Should America Go Nuclear?
With recent news coming from of Japan about the Fukushima I Nuclear Plant, many people in the U.S. are wondering we should invest in nuclear energy too. People who are against nuclear energy look back to Three Mile Island and Chernobyl. These accidents really changed the public’s opinion of nuclear energy. The U.S. needs to resort to other renewable resources besides nuclear energy.
The first thing people worry about when it comes to nuclear power plants are what is called a nuclear meltdown. This term basically means a severe nuclear reactor accident that result in core damage from overheating. This is a worst case scenario, as there are many precautions taken to avoid this from happening.
When this does happen there is a loss of coolant water in a fission reactor, this would cause the rods would overheat. The rods that contain the uranium fuel pellets would dissolve, leaving the fuel exposed. The temperature would increase with the lack of a cooling source. When the fuel rods heat to 2800 degrees Celsius, the fuel would melt, and a white-hot molten mass would melt its way through the containment vessels to the ground below it.
Emergency water reservoirs are designed to immediately flood the core in the case of sudden loss of coolant. There are normally multiple sources of water to draw from, as the low pressure injection pumps, containment spray system, and refueling pumps are all potentially available, and all draw water from different sources.
The disaster at Three Mile Island was classified as a partial meltdown, caused by the failure to supply coolant to the core. This accident occurred in Middletown, Pa. on Mar. 28, 1979. Cleanup started at the plant in August 1979 and officially ended in December 1993, with a total cleanup cost of about $1 billion. This resulted in anti-nuclear protest in 1979 and caused support for nuclear plant research to drop by more than 40 percent.
The worst case of a nuclear disaster was on Apr. 26, 1986 at the Chernobyl facility in the Ukraine. Thirty-one people died as an immediate result of the meltdown and explosion. An estimated 4,057 or more died in the surrounding area after exposure to radiation. This also caused the evacuation of 300,000 people from the most severely contaminated areas of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine. The radioactive material dispersed all over the continent of Europe.
Radiation is another major concern when it comes to nuclear power plants. The three major effects of radiation (cancer, radiation sickness and genetic mutation) are nearly untraceable at levels below about 50 rems (Rontgen Equivalent Man). The average person receives about 200 millirems a year from everyday objects and outer space; this is referred to as background radiation. If all our power came from nuclear plants we would receive an extra 2/10 of a millirem a year. With these and other side affects the U.S. should consider other forms of renewable sources of energy.
During the accident at Three Mile Island in America, people living within a 50 mile radius received an extra 3/10 of one percent of their average annual radiation. This was only because of the containment structures, the majority of which were not breached. The containment building and primary pressure vessel remained undamaged, fulfilling their function.
One other issue with nuclear energy is what to do with the nuclear waste. The byproducts of the nuclear fission are uranium-235. This byproduct remains radioactive for thousands of years. The result is requiring the safe disposal away from society until they lose their significant radiation values.
Many underground sites have been constructed, only to be filled within months. Storage facilities are not sufficient to store the world’s nuclear waste, which limits the amount of nuclear fuel that can be used each year. Transportation of the waste is risky, as many unknown variables may affect the containment vessels. If one of these vessels were compromised, the results may be deadly for several people.
The U.S. should continue with research on alternative sources of renewable energy, except nuclear. There are drawbacks to the other sources of renewable energy that ranges from cost to environmental issues. These issues are small compared to the environmental effects that could result from a nuclear accident. In a recent CNN public opinion poll, 53 percent of Americans said they oppose the construction of new plants, up from 47 percent in a CNN poll conducted in March 2010.
Is K-2 Dangerous?
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has now designated such products as K-2 and Spice, a Schedule 1 substance. Under this restrictive category the DEA will now be controlled for at least twelve months, with the possibility of a 6-month extension. The reason for this aggressive action is due to its numerous side effects including death. Ultimately, synthetic marijuana, or “fake pot,” is a dangerous substance that should remain illegal in the state of Virginia.
The Food and Drug Administration did not approve the chemicals used to make products such as K-2 and Spice for human consumption, the DEA said in its federal notice. The five chemicals the DEA has decided to control are JWH-018, JWH-073, JWH-200, CP-47, 497, and cannabicyclohexanol. The synthetic cannabinoids contained in synthetic marijuana products have been made illegal in many European countries too.
The Acting Administrator for the DEA Michele M. Leonhart said, "The American public looks to the DEA to protect its children and communities from those who would exploit them for their own gain.” Leonhart goes on to say, "Makers of these harmful products mislead their customers into thinking that 'fake pot' is a harmless alternative to illegal drugs, but that is not the case."
People that try K-2 often experience a rapid heart rate, dangerously high blood pressure and sometimes hallucinations or paranoia, the poison center said in its alert. With these side effects it cannot be detected on current drug tests for marijuana, but it is possible to detect its metabolites in human urine.
In February 2010, the director of the Missouri Poison Center in St. Louis notified poison centers nationwide about K-2 after doctors reported a surge in patients sickened by it. Similar cases like these have been reported all over the country.
During the same month, Dr. Anthony Scalzo, a professor of toxicology at Saint Louis University, has seen nearly 30 cases of teenagers experiencing these adverse effects after smoking the fake weed. Dr. Scalzo goes on to say that this estimate is a slight deviation from the truth. This evidence proves that K-2 is a dangerous substance that should stay illegal in the state of Virginia.
Dr. Scalzo says he has spoken with his counterparts at poison-control centers in Atlanta, New Jersey and New York City. Their recent case loads are as follows: Atlanta with 12 cases, New Jersey with 2 cases, and New York City having 0 cases. According to Scalzo, there is no group or organization that is tracking K-2-related medical cases nationwide. The National Poison Data System that can tract these cases; but Scalzo says, "It doesn't even have a code for K-2."
In Scalzo’s opinion, the greater danger in buying this substance K-2 is nobody seems to know what entails the mixture. "You don't know what you're getting," says Scalzo.
According to the K-2 official website, the product is “not for human consumption,” and is marketed on the website as herbal incense. Even with that being said, both the website owner and the store keepers selling the products know that the majority of the people buying it are going to smoke it, not use it for incense.
No official studies have been conducted on its effects on humans. Extremely large doses may cause negative effects that are generally not noted in marijuana users, such as increased agitation and vomiting. One study showed that a user who consumed 3g of Spice Gold every day for several months showed withdrawal symptoms, similar to those associated with withdrawing from the use of narcotics.
Synthetic marijuana products such as K-2 and Spice are dangerous substances that a lot of countries around the world have made them illegal. The United States has followed many Europeans making this product illegal too. Doctors and other medical professionals have said that these products are dangerous to consume. These products should remain illegal, because of the numerous side effects.
NATPE Faculty Fellowship Grant
EMORY Va.— The NATPE Faculty Development Grant Program gives media educators in colleges and universities across the country the opportunity to experience in a media environment.
NATPE (National Association of Television Program Executives) started the grant in 1978. The program allows media educators to spend up to six weeks as a summer intern with a TV station, cable system, broadcast network, cable network, or in program distribution.
The goal of the grant is to create more effective teaching through hands on experience. Another goal of the grant is to nurture a relationship between the educators and the industry.
One of our professors at E&H received this grant. Mass Communications professor Dr. Twange Kasoma received this award recently. “I was honored and humbled,” said Dr. Kasoma when she was asked about receiving the award.
When a media educator receives the grant they can chose the station, market, or location of that person’s choice to work. The recipient will receive a stipend of $500 per week for up to 6 weeks.
They are automatically registered for the annual NATPE Market & Conference. They will be reimbursed up to $500 that goes towards conference-related travels and accommodations. The recipients of this grant also receive a complimentary one year NATPE Educational Membership valued at $95.
The application for the grant can be found on the company’s website www.natpe.org. Out of the many media educators that apply for this grant only a select few receive the grant.
EMORY Va.— The NATPE Faculty Development Grant Program gives media educators in colleges and universities across the country the opportunity to experience in a media environment.
NATPE (National Association of Television Program Executives) started the grant in 1978. The program allows media educators to spend up to six weeks as a summer intern with a TV station, cable system, broadcast network, cable network, or in program distribution.
The goal of the grant is to create more effective teaching through hands on experience. Another goal of the grant is to nurture a relationship between the educators and the industry.
One of our professors at E&H received this grant. Mass Communications professor Dr. Twange Kasoma received this award recently. “I was honored and humbled,” said Dr. Kasoma when she was asked about receiving the award.
When a media educator receives the grant they can chose the station, market, or location of that person’s choice to work. The recipient will receive a stipend of $500 per week for up to 6 weeks.
They are automatically registered for the annual NATPE Market & Conference. They will be reimbursed up to $500 that goes towards conference-related travels and accommodations. The recipients of this grant also receive a complimentary one year NATPE Educational Membership valued at $95.
The application for the grant can be found on the company’s website www.natpe.org. Out of the many media educators that apply for this grant only a select few receive the grant.
