Abstract
In March 2011, three nuclear reactors melted down at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant when their safety systems were overwhelmed by the effects of a tsunami. Radioactive substances were released into the atmosphere and the Pacific Ocean. A number of workers and emergency responders received more exposure to radiation than the legally permissible lifetime limit. The historic poignancy of Japan once again suffering the effects of an uncontrolled nuclear chain reaction was not lost on commentators. Sam Biddle, writing for the pop technology website Gizmodo, reported that the cesium-137 released by the reactors was the radiological equivalent of 168 Hiroshimas. Lest he be misunderstood, Biddle immediately acknowledged the difference between an exploding bomb and a melting reactor. Whereas most of the victims of Hiroshima had been killed by the instantaneous heat or pressure, “Fukushima’s release is slower—more insidious. A deadly leak that’s seeped into the earth, water, food, and urine of Japan.”1 Others quickly pointed out that the danger was not limited to Japan.
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Notes
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© 2013 Matthew Lavine
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Lavine, M. (2013). Introduction. In: The First Atomic Age. Palgrave Studies in the History of Science and Technology. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137307224_1
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