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[3/11] Earthquake & tsunamis in Japan (all x48 are ok)

Discussion in 'General AKB48 Discussion' started by delerium, Mar 11, 2011.

  1. Kanki

    Kanki Kenkyuusei

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    murashigeanna
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    @Gobo: It's not really a comparison. The media is talking about radiation and blowing the Fukushima nuclear plant issue WAY out of proportion. HIGH radiation from 2.2 miles away is something to be worried about, it was a nuclear explosion/BOMB. She was able to survive and hasn't had cancer bc of it despite being basically in ground zero of the radiation, yet people are FREAKING OUT about the smallest traces of radiation that in NO WAY can cause cancer.



    Fake Edit:

    @taiyaki: Yeah, people aren't taking the construction into consideration either. u.u;
     
  2. Mr Waffle

    Mr Waffle Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

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    Half the problem was how the Soviets handled it, too. They didn't properly inform people, take proper precautions etc. Basically the exact opposite of what's going on now.
     
  3. gideon123

    gideon123 Kenkyuusei Retired Staff

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    I don't think nuclear will be outright abandoned. At best it'll probably be re-engineered.

    People didn't outright abandon the construction of cruise ships after the Titanic sank, or abandon the construction of bridges after the Tacoma Narrows bridge collapsed, or abandon space exploration after the destruction of both the Challenger during liftoff and the Columbia during re-entry, or even abandon the automobile after goodness knows how many things went wrong with it over its 100+ years of existence.

    There was probably a public outcry over each failure, some sensationalism from the media, and a bit of political maneuvering among the people in charge, but overall people pressed forward with each technology because the rewards were worth the risks involved. Or at least the technology was more economically practical than the next best alternative. And granted not every possibility of a tragedy can be erased, but at least the likelihood of the last tragedy occurring can be reduced.

    So taking the argument back to nuclear energy, yes, the disaster is tragic, but also, yes, I believe the technology can be improved upon to help make it better.



    P.S. - For the record, I have a degree in engineering, and we've gone over technological disasters in class. Yes, they suck, but at the same time people can learn from the situation and strive to make them better. Moreover, I would like to give mad props to all the engineers and legislative people who pushed for the current Japanese building codes. Even though the damage from the earthquakes have been severe, the damage could've been far worse with buildings and highways completely destroyed. Thank you all for your hard work.
     
  4. Zobii

    Zobii Member

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    ^
    Yeah, I was under the impression that the nuclear disaster was being managed by the Japanese as systematically and methodically as possible. It's just the nature of such power source that makes the current disaster situation seem to be grossly out of hand despite being well managed.
     
  5. Melos125

    Melos125 Kenkyuusei

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    Singapore
    Not much happening these few days with the reactors other than the workers and military / police / fireman trying to cool the reactors.

    I think after this incident, fusion energy will become a big focus because of its safety compared to nuclear energy and its ability to generate loads of energy with very little (don't quote me on that though I only know what discovery and natgeo told me). It has been tested and it works, but the first fusion power plant is only scheduled to start construction at 2024. And there are still problems. But because of the new focus I think someone will make a breakthrough.
     
  6. Gobolino

    Gobolino Member

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    Santiago, Chile
    Didn't stopped making Airships after the Hindenburg crash... nevertheless the airship as an industry was totally bloomed after that.
    Nevertheless journalists are the same as ignorant about nuclear research as anyone (or some) of us.
    But you have the 2 opposites, people saying the government minimized the danger and people saying the whole danger was exaggerated. =/

    Nuclear power needs to be considerate in the places that CAN considerate it.

    Japan has an excellent technology (or world famous one) and you needed the 4º biggest earthquake in the history of the ones measured to put even in danger the plant. (not to mention a tsunami several times bigger the ones they could expect when they design it).

    But if we had exactly the same scenario, a nuclear reactor going up in temperature bla bla bla... in other parts of the world?.. believe me, the roof of the reactor would be in the moon, not to mention the rest of it.
     
  7. gideon123

    gideon123 Kenkyuusei Retired Staff

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    If fusion power can be harnessed into a practical source of energy, then by all means epic props to that technology.

    But even if there are breakthroughs in the technology, there is the political aspect to consider, like...

    1.) How many jobs will this create?
    2.) How many jobs will this displace?
    3.) What sort of training is required for these new jobs?
    4.) What assistance will be provided for such training?
    5.) Where will these fusion reactors be placed?
    6.) Will there be a government body that the operators of this technology will have to answer to? If so, who?
    7.) Will there be any revenue to be gained for the government? If so, how much?

    I don't know how things fly in the rest of the world, but here in America there's a LOT of lobbying that takes place that affects the way things are done in government.

    Moreover, 13 years is a very long time away, and a lot can happen between then and now - war, recessions, weather, natural disaster - that can delay the implementation of fusion power.

    So for the meantime, we may very well have to deal with technologies that we have before something new and viable comes around.
     
  8. Mr Waffle

    Mr Waffle Stage48 Admin Staff Member Stage48 Admin

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    Japan's technology has nothing to do with it, I don't get why this keeps coming up. The reactors were General Electric designs, an American company. And the plant is 40 years old, any modern (western) plant is far more safe and advanced. I can't speak for Chinese, Russian etc though.


    Regarding fusion power, it's still decades away from commercial use. The one scheduled to be built in 2024 is a prototype. But the day nuclear fusion becomes a commercially available power supply, it will be the most important leap in human civilisation since the invention of the computer.
     
  9. taiyaki

    taiyaki Kenkyuusei

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    British Columbia, Canada
    I doubt nuclear energy will ever be phased out completely; it's too large a part of many countries nowadays. There was a fairly large buzz about banning hydrocarbons back then, but everyone knew that'd never happen. The people just complain and the government uses that as an excuse to impose larger fines/taxes and stricter regulations knowing full well no one is going to stop.

    Dams have failed before and kill thousands. Should we stop using hydroelectricity? Coal mines used to explode and kill hundreds. Did we stop mining coal? Things improve, and just because something failed doesn't mean people should go "Oh damn, we should just not do this anymore."

    And regarding any type of contaminant, people never ask the right questions. How concentrated is the contamination? How does that affect people? They just say "The levels are xxx the allowed limit", but what does that mean? They don't elaborate, but some things can be several thousand times the "allowed" limit and still have no real harm to people. They just try to freak people out by telling half-truths.

    Rant
    "Environmentalists" are the biggest bunch of hypocritical trashes of the world. They enjoy the benefits of technology while complaining and trying to shut companies down, and just lay blame when something does happen. It's pathetic. There are numerous cases where they've actually succeeded in ruining companies over nothing, and they're trying to do the same now by using this as an example. And then the regular folks get swept up in it. But then we say they'd have to cut back or pay higher bills? Nope. They want to get rid of something with no compromise.
     
  10. Gobolino

    Gobolino Member

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    Santiago, Chile
    This is long a with a lot of bla bla bla bla ...

    Well... down here in "America" (semantic war again, lol)... we are "discussing" about putting Nuclear Plants... there is one in the most dense and habitable city of the country, right over a fault. (Yes, you can imagine)... which just makes me: :fp: ... I mean, the japanese earthquake was the 4º one...
    Chile has the FIRST bigger (a nice 9.5 one)... and where do you put a nuclear (little and it does just research, though) plant?... right over a fault.
    (sigh).

    Now, we are planning to "start" the debate about nuclear plants here... here!!!!...

    My dear lord... :fp:


    you know?, Chile is able to accomplish great things... Chile can stand up before anyone... in the greatests moments is when Chile shows its potential...

    The problem is the "everyday" ones... when this country shows a very very very and I mean, very limited intelligence that always make me thought that "Leaders" in Chile must pass a test to measure mental deficiency and the one with the biggest deficiency is proclaimed as candidate...

    This country won wars.... but when you review the wars... honestly you can't believe HOW THE HELL we won them...

    Example!

    The president order the Naval Fleet to stand READY FOR WAR...
    but when the war started, all ships had their "boilers" without maintenance and not even 1 ship of the whole fleet could manage to travel at full speed, not to mention there was one ship that just by putting a little pressure made the whole boiler explode....
    We went on a ground battle giving the soldiers ammunition enough for some rifles of 60 (SIXTY) years ago... so the soldiers were not even in the middle of the battle when they got without ammunition enough to keep fighting...
    We got ammunitions in the reserve, being carried by mules and arriving several hours in late...
    Soldiers went rushing to grab the ammunition...
    and guess what...
    the boxes carrying the ammunitions were sealed, none was smart enough to open them before the battle not to mention closing them but not sealing them...

    We can survive in very hard conditions, remember the miners?... and in those moments Chile as a whole supporting them...
    not to mention the "real problem" was: WHY THE HELL THEY WERE DOWN THERE because that mine should have been closed months ago and yet the authorities allowed that mine to function....





    In the end... a NUCLEAR PLANT...

    in CHILE?.


    that totally depends...


    how many years do you want before a fallout over the entire planet happens?

    @Mr.waffle: Ok ok ok... I was more thinking not in the design (though it was contemplated) but in how it is handed.... and nevertheless the whole plant is old, the maintenance is new...
     
  11. Melos125

    Melos125 Kenkyuusei

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    You forgot the internet and peer-to-peer networking.
    Especially peer-to-peer networking.
    Without that most of us wouldn't be in this forum.
     
  12. joooooooooe

    joooooooooe Member Retired Staff

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    Oil caused the 2010 BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Coal pollutes like crazy, and solar and wind technology are not efficient, cheap or reliable enough to meet growing energy needs. We can also work on energy conservation.

    I think one of the biggest fears over nuclear technology is that it's very complex and difficult to understand. We cannot see radiation, which is what's causing panic and confusion right now. Other power plant accidents we can completely understand because it's apparent to us.

    I'm pro-nuclear but it's very clear that the public and our politicians needs to step up their education on technology before we can really move ahead and trust them.
     
  13. frblckstr1

    frblckstr1 Kenkyuusei

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    And where would we be without the dial-up modems and bullitin boards (BBS) before that. :hehe:

    That is where the 'news' is counting on to create the fear part for there stories.
    As much 'radiation' there is, unless something explodes and dispures it around, it is only a problem within a few hundred meters and then only if unshielded.
     
  14. TomoChiyuu

    TomoChiyuu Kenkyuusei

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    According to NHK Live, the government finally sent fire trucks across the nation to go pump water into the reactors. Operation is now in progress!!! You can do it!!
     
  15. Madcat2020

    Madcat2020 Kenkyuusei

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    Feb 19, 2009
    http://cnnmobile.com/primary/_3zcR6X-irIrUmteWW

    "Japan's nuclear and industrial safety agency on Friday raised the level for the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant from a 4 to 5 -- putting it on par with the 1979 incident at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island."


    What a terrible news!!!! :cry:
     
  16. Blu-Cherri

    Blu-Cherri Kenkyuusei

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    oyashizuka
    Giving an event like this a 'bad ranking' doesn't change anything that happened during the event...
    The bad news has already happened.

    (sorry I still don't like this unquantified pointless scale)
     
  17. Gobolino

    Gobolino Member

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    Nov 14, 2009
    Location:
    Santiago, Chile
    WHAT ?????????????????????????

    I mean... this is good but.... WHAT?????????????
     

    Attached Files:

  18. oddball

    oddball Member

    Even our local news station ran a report on how safe the nuclear plant kind of near to where we live is (where I live is further away than Tokyo is to Fukishima) such is the issue at the moment

    @Goblino: it's because I have dogs and like aninal's that I was so bummed about that video, I kept thinking it was one of my dogs in the clip which really sucked, but yeah I suppose you are right, we see the big picture too much sometimes and forget that the big picture is made of little peices....

    also your right, bit WTF on that Relief concert :blink:
     
  19. RocketStarLauncher

    RocketStarLauncher Member Retired Staff

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    PHL -> IC
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    Agree. Anyone know what's up with this?
     
  20. aihime

    aihime Kenkyuusei

    Joined:
    Nov 29, 2010
    Location:
    NC/Tokyo
    Big props to AKB48 today for giving up their regular All Night Nippon Radio Slot today for the comedian duo Sandwichman (they're actually from the Tohoku area and was actually there the tsunami hit). I've been following their blog the last week to see what they saw at the site. I'm glad Nippon housou gave them the opportunity to speak to Japan what happened that Friday, what's going on the evacuation camps, and where Japan could go from there. Thank you AKB!

    @oddball: which prefecture are you at?
     

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