Radiation: A Discussion

Radiation is an amazing thing. We see fireflies glow and we know that clocks used pale green radium paint so you could know what time it was in the dark. How are these waves measured? This is where it gets complicated, and with the current crisis in Fukushima, no wonder there is concern.

I'd like to hear from readers, what do we actually know about Siverts and gray. These are units that make no sense to me or most ordinary people. I konw what a meter is, and if you tell me the distance in yards, I'd be shaking my head. I am not being silly here, but clearly, the radiation from Fukushima is nowhere near dangerous. If you think it is, please evacuate, but you are probably just going to be exposed to more radiation in your jumbo jet flight, than if you stayed in Tokyo, Japan.

Having said that, of course I am worried about nuclear reactors. We should all be. But we have not been educated to deal with this, and do not know what it means. That is what I consider very serious. Since the mid 1960s, these power plants were built, thanks to politicians we all helped elect (or our parents did). Can't blame anyone else, and come on, we did know they were dangerous. We just loved the bright lights and the comfort. Now we know better: they are very dangerous.

Yet, no matter how I interpret the data, there are no terribly high levels of irradiation, at least not today, a week after the big earthquake and the the tsunami. It looks terrible, yes, and by design, the Fukushima reactors will kill people who are there, trying to avoid disaster. But most of us are safe, probably everyone, yet the "fear" is what makes the Yen go to 76 to the Dollar, and countries urging their citizens to leave. What is this "fear" if not ignorance. Do you think a similar nuclear accident cannot happen in the U.S. or in France, or in Britain? What makes you feel more safe in Sweden (a country that has more nuclear power per capita than Japan)?

Do not let media define what is safe, you have better tools to deal with all the information. If you do not know about nuclear power, and its risks, this is a good time to start your education. Be careful about where you get your information from. But do study, as human beings, that seems to be a task we can always do. And meditate, and pray, if that is your thing. Donate to charities you trust, and do not reply to strange emails. If you are a Highly Sensitive Person, this is a unique time to take care, and make notes, write poems, stay sane. You know what to avoid.

As for radiation, we are talking radiation emissions rising from 3,700 microsieverts per hour to 4,000 per hour, today.

It seems we are talking about very abstract numbers. I would like to hear some comments and a discussion about this. For more details, wikipedia offers updates on the Fukushima I nuclear accident page.

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