# Nuclear meltdown! Holy Godzilla NOOOO!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 12, 2011, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389 "2011-03-12T08:19:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 54
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1061 "2011-03-27T11:31:48Z")
An expert from King’s College London was just being interviewed on BBC TV about these latest developments. He spoke in very reassuring terms. But then, no doubt he’s simply a … what was that term? Simply a “shithead”? ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Kumquat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gary\_Kumquat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Kumquat)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1062 "2011-03-27T12:20:02Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > A no doubt he’s simply a … what was that term? Simply a “shithead”? A similar “shithead” comments: > **[Risk expert: Why radiation fears are often exaggerated](https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20928050-200-risk-expert-why-radiation-fears-are-often-exaggerated/)** > > David Spiegelhalter is Winton Professor of the Public Understanding of Risk at the University of Cambridge. He studies risk and uncertainty in the lives of individuals and society, and helps run the Understanding Uncertainty website Fear of radiation... "People are calling the release of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear power station in Japan a “catastrophe”. Is this justified? This is indeed a really serious event, but it has to be put in the context of the earthquake and tsunami which led to it - and which has been the direct cause of massive suffering, which is still continuing. Obviously there are threats from the nuclear power station, but they are limited and they are quantifiable" Of course, obviously a Cambridge professor who specialises in risk can’t have the same grasp of just how calamitous the situations is as our resident expert FX, but it’s always good to provide contrasting viewpoints. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1063 "2011-03-27T13:06:36Z")
> [@Gary\_Kumquat](#): > > That’s a good question. Please advise who did state that (to quote your own link) " Minuscule amounts of radiation" would not be detected by the monitoring stations that were specifically designed to detect even the tiniest quantity of radioactive material, to check for nuclear testing? You should put that up for a “Run-On Sentence of the Year” award. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1064 "2011-03-27T13:11:35Z")
> [@Gary\_Kumquat](#): > > A similar “shithead” comments: > > [http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20928050.200-risk-expert-why-radiation-fears-are-often-exaggerated.html](http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20928050.200-risk-expert-why-radiation-fears-are-often-exaggerated.html) > > "People are calling the release of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear power station in Japan a “catastrophe”. Is this justified? > > This is indeed a really serious event, but it has to be put in the context of the earthquake and tsunami which led to it - and which has been the direct cause of massive suffering, which is still continuing. Obviously there are threats from the nuclear power station, but they are limited and they are quantifiable" > > Of course, obviously a Cambridge professor who specialises in risk can’t have the same grasp of just how calamitous the situations is as our resident expert FX, but it’s always good to provide contrasting viewpoints. David Spiegelhalter does indeed specialize in risk analysis, as a statistician. He’s not a nuclear expert; he’s a number cruncher. All he’s saying is that the risk is not infinite, which is hardly a Great Revelation. ---
**Author:** ![kidchameleon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/898d66/32.png) [@kidchameleon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidchameleon)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1065 "2011-03-27T14:25:52Z")
The amount of straw in this thread is approaching critical levels. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1066 "2011-03-27T14:38:34Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > It is the workers who are being char broiled. For the hyperbole to work, shouldn’t it be _microwaved_? ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1067 "2011-03-27T14:49:48Z")
> [@FXMastermind](#): > > That’s not 10 million times normal, it’s 10 million times what the radioactive water should be. > > Time to consult the xkcd chart again. Time for you to check your facts again. Are you certain of your 10 million figure? Really certain? ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1068 "2011-03-27T15:03:49Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Time for you to check your facts again. Are you certain of your 10 million figure? Really certain? From today’s NYT: [ > [@](#): > > The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency said that water seeping out of the crippled No. 2 reactor building into the adjacent turbine building contained levels of radioactive iodine 134 that were\*\* about 10 million times the level normally found in water used inside nuclear power plants.\*\* An official of Tokyo Electric Power Co., the operator of the Fukushima plant, later Sunday night said that the measurement may have been inaccurate. (emphasis added) ]([http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/28/world/asia/28japan.html?ref=global-home](http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/28/world/asia/28japan.html?ref=global-home)) ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Kumquat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gary\_Kumquat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Kumquat)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1069 "2011-03-27T15:08:37Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > You should put that up for a “Run-On Sentence of the Year” award. I take it you acknowledge that no one had actually said it then? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1070 "2011-03-27T15:31:33Z")
“…May have been inaccurate…”? How very reassuring. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1071 "2011-03-27T15:37:58Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > “…May have been inaccurate…”? How very reassuring. It seems they’re trying to downplay the reading. No idea if this is politicking or credible, but their statements suggest the actual levels may be lower than initially read: > [@](#): > > “There is a suspicion that the reading for iodine 134 is too high, so we are redoing our tests," said the spokesman, Takeo Iwamoto. He said that the utility would re-administer tests for all substances detected in the water at the No.2 reactor’s turbine building, and update readings “as soon as possible.” > > Mr. Iwamoto said he could not provide any details on what could have gone wrong with the tests. “We are very sorry for the inconvenience,” he said. He could not say by how much readings were thought to be in error. I particularly like the “we are very sorry for the inconvenience” bit, but that could be a translation/nuance thing. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1072 "2011-03-27T15:54:50Z")
> [@Gary\_Kumquat](#): > > I take it you acknowledge that no one had actually said it then? First, I have no idea what you were asking. That was one of the worst-constructed run-on sentences I’ve read this year. That’s why I suggested you enter it into a contest for run-on sentences. Second, the fact that you didn’t understand me when I wrote that doesn’t say much for your ability to comprehend anything. If you are asking me “who said that?” in response to me asking “who said that?”, well, that just makes you look like an even bigger idiot. If I knew who it was who said that, why would I have asked “who said that?”? ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Kumquat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gary\_Kumquat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Kumquat)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1073 "2011-03-27T16:00:30Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > If I knew who it was who said that, why would I have asked “who said that?”? Just to recap then, when you said “Who said it would never make it over to the US? It has.”, you meant that a statement that no-one actually said can now be shown to be incorrect. Well, that’s good to know. Perhaps we can add some other strawmen while we’re fucking about? ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1074 "2011-03-27T16:05:44Z")
RE: the ten million figure, officials are saying it was a calculation error and will be retesting: From the AP via Yahoo! news:[ > [@](#): > > The day began with company officials reporting that radiation in leaking water in the Unit 2 reactor was 10 million times above normal, a spike that forced employees to flee the unit. The day ended with officials saying the huge figure had been miscalculated and offering apologies. > “The number is not credible,” said Tokyo Electric Power Co. spokesman Takashi Kurita. “We are very sorry.” > > While the water is contaminated with radiation, officials are unsure about the actual levels. They planned to take another sample, but Kurita did not know when the results would be known. ]([http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110327/ap\_on\_bi\_ge/as\_japan\_earthquake;\_ylt=AtXNekol9zKsPrlOXZeP6SOs0NUE;\_ylu=X3oDMTNqb3RlaXNpBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTEwMzI3L2FzX2phcGFuX2VhcnRocXVha2UEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwMxBHBvcwMyBHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawNqYXBhbmh1Z2VyYWQ-](http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110327/ap_on_bi_ge/as_japan_earthquake;_ylt=AtXNekol9zKsPrlOXZeP6SOs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNqb3RlaXNpBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTEwMzI3L2FzX2phcGFuX2VhcnRocXVha2UEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwMxBHBvcwMyBHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawNqYXBhbmh1Z2VyYWQ-)) ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1075 "2011-03-27T16:15:41Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > I particularly like the “we are very sorry for the inconvenience” bit, but that could be a translation/nuance thing. Maybe Bill Murray is over there? ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1076 "2011-03-27T16:31:37Z")
> [@FXMastermind](#): > > That’s not 10 million times normal, it’s 10 million times what the radioactive water should be. > > Time to consult the xkcd chart again. > [@Muffin](#): > > Time for you to check your facts again. Are you certain of your 10 million figure? Really certain? > [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > RE: the ten million figure, officials are saying it was a calculation error and will be retesting:[URL=“[http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110327/ap\_on\_bi\_ge/as\_japan\_earthquake;\_ylt=AtXNekol9zKsPrlOXZeP6SOs0NUE;\_ylu=X3oDMTNqb3RlaXNpBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTEwMzI3L2FzX2phcGFuX2VhcnRocXVha2UEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwMxBHBvcwMyBHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawNqYXBhbmh1Z2VyYWQ-](http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110327/ap_on_bi_ge/as_japan_earthquake;_ylt=AtXNekol9zKsPrlOXZeP6SOs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNqb3RlaXNpBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTEwMzI3L2FzX2phcGFuX2VhcnRocXVha2UEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwMxBHBvcwMyBHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawNqYXBhbmh1Z2VyYWQ-)”] I realize that this is a lot to ask, but how about doing your homework, FX. Your running about crying wolf really accomplishes nothing other than to spread false rumours and make you look thick. ---
**Author:** ![FXMastermind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fxmastermind/32/7289_2.png) [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1077 "2011-03-27T16:35:36Z")
Unlike your erudite postings, which are educational and explain things? ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1078 "2011-03-27T16:36:48Z")
I saw an interview with the nuclear plant manager. he felt terrible at the loss of lives and the damage caused. he was in tears. That is so uncapitalistic. He should have been like Blankenship in the Big Branch mine disaster. He spent lives like pennies. They are just part of doing business. If raising profits results in unsafe conditions and lives lost, no big deal. He went on to retire with a huge multi million dollar pension. He was doing his job. People like Blankenship run nuclear plants in America. They fight every inspection and every regulation . Safety costs money. The nuke industry spends lots of money lobbying politicians to cut regulation and inspection. ---
**Author:** ![Nadir](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nadir/32/7302_2.png) [@Nadir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nadir)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1079 "2011-03-27T16:41:56Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > The nuke industry spends lots of money lobbying politicians to cut regulation and inspection. Lots of industries spend lots of money lobbying politicians to cut regulations and inspection. (long as we’re making sweeping generalizations) :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![FXMastermind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fxmastermind/32/7289_2.png) [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2011, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389/1080 "2011-03-27T16:44:07Z")
Serious question time. Is there a serious technical discussion of what is going down at the nuclear plant? Somewhere hidden on this forum? Because while it’s fun to rant and rave, spew Godzilla! crap, a real discussion is also interesting. So, is there one? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389.md?page=53) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nuclear-meltdown-holy-godzilla-noooo/574389.md?page=55)