ScribbleLive

@Lilly are you kidding? That's unbelievable!! Why would Facebook go along with that?!

@lilly, the second comment to the wsj article makes an interesting reference to the Kodama presentation.

@lillymunster , the ZDF is quite to the point. The government seems unprepared to confront the situation pro-actively or perhaps I misunderstand what pro-active means to them. If it is true that tepco does not monitor outside its premises, where are they intending to send the thousands of techs whom they are training? Did not know that Busby was a professor and wonder what field he is in.

@lillymunster , busby's speciality seems anxieties. @edano, the officials just seem to give the folks the run-arounds. I wonder whether the governor of Fukushima prefecture has jurisdiction over this hospital the farmer visited. There seem to be no rules other than avoid panic and don't mention radiation. In my mind, there should be rules and procedures by now that instruct public health clinics and hospitals what needs to be done. There should be fliers instructing people what where to go. Since this contamination crisis will be going on for years, if not decades, the government better ramps its efforts up considerably, if it wants to meet the challenges.

@Edano , and what are you supposed to do, if you live in another prefecture?

I wonder whether any attempt has been made to internally decontaminate anyone.

@Lilly that's a powerful short film.

Radiation-free Fukushima rice hits Tokyo www.asahi.com Says it was tested twice, but I just find it hard to believe that this rice would be low level. Course the article says "that the grain is free of radioactive contamination ", but doesn't cite the actual level.

Japan's nuclear regulator has acknowledged it did not provide the prime minister's office with vital information about the state of the No. 1 reactor at the stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in the three days following the March 11 tsunami. www.asahi.com

Water shield - hydrological cross-section of whole.jpg

Aerial Measurement of Radioxenon Concentration off the West Coast of Vancouver Island following the Fukushima Reactor Accident. In response to the Fukushima nuclear reactor accident, on March 20th, 2011, Natural Resources Canada conducted aerial radiation surveys over water just off of the west coast of Vancouver Island. Dose-rate levels were found to be consistent with background radiation, however a clear signal due to Xe-133 was observed. Methods to extract Xe-133 count rates from the measured spectra, and to determine the corresponding Xe-133 volumetric concentration, were developed. The measurements indicate that Xe-133 concentrations on average lie in the range of 30 to 70 Bq/m3. arxiv.org

Assessment of the radionuclide composition of "hot particles" sampled in the chernobyl nuclear power plant fourth reactor unit. Abstract: Fuel-containing materials sampled from within the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP) Unit 4 Confinement Shelter were spectroscopically studied for gamma and alpha content. Isotopic ratios for cesium, europium, plutonium, americium, and curium were identified, and the fuel burn-up in these samples was determined. A systematic deviation in the burn-up values based on the cesium isotopes in comparison with other radionuclides was observed. The studies conducted were the first ever performed to demonstrate the presence of significant quantities of Cm and Cm. It was determined that there was a systematic underestimation of activities of transuranic radionuclides in fuel samples from inside of the ChNPP Confinement Shelter, starting from Am (and going higher) in comparison with the theoretical calculations. NOT AVAILABLE FOR PUBLIC

Effects of ionizing radiation on the antioxidant system of microscopic fungi with radioadaptive properties found in the chernobyl exclusion zone. Abstract

Some microscopic fungi found in the area of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone appear to have unique radioadaptive properties associated with their capability to respond positively to the effects of ionizing irradiation. On the one hand, this capability can be used potentially in bio-remediation technologies, and on the other hand, it requires additional, more thorough studies to identify its underlying mechanisms. Practically, no data are currently available on mechanisms for implementation of these radioadaptive properties by microscopic fungi. The objective of the completed study was to evaluate the functioning of the antioxidant system of a microscopic fungus as one of potential mechanisms for implementation of its radioadaptive properties. The study was performed using a model system simulating the soil radioactivity in the 5-km zone around the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, with the ratio of the radioactive isotopes matching the radionuclide content in the fuel component of the Chernobyl fallout. The completed study was the first ever performed to identify a comprehensive response of the major components of the antioxidant system of the microscopic fungi to ionizing radiation, resulting in an induced melanin synthesis and increased activity of the known enzymes of antioxidant protection. Their response to ionizing radiation depended on the presence or absence of radioadaptive properties and phase of the fungal growth. Fungi with radioadaptive properties have a much higher susceptibility for inducing synthesis of melanin and antioxidant enzymes than fungi without radioadaptive properties (hereinafter referred to as the reference species or strains), which illustrates the contribution of these processes to "radiophilia" of the fungi. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov