to radiation 'protect' you from developing cancer?

I found it an interesting program, remembered the fact that immediately after Chernobyl all cows in The Netherlands were kept inside and were not fed grass that had been exposed to the 'fall-out'.
Also thought that the statement about natural exposure 'protecting' against cancer sounded like the homeopathy theory.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Off you go then, Joe - have another holiday.

 

[joe-90]

Off you go then, Joe - have another holiday.

I'd love to go. Check out the WHO re Chernobyl.


joe

 

[Gary_M]

I think your friend is talking it up.
The cloud of radioactive material drifted over Holland and Denmark - nowhere near Belarus.

I think you will find that Belarus, Ukraine and Western Russia were the main countries effected by the radiation.

Check the UN report: http://www.un.org/ha/chernobyl/belarus.html

 

[joe-90]

The initial cloud drifted over our way. There is no incidence of thyroid cancer in those countries. Belarus is well-known for its iodine deficiency. Maybe subsidising the diet with iodine would help. It's not down to what happened at Chernobyl - but if you want to believe it is - then be my guest.


joe

 

[2scoops0406]

Too dangerous. It's like riding an H-bomb.



joe

No, a hydrogen bomb (thermonuclear fusion) is produced via a fission nuclear detonation. A fusion reactor could not produce an H bomb, you could only get a conventional explosion, with no radioactive fallout.

see here and here

 

[Gary_M]

The initial cloud drifted over our way. There is no incidence of thyroid cancer in those countries. Belarus is well-known for its iodine deficiency. Maybe subsidising the diet with iodine would help. It's not down to what happened at Chernobyl - but if you want to believe it is - then be my guest.

joe

I prefer to believe what I hear from a reliable and 'first hand' source - not some highly-censored television program.

Don't get me wrong - I think Horizon is a wonderful program. I am just very cynical at the VERY low claims on cost of lives lost through the Chernobyl disaster, especially when I have a reliable source of information living and working there who knows different - and has no reason to make up things !

Remember too that when people apply for research grants, it is in their interest to provide a positive outcome to their initial theory

Also, the initial cloud went to many countires before it came to the UK. Check this video of it's progress. http://www.jaeri.go.jp/~speedi/images/speedi2.mpg
You will see how it crosses Belarus, Latvia, Ukraine, up through the Scandanavian countries, into weatern Russia, across Europe, and THEN UK.

 

[noseall]

.

So it's a green light to nuclear power stations.

Are you for them?


joe

if we could somehow convert mass into energy, safely and at room temperature, then a lot of the worlds energy problems would be solved.

after all.......E=MC squared.

 

[joe-90]

The initial cloud drifted over our way. There is no incidence of thyroid cancer in those countries. Belarus is well-known for its iodine deficiency. Maybe subsidising the diet with iodine would help. It's not down to what happened at Chernobyl - but if you want to believe it is - then be my guest.

joe

I prefer to believe what I hear from a reliable and 'first hand' source - not some highly-censored television program.

Don't get me wrong - I think Horizon is a wonderful program. I am just very cynical at the VERY low claims on cost of lives lost through the Chernobyl disaster, especially when I have a reliable source of information living and working there who knows different - and has no reason to make up things !

Remember too that when people apply for research grants, it is in their interest to provide a positive outcome to their initial theory

Also, the initial cloud went to many countires before it came to the UK. Check this video of it's progress. http://www.jaeri.go.jp/~speedi/images/speedi2.mpg
You will see how it crosses Belarus, Latvia, Ukraine, up through the Scandanavian countries, into weatern Russia, across Europe, and THEN UK.

Believe what you like. I'll believe the World Health Organsisation, thanks all the same. Why should I believe dinner table stories from someone that hasn't monitored the situation?

 

[hermes]

The initial cloud drifted over our way. There is no incidence of thyroid cancer in those countries. Belarus is well-known for its iodine deficiency. Maybe subsidising the diet with iodine would help. It's not down to what happened at Chernobyl - but if you want to believe it is - then be my guest.

joe

I prefer to believe what I hear from a reliable and 'first hand' source - not some highly-censored television program.

Don't get me wrong - I think Horizon is a wonderful program. I am just very cynical at the VERY low claims on cost of lives lost through the Chernobyl disaster, especially when I have a reliable source of information living and working there who knows different - and has no reason to make up things !

Remember too that when people apply for research grants, it is in their interest to provide a positive outcome to their initial theory

Also, the initial cloud went to many countires before it came to the UK. Check this video of it's progress. http://www.jaeri.go.jp/~speedi/images/speedi2.mpg
You will see how it crosses Belarus, Latvia, Ukraine, up through the Scandanavian countries, into weatern Russia, across Europe, and THEN UK.

Believe what you like. I'll believe the World Health Organsisation, thanks all the same. Why should I believe dinner table stories from someone that hasn't monitored the situation?

Sounds quite plausible compared to some of the stuff you would have us believe joe.