Nuclear Power Plants

My dear sweet niece asked a question of me. We had been emailing about the Japanese earthquake. Here is what she asked specifically.... "What could trouble with their nuclear plants mean for us??"

Here's what I wrote her.
All nuclear plants are boiling water reactors. They use water to cool the reactors. To cool the reactors, you need power. So, here's the story and the way in which this disaster is occurring.
After the quake the reactors shut down due to the loss of their offsite power due to a malfunction.
That triggered the emergency diesel generators to startup and provide backup power for plant systems. About an hour after the plant shut down, however, the emergency diesel generators stopped, leaving Units 1, 2 and 3 with no power for that all important cooling function.
The nuclear plant brought in mobile generators to restore the power supply, but pressure inside of Unit 1 continued to increase. Which meant it was not being cooled.
Early today the plant said it had lost the ability to control pressure at the No. 1 and 2 reactors.
Now if you followed all of the above, here comes the worrying part.

NORMAL OPERATIONS
* In a reactor operating normally, pumps circulate water through the reactor core to keep the rods from overheating. The temperature inside a reactor operating normally is about 550 degrees F (285 C).
* When a reactor shuts, pumps continue to move water over the fuel rods. The electricity to run the pumps usually comes from off-site power supplies brought in by transmission lines.
But, if the power lines fail, the plants have more and other on-site power sources, including backup diesel generators and batteries. Which as we now know are no longer working.

Okay here is the bad part.

An unchecked rise in temperature (no cooling happening) could cause the core to essentially turn into a molten mass that could burn through the reactor walls. This may lead to a release of an unchecked amount of radiation into the containment building that surrounds the reactor. And, thus to the outside. Which is what they are saying this morning has happened.

The outer structure of the building that houses the reactor appears to have blown off, which could suggest the containment building has been breached. (a reactor is usually built within walls and then placed with another set of walls. So walls within walls as a safety measure.)

Earlier a plant operator released what it said was a tiny amount of radioactive steam to reduce the pressure and the danger within the reactor was minimal because tens of thousands of people had already been evacuated from the vicinity. How far is far enough away?

Okay so now you have an unknown amount of radiation leakage which can cause radiation sickness. Below is what that is all about and why the world is worrying.

Radiation sickness is generally associated with an acute (a single large) exposure. Nausea and vomiting are usually the main symptoms. The amount of time between exposure to radiation and the onset of the initial symptoms may be an indicator of how much radiation was absorbed,as symptoms appear sooner with higher doses of exposure. The symptoms of radiation sickness become more serious (and the chance of survival decreases) as the dosage of radiation increases. A few symptom-free days may pass between the appearance of the initial symptoms and the onset of symptoms of more severe illness associated with higher doses of radiation. Nausea and vomiting generally occur within 24–48 hours after exposure to mild doses of radiation. Radiation damage to the intestinal tract lining will cause nausea, bloody vomiting and diarrhea. This occurs when the victim's exposure is 200 rems or more. The radiation will begin to destroy the cells in the body that divide rapidly. These including blood, GI tract, reproductive and hair cells, and harms their DNA and RNA of surviving cells. Headache, fatigue, and weakness are also seen with mild exposure. Moderate exposure is associated with nausea and vomiting beginning within 12–24 hours after exposure. In addition to the symptoms of mild exposure, fever, hair loss, infections, bloody vomit and stools, and poor wound healing are seen with moderate exposure. Nausea and vomiting occur in less than 1 hour after exposure to severe doses of radiation, followed by diarrhea and high fever in addition to the symptoms of lower levels of exposure. Very severe exposure is followed by the onset of nausea and vomiting in less than 30 minutes followed by the appearance of dizziness, disorientation, and low blood pressure in addition to the symptoms of lower levels of exposure. Severe exposure is fatal about 50% of the time.

Then I went on to say why I favored solar power above and beyond nuclear power. Did you know? The American government is talking of building nuclear power plants in California. Isn't there a major fault line located along about the entire coast line called the "San-Andreas" fault?

Does anyone else remember the 1979 movie, "The China Syndrome" with Jane Fonda and Micheal Douglas?

This is too funny....

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLLy_1Z8LgY

Just make sure to turn down the sound before you start the video.
The wind blowing makes the video's sound hard to hear.
It can become a nuisance.

Enjoy and marvel.

Discovery's Landing

http://bcove.me/cafo82gr
The last return trip of the shuttle Discovery from space.
Now it's off to the Smithsonian for this old girl.
I for one am glad she's going to a good retirement home.
Bet she has lots of visitors.

Noticing Veggie Prices in Stores?

The Pacific’s cold La Nina brought chilly weather to the West. Then there was in the north, the negative Arctic Oscillation allowing the freezing polar air mass to sink south, into the United States. Followed by to the east, the Atlantic was in the grip of a lethal weather pattern—the negative North Atlantic Oscillation which was driving the cold all the way to Florida.

The Florida crop was frozen in January, so consumers turned to supplies from Arizona and Mexico. Then in early February, Mexico and the Southwest were hit with the worst freeze in over fifty years. The final straw was the Groundhog Day blizzard which killed all the tomato crops in Florida and Mexico.

The major casualties of all this ugly weather have been beans, bell peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, squash, and tomatoes. And eggplants: Just try to find eggplants! The lettuce is being salvaged by stripping off the damaged outer leaves, so expect to find smaller heads at your grocery stores.

This shortage is not just in America. Globally, this has been an awful year for vegetables. Last October, the United Kingdom’s Guardian newspaper was reporting a shortage of tomatoes in the Middle East, where the vegetable is a staple in the local diet. The price of tomatoes had tripled in Turkey and increased eightfold in Israel. The newspaper also reported that Egyptians were staging street protests over the cost of tomatoes.

Here’s the good news. The next harvest of vegetables should begin to appear in stores in late March. Spring is coming and the deadly weather trio is backing off: The La Niña is fading and the NAO and AO are positive.

Most of the crop supplies will be recovered by April, although you may have to wait until May for juicy beefsteak tomatoes. Meanwhile, the tough little cabbages survived everything that Mother Nature cooked up. I am thinking cole slaw, cabbage soup and ,cabbage rolls are going on my dinner menu here.

Vinegar Tips Continued

Kitchen

Trash disposal cleaner – Mix one cup vinegar with one pitcher water and freeze in the refrigerator. The vinegar ice cubes can then be run through the disposal and flushed with cold water. You will have cleaner and odor-free garbage disposal! Refrigerator cleaner - Mix equal parts of water and vinegar for a cleaning solution. Alternatively, place a cup of apple cider vinegar inside the refrigerator to absorb the odors in two day’s time. Wood Cutting Boards – If you run out of baking soda, substitute full-strength white distilled vinegar for odor-free and germ-free cutting boards. Brass polish – Make a paste by mixing one teaspoon salt, one cup vinegar and flour. Apply the vinegar paste directly on metal cooking pots and pans and let it stand for 15 minutes. Thoroughly rinse with lukewarm water and then polish until these are sufficiently dry to hang. One of the best vinegar uses in the kitchen, however, is as “green” ant and insect repellent. Just wash kitchen counter-tops and cabinets with vinegar to repel ants and insects. Lawn and Garden Grass killer – Grass is good when it grows where you want them to. For undesirable grass growth, however, pouring full-strength white distilled vinegar will curb it. This also goes for weeds in plant plots; just pour on their tops though. Soil Acidity Enhancer – Mix in 1 cup of vinegar into a gallon of tap water, which can then be used to water acid loving plants. Flower Preservative – Instead of just plain water, add 2 tablespoons each of sugar and vinegar for every quart of water. This mixture ought to keep the flowers longer. Arguably, the best use for vinegar in the garden is as alternative plant fertilizer. Just combine water and vinegar in 8:1 ratio in one mixture. In a separate container, combine sugar and water in 1:8 ratio. Then combine the two mixtures together and use as plant fertilizer. Only apply as long as necessary to revive plant health.

SOAP SAVER

Buying a bar of soap may not be expensive, depending on the brand, but what do you do with that little sliver too small to use? You throw it away.

Don’t do that. Save it. I know this sounds a little crazy and maybe a little extreme, but, remember you are saving those pennies.

• Take the soap pieces and put them into a zip lock bag. And store in a cool dry place.

• When the bag is full, put the pieces into a double boiler and melt them, slowly. Pour the mixture into a nonstick baking dish and let set. If you don’t have a nonstick baking dish, then lightly grease a glass dish. Use olive oil, preferably, not shortening or butter.

• Cut into squares or rectangles and wrap individually with cling or saran wrap before complete hardened. I waited too long and I had to reheat it so I could cut it.

• Optional, after the soap is melted add a little food color, or if you want a scrubbing bar, add some oatmeal. Not the quick cooking kind.

This works, even if you buy different brands of soap, it will all mix together.

You can make soap last 50% longer. When you buy your favorite soap, open both ends of the paper of each bar. Soap should dry for 30 days and it will last 50% longer while in use. As it is drying, place in the linen closet, dresser drawer, or wherever, it acts as a sachet.

Hope these help you save some pennies. Because you know every penny counts.

John Travolta Dance Scene in 'Michael'

It's Saturday and it's raining outside...bear with me here.

Do you remember this scene from Micheal?
It stars one of my favorite actors, John Travolta?
All the women in the bar are attracted to him like bees to honey and, boy does that piss off the men.

Anyway....
I like where the waitress dances through the scene about 3/4 of the way through the song and joins the throng.
She's got a tray loaded with beers and doesn't drop nary a one. Yeah, yeah, yeah.... I know it's Hollywood.

This movie is 15 years old, can you imagine?
I love it's sound track... in fact got it on CD.
Also have the DVD. Or, is it a VCR of the movie?
I can't really remember as it was a long time ago and far, far away. 

addendum: Jan. 7, 2014
Since I posted this, I have come back to find the video no longer plays.  
Hope this works for you instead; 

Copy and paste the link into your browser. 

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glz1OfXbc_0

Recent Baking

I realized the other day, I haven't posted anything about food and my endeavors for quite awhile.
I just downloaded a few pictures that DH has been taking. (He's really proud of what I can do in the kitchen. Which makes me pleased and happy someone appreciates my baking skills)
The pictures are of;
A blueberry (diabetic) pie with meringue topping.
An artisanal whole wheat/olive oil bread.
An I got nothing special in the pantry pie.
Loaf of caraway rye bread.
All were very yummy and nothing went to waste.
Or, I should say... they all went to my waist! :)

Quick grocery bag from an old t-shirt

Ever Been to Talk to a Politician?

Politician, hmm.....what a topic for today.

I am going to have to go and talk to our local MP, well his assistant anyway. MP stands for Member of Parliament for my American followers. I have never ever, ever had to do anything like this before in my life.

Anyone got any hints or, tips on how-to?

Since I tend to get tongue tied in times of stress and am also a bit reclusive and shy.... should I take note cards to refer to? A planned speech? Do I dress up? In a dress (egad!) and heels? Oh no way can I do that. It's just not me. But, then I guess jeans are sort of out of the question.... or, are they? Kidding, here just kidding. I guess dressing as though I were going to work would suffice????

Anyone got any hints or, tips on how-to?

See I am already getting stressed as I am repeating myself. I got to go and relax.... I really am stressing.