Austinites fearing effects of Japanese fallout..wait, what?! (West, Howe: buying, tornado)

[WoodyTX]

If you want to scare yourself that particulate matter or steam will hit the jet stream, fly all the way across the Pacific Ocean, cross two major mountain ranges, and make it halfway across the continental United States before dropping in eclectic little Austin, go right ahead.

Me? I'm more worried about the four dental x-rays I've had for tooth implants in the last two years, or the flight to California I took last year. Each of them exposed me to far more radiation than anything that's happened in Japan in the last half-century.

[G Grasshopper]

Originally Posted by Charlottex

Blame the hysteria on the media, as usual. Last night I saw Diane Sawyer talking about the same thing on national news & there are many people who actually believe she is an expert... now that's sad...

I saw it too. She kept asking for worst case scenarios and seemed to want to make it sound as dire as possible. The situation is, of course, dire. But when one of the experts on the show said that there was very little risk that appreciable radiation would make it to the US, Diane seemed almost disappointed. Personally, I am very, very sad for Japan's people, who are facing an almost unimaginable disaster. We need to remember that those nuclear facilities are old, and that the technology in newer plants is very different, and doesn't rely on electric pumps to keep the core covered with water. Japan is paying for its reliance on old technology, but that doesn't change the depth of the tragedy there.

[kiacook]

I want to see if our scorpions, tarantulas, and snakes can grow even larger.

What? We have those in Austin. OH NOOOOOOO.

[GlobalistPotato]

Originally Posted by hoffdano

I want more radiation. I am building a giant collector in my back yard (because of no HOA, I can do that) to act as a funnel.

I want to see if our scorpions, tarantulas, and snakes can grow even larger.

If you do that, you'll probably want to by the stocks of Johnson & Johnson (and other companies that sell insectides), along with buying the stocks of home insurance companies.

Hehe.

I don't think the radiation levels are going to be close to that of a x-ray or CT scan. I think most Austinites should only be afraid of the fallout if they try traveling to the reactors themselves.

[Bo]

Traces of radiation from Japanese nuclear plant surface in California - CNN.com

I don't know how frequently the wind profiles bring air to Central Texas from Sacramento, but it is noteworthy that isotopes from Fukushima were detected in the US.

[WoodyTX]

Originally Posted by Bo

Traces of radiation from Japanese nuclear plant surface in California - CNN.com

I don't know how frequently the wind profiles bring air to Central Texas from Sacramento, but it is noteworthy that isotopes from Fukushima were detected in the US.

It described the exposure as "approximately one-millionth of the dose rate that a person normally receives from rocks, bricks, the sun and other natural background sources."

Let's hold off on the panic button until that rises by a factor of a few million...

[JayBrown80]

Radiation is present in our enviornment. It's just like oxygen particles and germs. We don't often think about it, and radiation is such a scary word, that just the thought of it gives us the heebie jeebies, but remember folks, it's always there. Digging in your garden exposes you to natural levels of radiation that are found in earth, rocks, particulates, air and the sun.

No legitimate scientist has supported the idea that America is in any danger from Japanese radiation.

The reason you are hearing about this so much is because there is a LARGE and powerful political contingent in this country that is 100% hysterically anti-nuclear power. They often blow the dangers of nuclear energy out of proportion (while at the same time minimizing the dangers from other forms of power, such as coal mining and offshore drilling). These people wait in the wood works and spring into action with their media machine anytime ANYTHING pertaining to nuclear energy enters the news. You need to take their "reporting" with a grain of salt. They have a clear bias. Consider the source.

Well, that is most of the reason why people are freaking out. The other reason is that there is an equally large contingent of Americans, who when they view the utter devestation and suffering facing the Japanese people, immediately start thinking "Oh those poor people.....BUT HOW DOES THIS AFFECT ME?????"

[mickey65]

Well those pills wouldn't do me any good anyway - since I no longer even have a thyroid! I had it radiated a few years back!

[Bo]

Originally Posted by WoodyTX

It described the exposure as "approximately one-millionth of the dose rate that a person normally receives from rocks, bricks, the sun and other natural background sources."

Let's hold off on the panic button until that rises by a factor of a few million...

I didn't say to panic. I just pointed out that it was not impossible for that plant's radiation to make its way to Central Texas. The OP seemed to imply that was not possible.

I don't buy into this mocking of the public for being worried about radiation. Radiation's an easy thing for the public to panic about. You can't see it, smell it or taste it, but in large quantities that none of us possess equipment to measure, it's deadly. Since the majority of Americans are under-educated about science, it's not so hard to figure that most of us don't know much about the hazards of radiation. Some of you are probably not old enough to remember the suspicions and fears many people had about microwave ovens when they were introduced in the 70s.

Instead of mocking, just do your part by sharing facts. We get enough histrionics and uninformed handwringing about this stuff in the media. Let City-Data be a place to be informed, rather than scolded.

[G Grasshopper]

Being uninformed and resultant panic is part of the human condition. I just saw yesterday how people in China were buying out all the stores of iodized salt! How much salt do you think they are going to consume to "protect" themselves from radiation? Reportedly, most of them couldn't even tell you why they were buying it. I don't think the panic is the result of any particular interest group. Rather, I think it is the press, which has not made much of an attempt to educate people about relative risks (because making things sound dangerous - fear mongering - is better business - gets more viewers. ) And it is just simple human nature. When faced with a perceived risk, people tend either to over react and panic or to go into denial. What we need is informed, scientifically savy public. The situation is a huge risk to some in Japan, and is a terrible situation. If we are concerned about it, our energies need to go to helping the Japanese people and making sure our own nuclear technology is not so outdated, not into finding iodine tablets.