September 14, 2016 – Nature – Modernize radiation measurements to save lives – There are two types of nation: those that use the metric system and those that have put a man on the Moon. The reliance of the United States on feet and pounds, along with its refusal to embrace metres and kilograms, baffles outsiders as much as it warms the hearts of some American patriots. But it is time for the country to give up on the curie, the roentgen, the rad and the rem. Instead, US regulators and scientists should adopt the appropriate SI units for the measurement of radioactivity. They should do so not only for the sake of international harmony, but also to protect the health and safety of US citizens. After years of wrangling, on 29 September the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will hold a workshop to discuss whether the United States should adopt the international system of units for radiological measurements. The negotiations will affect every­one from NASA astronauts and air crews to emergency responders.

September 14, 2016 – Atlas Obscura – Watch Five Alarmingly Calm Men Stand Under an Exploding Atomic Bomb – In 1945, the first atomic bomb was set off during the Trinity Test in the New Mexican desert. This marked the birth of the Atomic Age, a period of nuclear experimentation that would alter the world on a sociocultural level, not to mention an elemental one. Today we know the danger of exposure to atomic bombs. First there is the initial fiery explosion, caused by the splitting of an atom. However, the arguably more dangerous effect of the atom bomb is its radiation, both from the original blast and the residual radioactivity left in its wake. This can spread over a miles-long diameter, but is most concentrated at ground zero, the point directly underneath the detonation. Hence why this video of five men standing directly beneath an atomic bomb test is a bit disturbing.

September 14, 2016 – Science World Report – The Effects of Ionizing Radiation on the Human DNA: can it Cause Cancer? – Even today cancer is the most dreaded disease that is affecting thousands of lives all over the world. Recently a team of researchers at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute have identified that a significant amount of DNA damage can be caused by an ionizing radiation and lead to cancer. Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov reported that the effects of radiation found in this research can bring a huge change in the way certain types of cancer are treated by the specialists. It will help the doctors to treat the tumors that have been caused due to radiation differently. The results of this cancer research will not only make the treatments much more effective but will also help the oncologists to understand how radiation affect the cells and causes cancer. The findings of the research suggest that any kind of ionizing radiation like X-rays, gamma rays as well as radioactive particles are capable of damaging the human DNA. But the process of damage and the number of tumors that can be caused due to radiation and ionization still unknown to the world.

September 14, 2016 – Japan Times – Court recognizes two A-bomb survivors as hibakusha, rejects claims of two others – The Nagoya District Court on Wednesday recognized two men who were exposed to the August 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima as hibakusha, overturning the government’s rejection of their certification bid despite standards eased in recent years. The court, however, dismissed similar claims made by two women in the same case who were present during the nuclear attack on Nagasaki three days later, while acknowledging a causal relationship between the diseases suffered by all four plaintiffs and their exposure to radiation. Presiding Judge Yoshitaka Ichihara said in the ruling that while the men needed surgery or repeated hospital visits for medical treatment when they applied for certification, the women faced a lower probability of needing such help as their conditions had not deteriorated in the extended time since last undergoing surgical procedures.

September 14, 2016 – Healio – Brentuximab vedotin with chemotherapy, radiation effective for unfavorable risk Hodgkin lymphoma – Chemotherapy plus radiation therapy is the standard of care for patients with early-stage, unfavorable risk classical Hodgkin lymphoma. Although studies have shown that a chemotherapy-alone approach can improve outcomes in some patients, many of these studies excluded patients with bulky disease. Due to a concern for toxicity from radiation when used in a combined-modality approach, many patients now receive reduced doses with involved-nodal radiation. Brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris, Seattle Genetics) appears highly active in the treatment of patients with relapsed and refractory Hodgkin lymphoma. However, limited data exist on the agent’s safety and efficacy when used with combined-modality treatment for front-line therapy.

September 14, 2016 – The Royal Gazette – Radiation facility gets $500,000 donation – Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre will benefit from a half-a-million-dollar donation from two local companies as it prepares for the installation of new radiation therapy equipment. BF&M Limited and the Argus Group are each giving $250,000 to support the new BCHC building, which will house Bermuda’s first radiation facility. Patients who require radiation can presently only get the treatment overseas. John Wight, president and CEO of BF&M Limited, said: “As leading healthcare providers on the island, we have a responsibility to make a difference in the quality of treatment offered locally to our community.

September 14, 2016 – Burlington Hawk Eye – Former IAAAP nuclear workers learn about medical screening, compensation program – Former nuclear weapons workers and their families were given the opportunity to learn about free health screenings and potential compensation opportunities during a town hall meeting Tuesday in Burlington. Hosted by the U.S. Department of Labor, representatives from labor department, the Department of Energy, the Office of the Ombudsman and University of Iowa College of Public Health were on hand to discuss the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program and answer questions from the audience. In the morning session, about 100 people gathered to learn about the program and share their experiences. About 20 people were present at the Comfort Suites for the evening session. “Congress recognized that there were individuals who worked as contractors and sub-contractors for the Department of Energy in the production of nuclear weapons that were put in harms-way without their knowledge, often times,” said Rachel Leiton, director of compensation at the Department of Labor.

September 14, 2016 – Sputnik International – Multipurpose Fifth-Gen Nuclear Submarine Design to Be Developed by 2020 – The development of multipurpose fifth-generation multi-purpose nuclear-powered submarine design will continue until 2020, according to alakhit’s General Director Vladimir Dorofeev.ST. PETERSBURG (Sputnik) – Russia’s Malakhit design bureau plans to develop a multipurpose fifth-generation multi-purpose nuclear-powered submarine design by 2020, its director said Wednesday. © Photo: Ministry of defence of the Russian FederationRussian Missile System, Submarine Engage Simulated Targets at Kavkaz-2016 DrillsMalakhit’s General Director Vladimir Dorofeev said early last month the bureau had signed a contract with the Russian Defense Ministry to design the advanced nuclear submarine with construction to start sometime after 2020.

September 14, 2016 – World Nuclear News – UK civil nuclear job count rises by 2000 – More high quality, high skilled jobs are being created by the UK’s civil nuclear industry, new statistics from the Nuclear Industry Association (NIA) show. Some 65,791 people are now working in the sector, an increase of more than 2000 on last year. The NIA’s Civil Nuclear Jobs Map also highlights the number of women, apprentices and graduates employed in the industry. More than one-fifth of all employees are female, almost 2000 are on an apprenticeship program and over 1000 are part of a graduate scheme.

September 14, 2016 – Evening Standard – Theresa May set to allow Chinese-backed nuclear plant at Hinkley Point – Theresa May is poised to give the go-ahead to the controversial Hinkley Point nuclear power plant within days, sources indicated today. Downing Street insisted no decision has been reached but sources in Whitehall told the Standard the “mood” at No 10 is for a swift approval. Mrs May is said to have planned to make the announcement last Monday and lined up a telephone call to French President François Hollande – only for it to be cancelled at the 11th hour when fresh questions were raised. The £18 billion reactor in Somerset, to be built by French company EDF with Chinese investment, is planned to power 5.8 million homes when it comes on stream from 2025, easing the UK’s looming energy crisis.

September 14, 2016 – Pirate FM – Plymouth Tests Response To Nuclear Reactor Emergencies – How would Plymouth cope with a nuclear reactor emergency? A siren will sound across the city on Wednesday as part of a test. Devonport dockyard and the MoD are among those running operation Short Sermon. Personnel will have to take shelter or evacuate but locals will not be affected. A Royal Navy spokesperson said: “As a routine part of the Ministry of Defence, Babcock and Plymouth City Council’s contingency planning, a one-day nuclear emergency response exercise will take place on Wednesday 14th September. “Code-named Exercise Short Sermon 16, the day is designed to test the procedures in place for dealing with a nuclear reactor emergency involving a nuclear-powered submarine at Devonport. During the day personnel from approximately 27 agencies will be responding at the tactical, operational and strategic levels in Plymouth, Exeter, and Truro.

September 14, 2016 – Forbes – Terrestrial Energy’s Advanced Nuclear Technology – The IMSR – Takes Several Steps Forward – Terrestrial Energy USA recently announced that it had achieved a significant progress step in its push to move from a reactor design to a completed and operating reactor. The US Department of Energy was sufficiently satisfied with the information the company provided in Part 1 of its application for a loan guarantee under Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, as amended, that it issued an invitation to the company to submit Part II. Terrestrial Energy is asking the US government to provide a co-signature for a loan of between $800 million and $1.2 billion. The money will finance a project to license, construct and commission its first 195 MWe IMSRTM. Though the company is evaluating several potential locations, it is currently in discussions with the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to create a site somewhere on the nearly 900 square mile federally owned facility.

September 14, 2016 – New York Times – ‘Command and Control’ Warns of Decline of Nation’s Nuclear Complex – An understated warning comes toward the end of a new documentary on a Titan 2 missile accident that shook the small town of Damascus, Ark., in mid-September 1980. The missile exploded in its underground silo, throwing aloft a thermonuclear warhead with a destructive potential greater than all the bombs dropped in World War II. Its detonation would have leveled much of Arkansas and sent clouds of deadly radioactivity raining down on the East Coast. Harold Brown was the defense secretary who breathed a sigh of relief once miliary officials had managed to locate the missing warhead and render it safe. As a young physicist, he had designed nuclear arms and risen to serve as Secretary of the Air Force and director of Defense Research and Engineering in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. For President Carter, he ran the American military. Dr. Brown gives his take on the modern implications of the Titan 2 accident as part of the new documentary, “Command and Control,” released this month. He casts it as a cautionary tale, warning that the nation’s atomic complex has fallen into decline.

September 14, 2016 – Pricenomics – The Towns That Say “Yes in my Backyard!” to Nuclear Waste⁠⁠⁠ – On November 10, 2011, a hundred or so residents of Andrews, Texas, gathered at a large hole in the ground to celebrate the grand opening of America’s newest nuclear waste dump. Assembled amongst the locals were political and business luminaries from Dallas, Austin, and Washington D.C.. For the ribbon cutting, hedge trimmer-sized scissors were passed out to the various men in suits responsible for making Andrews County a repository for the nation’s radioactive trash. Among them were the senior managers of Waste Control Specialists (WCS), the company that owns the site, Harold Simmons, the conservative Dallas billionaire who owned that company; and Bob Zap, the mayor of Andrews at the time. The inauguration of the low-level radioactive waste facility, Texas’ first, ended with a barbecue. Most communities would not find the prospect of housing nuclear refuse cause for celebration. And yet, two years earlier, the town had narrowly voted to fund the construction of the disposal site with a $75-million bond.

September 14, 2016 – Albany Times Union – State wants radiation detectors in landfills – The sites hardly glow in the dark, but all of the state’s active landfills would have to be equipped with radiation detectors according to new regulations proposed by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. It’s an idea that environmentalists support but that counties oppose as an unneeded cost. The proposed requirement is part of a vast overhaul of landfill regulations, which haven’t been updated in about a decade.

September 14, 2016 – Global Research – Fukushima Backlash Hits Japan Prime Minister. Fukushima is NOT under Control – Nuclear power may never recover its cachet as a clean energy source, irrespective of safety concerns, because of the ongoing saga of meltdown 3/11/11 at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Over time, the story only grows more horrific, painful, deceitful. It’s a story that will continue for generations to come. Here’s why it holds pertinence: As a result of total 100% meltdown, TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company) cannot locate or remove the radioactive molten core or corium from the reactors. Nobody knows where it is. It is missing. If it is missing from within the reactor structures, has it burrowed into the ground? There are no ready answers. And, the destroyed nuclear plants are way too radioactive for humans to get close enough for inspection. And, robotic cameras get zapped! Corium is highly radioactive material, begging the question: If it has burrowed thru the containment vessel, does it spread underground, contaminating farmland and water resources and if so, how far away? Nobody knows?