Phoenix2006: Blogs

Phoenix2006 Blog

Out of the Ashes and into the Cancer Age

Posted By ddregoesc, McMaster Science on Fri Jun 30 13:34:17 2006

In our research Rob and I examined the incidence of radiation-induced leukemia and other cancers in atomic bomb survivors.

Go to the Research Questions Area of Focus to read the essay.

A précis of the Dosimetry System 2002 (DS02) - Resolution of the Hiroshima Neutron Discrepancy

Posted By jsmith, McMaster Science on Thu Jun 29 13:28:06 2006

Since studies of the atomic bombing in Hiroshima began, great amounts of research have been performed in an attempt to calculate the doses victims may have received. The purpose of my report is to briefly outline the investigations performed to arrive at the dose estimates provided by the Dosimetry System 2002, and to provide insight into the ongoing efforts of the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF) and their partners.

Go to the Research Questions Area of Focus to read the whole.....

Biological Dosimetry Using Spectral Karyotyping

Posted By dmorris, McMaster Science on Wed Jun 28 14:10:27 2006

I have designed presentation materials for high school teachers to give to their genetics or radiation classes. They are simple to follow and contain many class activities. I've also included an answer key for the class activities.

Go to The Research Questions Area of Focus to download them.

Dale

Cosmic Radiation and Flying

Posted By msung, McMaster Science on Wed Jun 28 05:18:14 2006

Flight crew, including full-time flight attendant and pilots spend an average of 700-1000 hours at altitudes of 10 000 m or higher in a given year. Given the number of hours spent in the air by cabin crew and pilots and the increasing number of frequent flyers, there has been increased concern on the health effects of cosmic radiation. Many countries now even recognize flight crew as occupationally exposed workers2. Lindsay and I investigated the accumulated radiation exposure from a return.....

Re: The Effect of the Atomic Bomb on Trees

Posted By syasin, McMaster Science on Fri Jun 23 10:40:04 2006

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to share with you some additional information that I came across on the re-growth of trees and other vegetation in Hiroshima after the bombing.

Many A-bomb survivors believed that no plants would have taken root in the city for at least 70 years after the bombing. However, in the spring of the following year the stumps of many camphor and willow trees began to put out new growth. The appearance of new buds and blossoms brought new hope that there would be.....

Debunking the myth - an examination of intergenerational radiation effects and low-dose radiation effects in A-bomb survivors

Posted By syasin, McMaster Science on Fri Jun 23 10:36:59 2006

Following the end of World War II, many atomic bomb (A-bomb) survivors were highly stigmatized in Japanese society. For these individuals, the psychological suffering after the bomb far outweighed any physical suffering endured. They were discriminated against both socially and occupationally; specifically, many survivors were prevented from marrying into families for fear that their children would have grotesque malformations or would die prematurely and companies were reluctant to hire or.....

Re: Research (CCI Question)

Posted By syasin, McMaster Science on Fri Jun 23 10:31:58 2006

Hi Ashley,

Thanks for your question! You might want to check out the following websites--they have some useful information:

http://energytrends.pnl.gov/canada/ca004.htm

http://www.energy.ca/users/folder.asp?FolderID=2556

http://www.nuclearfaq.ca/nuke-gen-monthly.htm

Currently, about 13% of Canada’s total electricity comes from nuclear power. However, in Ontario, a leader in nuclear power, 51% of our electricity came from nuclear energy in 2005.....

Peace Memorial Museum Report

Posted By Diane, admin on Sat Jun 17 05:06:05 2006

Lindsay and Melissa's report on the Peace Memorial Museum, one of the main attractions for tourists visiting Hiroshima, has been posted in the Field Notes Area of Focus.

Diane

Phoenix2006 Admin

Pond of Peace Report

Posted By Diane, admin on Thu Jun 15 08:45:34 2006

“Let all the souls here rest in peace,

for we shall not repeat the evil.”

Read Jamie's report on Hiroshima's Pond of Peace in the Field Notes Area of Focus.

Diane

Phoenix2006 Admin

A Big Thanks to McMaster Students!

Posted By jpapez, Ashton Meadows on Tue Jun 13 10:02:18 2006

Thanks Susan, Diane and the McMaster's students for allowing us to participate in the project. The answers to our questions are great, we have read through some of them briefly and I have printed them all out. As we are also wrapping up the school year, we will have some more periods now, when we can get back to the answers and discuss them in details. The kids have been very excited about being able to get involved and send their thanks to all of you. If there is another project going on next.....

research

Posted By ashleyc, CCI on Tue Jun 13 06:26:42 2006

About how much nuclear power for electricity do we use in Canada?

RERF Report

Posted By Diane, admin on Mon Jun 12 06:12:23 2006

Shari has just posted her report on the Radiation Effects Research Foundation. Go to the Field Notes Area of Focus to learn how the U.S. and Japanese governments are working together to understand how radiation exposure affected the health of A-bomb survivors over many years and to use this knowledge to guide health care programs throughout the world.

Diane

Phoenix2006 Admin

Re: The Effect of the Atomic Bomb on Trees

Posted By syasin, McMaster Science on Sun Jun 11 21:48:14 2006

Hi Dale,

Thanks for the informative report. It’s amazing that some of the trees which survived the blast were still able to grow. I remember hearing that the Chernobyl power plant accident was one of the best things that could have happened to the surrounding vegetation since it seems to be flourishing in that area now. Do you know if any studies have been done on the trees that survived the accident and if so, any indications that they may be growing better/worse or that they have.....

Re: Former Bank of Japan Site Report

Posted By syasin, McMaster Science on Sun Jun 11 21:27:18 2006

Thanks for the great report Diana and Rob. The pictures are fantastic! I see in one of your before and after pictures (last page) a glass display case…any idea what was inside? It was interesting that the bank re-opened only two days after the bomb. Presuming that everything in the bank including all paper money, coins and customer records were incinerated, I wonder how the bank got up and running again so fast? I also wonder what kind of doses people working in the bank after it.....

Questions from Grade 6’s at Ashton Meadows

Posted By jsmith, McMaster Science on Sun Jun 11 12:21:45 2006

Hey Ashton Meadows!

I’ll see if I can answer a few of your questions, and hopefully the rest of the McMaster Science Team can grab the rest of them…

4. In your opinion, should we, as the future generation, be promoting the use of nuclear energy or should we try to avoid its production?

This is a really good question. To answer this question well, we need to look at a number of factors, one of which is the public’s unease about it. It’s my strong belief that a large amount of.....

Thank you

Posted By parkstudent2, parkstreet on Fri Jun 9 10:54:38 2006

To the McMaster Students,

Thank you for providing such interesting answers to our questions. It was good to know that we could ask questions about your trip and about nuclear energy stuff. It sounds like you all had a great time and we liked reading about the descriptions of the cities and about the vending machines with beer! It was really interesting to read your personal biographys. It gives us a chance to think about our own career paths. The blogs you wrote about the people of.....

Soil Samples

Posted By msung, McMaster Science on Thu Jun 8 11:12:56 2006

Hi Park Street,

While we were originally thinking of comparing soil samples from Japan to that from Canada we finally decided that we were going to stick with reporting on the radiation doses we collect from our dosimeters. The main reason is that there are too many variables that we could not control for to make it a meaningful experiment. There was no way to determine whether the soil samples that would be collected were commercially produced. Also, even if we cound find out what the.....

Re: Radiation and Health

Posted By msung, McMaster Science on Thu Jun 8 10:29:28 2006

Hi Samantha,

You asked a really good question. It is true that at higher latitudes one would experience more cosmic radiation. This is because cosmic radiation (especially at higher altitudes) are mostly composed of charged particles, like protons and electron and the earth's magnetic field is stronger near the equater than at the poles. This results in more cosmic particles being deflected at the equater than at the polar regions.

So back to pilots. So we've established that.....

Answer to Ashton Meadows Q6

Posted By dmorris, McMaster Science on Thu Jun 8 09:57:37 2006

Hi Guys

6. Is it possible that there could be higher radiation levels in the Lake Ontario because of the power plant in Oshawa?

No, The reactors are designed in such a way that no additional radiation is released into the environment.

Some radioactive water tritium and deutrium (Hydrogen atoms with 2 and 1 extra neutrons) is produced in the reactor cooling process. However, this water goes through several rounds of heat exchangers (just like your air conditioners) so this water never.....

Nuclear Waste

Posted By dmorris, McMaster Science on Thu Jun 8 09:42:03 2006

Hey Everyone,

One of key environmental issues about nuclear power plants is the poduction of this 20,000 half life waste material.

As some of you have probably heard of the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste storage facility. So the nuclear waste is a big issue. More info can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yucca_Mountain and http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/yuccamtn/

First a bit about the nuclear fuel.

Natural uranium is about 0.7% uranium 235, and the rest uranium 238,.....

Phoenix2006

Recent Blogs

Login