#atom (ukaea)

[man-and-atom]

This is what is called “begging the question”.

Begging the question, or petitio principi, is a kind of error in reasoning when a starting assumption is wrongly identified as a conclusion. In this case — admitting that the form of society is shaped by the mode of energy provision — it is simply assumed, without much in the way of evidence or argument, let alone proof, that the social structure imposed by “decentralised and renewable energy production” is better and more desirable than that associated with central–station electrification and nuclear fission energy.

The fact that some people expressed fear that the widespread use of fast–neutron breeder reactors would lead to totalitarianism, likewise, does not constitute a reason to accept this as a necessary or even likely outcome. After all, the “large quantities of plutonium” referred to are still remarkably small — perhaps a thousand tonnes a year to satisfy all world energy needs, occupying an aggregate volume of about sixty cubic meters. When the problem is put in those terms, it certainly seems feasible to keep all that material under close guard without infringing civil liberties. With fuel reprocessing and fabrication facilities combined under one roof, there would be little need to transport plutonium except in the form of fuel assemblies, which would naturally be shipped to the power stations in the same flasks used to transport the discharged fuel. And those containers are tougher than a main battle tank.

It may even be feasible to locate the breeder reactor and its reprocessing plant together on one site, in which case, such a facility should be far less noticeable to the people living nearby than a military base, and its effects on people farther away, virtually nil.

Contrast this with the obvious fact that the facilities for any kind of “distributed energy” are, by definition, widespread. Even if the disturbance caused by each individual installation is small, far more people would be affected.

This news item is taken from ATOM, the monthly magazine published for many years by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, number 293, 1981 March. You can find the whole issue here.

[man-and-atom]

The nuclear industry and the Government simply cannot win. To satisfy public opinion and allay anxieties, they do not build nuclear power stations in the middle of cities, but they are then accused of doing so precisely because they know they are unsafe. It is a ridiculous argument.

—Norman Lamont, British Under Secretary of State for Energy, in the Commons, 21 January 1981 (quoted in ATOM 293, 1981 March)

[man-and-atom]

It should never be forgotten that energy is the one and only fundamental physical resource. With energy, all material things are possible. Without it, none are.

Sir Alan Cottrell FRS, Master of Jesus College, Cambridge, and sometime chief scientific adviser to HM Government, speaking at the opening of the “Atoms for Energy” exhibition in Birmingham, 1981 November. Sir Alan went on to say :

Here in Birmingham at the centre of a great industrial area huge amounts of iron, aluminium, glass, copper and other materials are worked up daily into all kinds of manufactured goods. What happens in these processes? The atoms themselves are not changed. Just as many iron, aluminium, copper and other atoms come out of a factory as go in. All that we do is move them about, mix them up and sort them out into various patterns and shapes. And the one thing that is absolutely essential for doing all this, and which is used up in the process, is the high quality energy that comes out of electricity lines, gas pipes, and coal and oil bunkers. Given enough energy, as well as the time and scientific and industrial skills to use it effectively, we can extract all our required minerals and turn them into metals and manufactured goods ; we can turn oil and gas into plastics, purify water, recycle scrap metals, and even turn carbon compounds into protein foods. High quality energy is truly the lifeblood of modern society.

(Printed in ATOM 303, 1982 January. See the full issue here.)

[man-and-atom]

The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, apparently for no better reason than to confuse people, produced multiple contemporaneous publications with the title “ATOM”.

These illustrated summaries of the annual reports, which were issued for a number of years, have proven very difficult to obtain — I have succeeded in buying only two, of which one was lost in the post.

You can see a scan of the whole thing here, and the full list of UKAEA “ATOM” publications which I have, scanned and yet to be scanned, with contents listings and cover images, here.

[man-and-atom]

It is not blind technological optimism that leads to the argument for nuclear power, but deeply–considered economic pessimism ; a fear that the world in the coming century will, unless special steps are taken, starting now, be gravely short of energy and, as a result, short of everything else — food, employment, goods — but not short of lots of hungry, cold and very angry people. The use of atoms for energy provides one of the best ways we know of trying to avoid this unhappy prospect.

—Sir Alan Cottrell, FRS, opening the “Atoms for Energy” exhibition in Birmingham, November 1981.

Quoted in ATOM 303, January 1982.

[man-and-atom]

The marvelous inventiveness of mankind shall not be dedicated to his death, but consecrated to his life.

Here is the product of a considerable amount of dedicated scanning and typing : scans of a number of issues of the UKAEA magazine ATOM, titles of principal articles, and typed-out versions of book reviews.

More scans and reviews are being added as I get around to it, but it takes me about 2 hours to scan and assemble each one with the equipment I have.

[man-and-atom]

This was a purchase, a little more than a year ago, that simply disappeared in the post on the way from Britain to Germany.

It’s a trifle confusing that the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority published, in addition to a monthly information bulletin entitled Atom, and an Annual Report, an illustrated summary of its annual report, under the title Atom. And unfortunately, they seem to be very difficult to obtain. Even bibliographic references are scarce.

[man-and-atom]

Nearly everybody would now agree that to burn pure methane to generate electricity is a waste this world will come to regret.

Sir John Hill, chairman of UKAEA and BNFL, speaking to the joint meeting of the Atomic Industrial Forum and American Nuclear Society, 13 November 1972, in Washington, DC, USA. Reprinted in ATOM 194 (1972 December).

You can listen to my reading of the full address here.