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Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

popularmechanics.com

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Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#91

Post by 1970-01-01 »

billy99k wrote: post #20
jandrewrogers wrote: post #17

When I studied chemistry at university, only a handful of select students were introduced to the nuclear science lab in the basement. It had a lot of spicy isotopes, neutron sources, etc. Even as a chemistry student with free run of the place for years I had no idea it was in the building until the department head pulled a few of us aside. The reason for the informal secrecy, as it was explained to me, is that every…

These public freak outs is also why we don't have abundant nuclear energy. The climate activists of the 60s-90s stopped us from building more reactors, one of the cleanest sources of energy ever known.

Nuclear accidents were common back then. Activists not only had good intentions they had actual accidents occuring with cover-ups. I think you're only seeing the worst parts here. They didn't follow the science as well as they should but they did get dumping sorted and held the industry liable.

Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#92

Post by _aavaa_ »

hammock wrote: post #59
orioni wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is just like how universities hide their animal research facilities. It wasn't until the final year of my biology degree that I found out we had a basement floor under our life sciences building where this research is carried out. I visited a few times as part of a research project I was involved in, and that experience was one of the factors that put me off pursuing a career in biomedical research.

If we can’t have a good faith discussion then maybe it is a good idea to hide nuclear and animal labs. But with less oversight, that also invites abuse. You can probably imagine abuse on your own in an anima lab, but I would also point out after Obama banned gain of function research in 2014 U.S. scientists moved their lab to China where it continued without the same oversight, and bad things happened.

What bad things?

Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#93

Post by MengerSponge »

hammock wrote: post #59
orioni wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is just like how universities hide their animal research facilities. It wasn't until the final year of my biology degree that I found out we had a basement floor under our life sciences building where this research is carried out. I visited a few times as part of a research project I was involved in, and that experience was one of the factors that put me off pursuing a career in biomedical research.

If we can’t have a good faith discussion then maybe it is a good idea to hide nuclear and animal labs. But with less oversight, that also invites abuse. You can probably imagine abuse on your own in an anima lab, but I would also point out after Obama banned gain of function research in 2014 U.S. scientists moved their lab to China where it continued without the same oversight, and bad things happened.

Joe Public doesn't provide oversight. He's mostly good at generating outrage. Experts provide oversight, and animal research in the US is highly regulated by experts!

Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#94

Post by ghurtado »

galangalalgol wrote: post #48
rayiner wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Climate activists backed and propagandized by the fossil fuel industry and the KGB Who are the current generation of climate activists backed and propagandized by?

I don't know about activists, vut the US green party was influenced by russia for years. There is evidence of influence with Jill Stein for instance. But if you pick a political organization anywhere in the world that doesn't show signs of Russian influence, that would almost be more suspicious.

To pretend that the US "green party" has anything to do whatsoever with the environment is beyond naive, it's completely disconnected from reality.

Neither their policies nor their electorate support the idea that people like Jill Stein are in any way looked at as authorities in any "green" subject.

I don't think that someone that had national relevance for roughly half an election cycle, and who got less than half of one percent of the vote (at the peak of her popularity) has had any influence shaping nuclear opinions.

She's not even on record stating her position, that's how utterly unimportant this issue to Putin / Russia.

I'm not even sure how you think Russia would benefit from less nuclear power plants an entire continent away

Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#95

Post by sudosteph »

anjel wrote: post #67

At the Univ of Maryland College Park in the mid 1980s, a campus of 40k students, it was common knowledge the was a small research reactor in full time operation right on campus. I can't imagine it was the only school to have one.

We also have one at NC State, still there AFAIK. I thought it made sense though given our nuclear engineering program.

I looked it up and apparently we've had 3 or 4 different reactors on campus over the years, first one in 1950: https://nrp.ne.ncsu.edu/about/history/

I'd wager that even most NC State students don't know that it's there though.

Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#96

Post by rdtsc »

imglorp wrote: post #11

What a neat device. Unlike those extra spicy, dangerous sources that say "drop and run" on them, this thing only runs when you line up the CF-252 with the HEU plates. It has an off switch to stop the cascade. Perfect for lab use.

Cf-252 is no joke though. It has to be carefully handled. It constantly emits neutrons. And those need shielding, something with lots of light atoms like hydrogen - water, PET or other plastics etc.

Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#97

Post by mr_toad »

7bit wrote: post #52
MassiveQuasar wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Were they good reasons or did they just fell victim to their feelings? Not creating nuclear power plants because you're afraid of some bombs is good reasoning? What about the millions of deaths to fossil fuels every year? Are they better than the nuclear accidents we had? I don't think good reasoning is why they felt that nuclear power was bad.

It is. And also because of Chernobyl and Fukushima. But you don't care do you

We’re going to look back and realise that the destruction wrought by global warming was far worse in every way than at Chernobyl.

Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#98

Post by maximilianthe1 »

xg15 wrote: post #76
vpShane wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ah yes, nuclear energy, real hot, make water boil, make things happen. You're telling me we don't have sci-fi energy harnessing capability to capture the nuclear energy itself and convert it to electricity? It's 2025!

Found it kind of depressing that this seems to be the current strategy for fusion as well. You have this insane device that produces a million degree hot ring of plasma and use it... to boil water...

Scy-fi enegry generator looks inside steam turbine

Re: Kodak ran a nuclear device in its basement for decades

#99

Post by rdtsc »

dtgriscom wrote: post #25

OK, HN physicists: how did this work? My first guess was that the beam of Cf252-emitted neutrons, when it hits the U235, triggers new neutrons moving in the same direction, rather than in random directions. This would ensure that any tertiary neutrons would join the crowd and help the amplification while not just heating the system up. Or, maybe that's the point? It's a not-quite-critical collection of U235 that is p…

It works just like a nuclear reactor. Neutron hit U atoms, those split and emit more neutrons in a cascade. The configuration is set up to not be self sustaining. It’s a matter of geometry, enrichment level and such. Therefore it needs a source of neutrons. Cf-252 is such source. It fires neutrons constantly but has a relatively short half life (you have to replenish it yearly or so).
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