Archive for March, 2011

Smile For Japan (Video)

Students in Beijing have put together this collection of images, showing messages of support for Japan from people of various nationalities:

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A Message to the International Media: Stop the Hysteria!

TV personality Daniel Kahl has made this YouTube video, which asks the international media to stop stirring up hysteria with sensational reporting:

A good commentary on the issue, although it might be an exaggeration at this point to say that it isn’t as bad as Three Mile Island.

Ever since the earthquake, Kahl has been devoting huge amounts of time and effort to providing up-to-date and reliable news via his Twitter account. He has also posted helpful information links on his blog.

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Washington Post Opinion Piece: Why I’m Not Fleeing Japan

Paul Blustein of the Brookings Institution has written an opinion piece in the Washington Post explaining why he will not be evacuating from Japan:

I admit that when news broke about the power plants I wondered whether dangerous particulates might drift to our home. But when I read past the headlines, I learned that the risks were negligible for virtually all 125 million residents of the Japanese archipelago (except, of course, the heroic plant workers).

I read, for example, that after the Chernobyl disaster, most deaths resulted from children in the surrounding area drinking milk from cows that had grazed on contaminated grass — a blunder the Japanese aren’t going to repeat. I came to realize that even a “core meltdown” — something that I had always assumed spelled doom for millions — didn’t necessarily mean much adverse effects on human health, certainly not for people living distant enough for the particulates to disperse. Radiation, I learned, is a rather weak carcinogen. Even among the hibakusha, as survivors of the atomic attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki are known, cancer rates were not a lot higher than among the general population.

The extent of the troubles at the nuclear plants is still uncertain. But it hardly seems sensible for people like us to pack up and leave. Nor does it seem sensible or fair for people here or abroad to act as if Japan is a hotbed of fissile material. All those heartfelt expressions of sympathy for quake victims aren’t going to mean much if overreaction to the nuclear mess worsens Japan’s plight.

The mood here might not be conducive to tourism for a while. My wife, who is Japanese, has been brushing away tears night after night as she watches televised interviews of people from the stricken coastal areas. Their anguish is the proper focus of attention.

All the more imperative, then, that perspective be kept. If foreigners recoil at Japanese vacations, job postings, products or people because of irrational fears about radiation, they will deepen and prolong the trauma that nature has inflicted. In a few months, Japan should be its recognizable self, maybe even brimming with vitality stemming from a renewed sense of national purpose. The trains will once again be astonishingly punctual; the food will be delectable and plentiful. Once that happens, foreigners will hopefully recognize that Japan — with its Great Buddha and so many other wonders — remains an extraordinarily safe place.

The rest of the article can be read here.

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“Worst-case Radiation Hazards From Fukushima Are Mitigatable & Local”

Benjamin Monreal, professor of physics in the high-energy physics group at UC Santa Barbara, has posted presentation slides about the Fukushima nuclear accident on his homepage.

Here is a summary of his main points:

See the rest of the slides here.

[hat tip to Mark]

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Hoax Alert: “YouTube Has Been Restricted In Japan. A Last Message Sent Out From Man In Japan.”

Several people outside of Japan have sent me links to a viral video entitled “YouTube Has Been Restricted In Japan. A Last Message Sent Out From Man In Japan.”

Here is a copy of it:

In the video, a frantic foreigner with a French(?) accent describes how the truth about the Fukushima nuclear accident is being covered up. As evidence, he shows us a couple Japanese TV channels, which happen to be airing regular programs instead of news. He claims there is “no news” about the explosions at the nuclear power plant, and asks users to spread his video clip because people need to know “the truth” about the nuclear problem.

The video is pure nonsense. Japanese television channels are constantly reporting every new development at the Fukushima plant. The government and TEPCO have been giving several press conferences a day to provide new information and answer questions from reporters. Even the TV channels he displays have news tickers at the bottom of their screens.

There is no evidence of a massive government cover-up. Independently operated Geiger counters and radiation meters throughout the region are not showing dangerous increases in radiation outside the immediate vicinity of the plant.

It seems that the original upload has “been removed as a violation of YouTube’s policy against spam, scams, and commercially deceptive content.” However, other people have re-uploaded copies and are continuing the spread this nonsense.

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Cartoon Explains Nuclear Accidents to Children: Poop vs. Farts

A viral video created by Japanese artist Kazuko Hachiya explains the Fukushima nuclear accident to children by using an analogy they can understand:

The main character is Genpatsu-kun (i.e. Mr. Nuclear power station ) who has a stomach ache caused by the earthquake. Doctors (i.e. nuclear experts) go and cure him with cold water and boric acid to prevent him to “poo” (i.e. to release radiations). At the moment, Genpatsu-kun’s stomach ache doesn’t stop but his health condition is constantly monitored and so far, only repeated “poopees” (i.e. smoke emissions) have been reported.

The anime also explains how, even in the worst scenario, Mr. Genpatsu (i.e. Fukushima plant) is different from Mr. Chernobyl, as he is wearing a nappy. However, in case Mr. Genpatsu had to poo (i.e. the nuclear plant exploded), the effects on the health of the people living in the area would be very serious for decades.

[hat tip to Jordan & Clay]

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