I have blogged before about the nuclear tensions between India and Pakistan. Since the partition of British Colonial India into the Muslim state of Pakistan and the Hindu state of India, there have been border disputes and armed conflict, especially over the Kashmir. The world was rightly concerned about the acquisition of nuclear weapons by India and Pakistan. India developed its nuclear arsenal in response to border disputes with China.
I have blogged about a lot of nuclear accidents both large and small. I have often said that if there is one more major nuclear accident in the world, it could seriously damage the reputation of nuclear power. Politicians, investors and the public at large will be much less inclined to support the construction of new reactors. And, given the realities of the nuclear industry, it is inevitable that there will be another major nuclear accident.
One of the most frightening dangers that nuclear reactors face is the possibility of a nearby earthquake. Containment domes could crack, reactor cores could be severely damaged and melt down, spent fuel pools could be emptied and expose fuel rods to the open air, etc. The ability of the design of a particular reactor to withstand possible earthquakes in the vicinity is very important with respect to licensing the site of a nuclear reactor.
I have been devoting a lot of my blog lately to international affairs and problems with nuclear reactors. While there are important economic, political, public health and environmental issues involving nuclear power, there is another use of nuclear materials that is much more personal. I am talking about the use of radioactive isotopes in treating cancer.
