Tatsuhiko Kodama - UT Radioisotope Center
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http://mdn.mainichi.jp/perspectives/column/news/20110817p2a00m0na018000c...
Tatsuhiko Kodama, head of the University of Tokyo Radioisotope Center, is seen at the University of Tokyo Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology in Meguro-ku, Tokyo, stated:
“By our estimates, the radioactive material released from Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant, in uranium equivalents, amounts to 20 times the radiation released by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. What's more, the radiation will decrease at a much slower rate than after the A-bomb. When the amount of radiation is small, it's enough to consider on-the-spot radiation. But when the total volume is huge, we have to think about how the particles will disperse. This happens in a non-linear manner, which is very difficult to calculate scientifically, because concentration is apt to occur in unpredictable locations. This will keep happening, such as when feed-hay for cattle was contaminated by cesium, and when contamination was found in tea and leaf mulch.”
Dr. Kodama completed Medical School at the University of Tokyo and became an internist doing both clinical and research work. Since 1996, he has been a professor of Systems Biology and Medicine at the University of Tokyo's Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, and in 2011 took on the additional job of head of the university's Radioisotope Research Center.
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Japan times reporting
"Fukushima fallout said 30 times Hiroshima's
Expert paints dire picture of decontamination zone, slams government for foot-dragging"
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110824f2.html
WSJ take
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http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2011/08/16/scientist-lambastes-lawmak...
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the risk of radiation is long lasting
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Nuclear Radiation: Dr. Tatsuhiko Kodama’s Testimony to the House of Representatives, Japan
http://www.ecowalkthetalk.com/blog/2011/08/09/nuclear-radiation-dr-tatsu...
The following article contains two videos (Part 1 and 2) and the translation of the speech given by Dr. Tatsuhiko Kodama, Professor at the Research Centre for Advanced Science and Technology and Director, Radioisotope Centre, the University of Tokyo.
He explains how the risk of radiation is long lasting, laments the inadequate response of the authorities to reduce radiation exposure of children, and suggests the use of technology to better monitor radiation levels in food, water and soil.
The negligence of the government
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http://mdn.mainichi.jp/perspectives/column/news/20110817p2a00m0na018000c...
Because Dr. Kodama is working to develop cancer treatment methods using isotopes, he is well informed about the problems of internal radiation exposure. After the nuclear power plant incident, he has been visiting the city of Minamisoma in Fukushima Prefecture every weekend to conduct radiation measurements and decontamination at locations like kindergartens.
On July 27, Dr. Kodama gave testimony before the Committee for Health, Labor and Welfare of the Lower House of the Diet. He strongly criticized the negligence of the government in not channeling its energies into radiation tests for food when fears about food contamination are so widespread, and in not working to enact new laws to better protect children. "Unless the government commits itself to reducing radioactive materials, the Japanese people will not trust what it says about safety." Dr. Kodama also proposed some specific measures. The hearing has been posted on numerous video-sharing websites and is attracting a large audience.
(By Yuri Aono, Editorial Writer)
Original Japanese story
http://mainichi.jp/select/today/archive/news/2011/08/07/20110808k0000m04...
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Comparative nukes
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The good doctor MD,PhD, compared the Fukushima disaster to 20-30 Hiroshima nuclear bombs, using thermal and uranium yardsticks, for comparison.
The Japanese people are intimately familiar with the Hiroshima blast and sequelae.
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and yet, no one seems to
and yet, no one seems to care. Stunning.
Japan is abuzz
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This is a Japanese internal political topic.
The USA media continue to play the fool.
We are not so limited, that their credulity has any effect upon our discussions.
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Got in the way
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http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2011/08/19/kans-summer-reading-101-gu...
In addition to the Fukushima Daiichi 101, the beleaguered Mr. Kan, expected to resign in a matter of weeks, picked up the 2009 memoirs of former Fukushima Prefecture governor Eisaku Sato, according to the reports. Called “Annihilating a Governor,” the book details Mr. Sato’s account of his political demise. The former governor’s two-decade tenure came to a disgraced end in September 2006 when he was ousted from the gubernatorial perch over allegedly accepting bribes.
A Tokyo District Court found him guilty two years later. The verdict was upheld on appeal, but Mr. Sato has claimed he is the victim of a conspiratorial set-up to take him down because of his anti-nuclear bent. Mr. Sato was against allowing the use of MOX, a mixture of plutonium and uranium oxides and a type of fuel for nuclear power, at the local plants because of safety concerns. He believes this cast him as an outsider.
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