The toxic wastes from atomic power systems will poison planet Earth for thousands of years to come. Our soil and water are being poisoned by the widespread burying of nuclear waste on land and sea! Atomic energy is always in conflict with all Life, because the very nature of 'atom-splitting' is destruction not construction. For this reason, it can never be used for peace or peaceful activities. How can peace be achieved by that which is by nature unpeaceful? Splitting atoms disrupts the flow of force through them.

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Atomic power can never be used for peaceful purposes because the very nature of 'splitting atoms' is DESTRUCTION, not construction. The flow of force through atoms is destroyed when they are 'split'.

First of all, welcome to the board!

Now, may I ask just what, specifically, your concerns are about fission power? I see that you have some worries about the disposal of nuclear waste. There are ways to reduce the amount of waste produced (reprocessing spent fuel) and to dispose of the remaining waste safely. In fact, there are ways to eliminate this waste entirely, forever (vitrifying the waste and then dropping it onto a subduction fault).

Also, as it stands, nuclear waste is not released into the environment, and whenever there is an accidental spill, it is cleaned promptly and safely.

Nuclear power is very safe, and in fact accounts for fewer deaths every year than coal power does.

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Quaeso quousque humi defixa tua mens erit? Nonne aspicis, quae in templa veneris?

Hopefully we will develop fusion power which will join atoms together.

Um, infinity2, many atoms fission spontaneously, all by themselves.

And we produce energy for our bodies by splitting molecules and using the energy released. So by your reasoning, we cannot eat and be peaceful. The alternative is... not a choice I prefer.

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Phil Plait
The Bad Astronomer
http://www.badastronomy.com
badastro@badastronomy.com

No. Toxic wastes from coal power stations will poison our planet (I'm not keen on that phrase. It has too much Gaia worshipping connotations.) for thousands of years to come because those kinds of toxins don't decay. Fission products will be less radioactive than the original ore from which they were produced within a matter of hundreds of years. The longer lived stuff should be burnt as we all know.

Shows what you know. There is very little burying of high level waste because it has not yet accumulated to levels that make it urgent. All proposals for future sequestering radwaste incorporate the most robust protection and isolation ever given to the containment of any waste. It would be safer to lick the walls of Yucca Mountain than your local takeaway.

The Sun is in conflict with all life? The radioactive decay fuelling the undersea vents from which all life sprang is in conflict with all life? Nuclear power is the fuel of the universe and with it all life.

So's metabolism as BA pointed out.

I split my potatoes last night with a knife. It was the destruction of a potato. Am I a warmonger for have mash? This one is so getting blogged!

Why, through superiour fire power of course.

Flow of force? dF/dt? What physical significance does this particular derivative have?

Freedom For Fission

Someone has already pointed out "spontaneous fission", also there is alpha decay, which also counts as an atom spontaneously splitting. All fissionable isotopes decay spontaneously by alpha particle emission (also some spontaneous fission depending on the isotope, but this tends to be a minor decay branch)

Obviously we should be designing reactors using Feng Shui. I'll be sure to bring this up at our next staff meeting, thanks for the advice infinity2!

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Do try not to take me too seriously.

Yucca Mountain is not quite the done deal yet. Hmmh---"Las Vegas 100 Miles".

Last I heard it was on track, though it is always possible for it to get derailed again. Of course, that's all politics.

Yes, very far.

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I say there is an invisible elf in my backyard. How do you prove that I am wrong?

Disclaimer: Avatar is not an official NASA image and does not imply any specific interplanetary or interstellar capability.

The Leif Ericson Cruiser

Obviously you are not aware (sleeping through science class??) that fission and fusion are NATURAL EVENTS.

Please take a look up at that glowing ball in the daytime sky: It's a big natural reactor splitting a million tons of atoms every second, far more total power in one second than we have produced since building the first fire.

Take a look up at the night sky: There are billions of stars in our galaxy - and most of them are much bigger than our own sun, doing the same thing.

Uranium and the other radioactive elements are all NATURAL SUBSTANCES found in our planet. There have even been 'natural nuclear reactors' where enough uranium has concentrated in streams enough to heat the water and produce natural nuclear power.

Learn some science and don't just copy the whining....

I wouldn't waste my time on a hit-and-run poster.

Oh, an update: I did give my proposal to use Feng Shui to some of the ESBWR control engineers. I even printed out the old bbspot parody and proposed using Fengtek as a supplier. I probably shouldn't have done it at lunch, as they nearly choked to death on their drinks laughing.

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Do try not to take me too seriously.