Dr. Kim Milton of the Department of Physics will talk about nuclear power at the upcoming Science Cafe on May 5. Here is Dr. Milton's synopsis of his presentation, titled "Does Nuclear Power Have a Role to Play in the US Energy
Budget?":
It has been plausibly argued both from a consideration of energy needs
and from the need to combat global warming that nuclear power will need
to play an increasing role in our energy sources. However, the recent
events in Japan have brought issues of nuclear safety to renewed
attention. In addition, proliferation is a major concern, and it is
necessary to increase funding, staff, and enforcement of the IAEA.
Disposal of nuclear waste, for indefinitely long periods, and
reprocessing of nuclear wastes, are issues that have yet to be solved.
These issues are extremely difficult and worrisome, and it is possible
for reasonable, responsible people to hold strong views on the issue in
contradiction to each other.
I was inspired to contact Dr. Milton at a suggestion from Jana Smith, and the fact that the issue is reemerging after the events at Fukushima Daichi in Japan following their recent earthquakes and tsunamis. This one will have lots of discussion, since people tend to pretty polarized on this issue. I'm sure that we will all learn a lot, and I hope to find out what makes the generation of power this way different than traditional fossil fuels, in terms of costs, waste production, and so forth. Don't miss it!
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