I'm embarrassed to ask but....
I'm not entirely clear about radiation and radioactive elements. How much am I missing the mark on understanding? See below.
1. There are radiactive "plume" clouds that are and will be released from Fukushima for the next year until the site can be shut down that is going around the Northern Hemisphere. And these clouds give off radiation like the sun would except it is much stronger and goes through buildings unless they have 5 inches of steel, water or soil to protect it. Am I right here? The point being that the radiation permeates buildings.
2. Then there are the radioactive "elements" that fall from the sky and become part of our soil, water and food chain. These elements can't be seen or smelled but they are on the ground and give off radiation from their particles. They can cling on our shoes and be brought into the house if they are on the ground and our shoes pick them up, right?
Obviously I'm an amateur here but would like to understand as much as I can. Any light you can shed on my knowledge would be greatly appreciated.
You need to spend some time
You need to spend some time reading this forum from the very beginning - there is a lot of useful info. Currently most of the radiation releases on Fuku is through the water, not much is released into the atmosphere. Hopefully, for US the worst is over. We may see some radioactivity in ocean water in 1-2years. There is some radioactive deposition that's already occurred.
There is no way we would be
There is no way we would be able to see the radiation in the water over here. There is just too much dilution.
the dilution thing...
That dilution thing, kinda a myth. They are seeing that overseas, that it doesn't disperse and dilute, it tends to travel in clumps.
It will get here in the US eventually via the ocean currents.
That's what "they" said
That's what "they" said about the air, too. Yet the entire northern hemisphere has been affected. We will definitely see this poison on our shores.
Please tell me who the they
Please tell me who the they are? Every nuclear scientist I have seem knew we would see it in the air. That has been known since the 50s when we were testing. We will not see it in the water. In fact, if you took all the waste on the planet and dumped it into the ocean. You would not see it, it will be completely diluted.