Nuclear power a reference handbook

"In the 21st century, nuclear power has been identified as a viable alternative to traditional energy sources to stem global climate change, and condemned as risky to human health and environmentally irresponsible. Do the advantages of nuclear energy outweigh the risks, especially in light of t...

Full description

Main Author: Henderson, Harry, 1951- (Author)
Format: Books Print Book
Language: English
Published: Santa Barbara, California : ABC-CLIO, [2014]
Edition: Second edition.
Series: Contemporary world issues.
Subjects:
Table of Contents:
  • 1. Background and history : Atoms and mysterious rays ; The atomic nucleus ; Neutrons and nuclear fission ; A letter of warning ; The Manhattan Project ; The first nuclear reactor ; Nuclear perils and promises ; The Atomic Energy Commission ; Reactors at sea ; Other forms of nuclear propulsion ; "Atoms for peace" ; Science fiction and Cold War reality ; The Atomic Energy Act of 1954 ; Early developments and regulation ; Breeding controversy ; Expansion of nuclear power in the 1960s and 1970s ; The AEC and the environmental movement ; The Nuclear Regulatory Commission ; From Brown's Ferry to Three Mile Island ; A growing antinuclear movement ; The Chernobyl disaster ; Yucca Mountain and nuclear waste ; Fukushima: the nuclear perfect storm ; An uncertain future
  • 2. Problems, controversies, and solutions : Nuclear power today ; How much does nuclear power cost? ; Fuel costs and comparisons ; Growth projections ; Subsidies, incentives, and regulations ; Continuing uncertainty ; Radiation and health ; Environmental effects ; The nuclear fuel cycle ; Managing radioactive waste ; Search for a permanent solution ; Transporting nuclear waste ; Decommissioningt nuclear plants ; Nuclear proliferation ; Nuclear terrorism ; The non-proliferation treaty and nuclear security ; The search for safety ; Does "safety culture" work? ; Coping with natural disasters ; New reactor designs ; Small modular reactors ; "Fast" and breeder reactors ; Fusion? ; Public opinion changing? ; A stalled industry? ; Nuclear power and climate change ; Renewables as an alternative ; Part of the solution? ; Conclusion
  • 3. Perspectives : Nuclear energy is a safe industry / Brett McCollum ; Safety, human fallibility, and nuclear power / Lloyd J. Dumas ; Building back better: lessons from Fukushima / Hilary Oliva Faxon ; Nuclear power: a Faustian bargain / Mark Troy Burnett ; Why nuclear energy is clean and environmental opposition to nuclear energy is a major mistake / Bruno Comby ; Navajos and uranium mining: death digging yellow dirt / Bruce E. Johansen
  • 4. Profiles : People : Bernard Baruch (1870-1965) ; Hans Albrecht Bethe (1906-2005) ; Niels Bohr (1885-1962) ; Helen B. Caldicott (1938- ) ; Jimmy Carter (1924- ) ; Bernard Cohen (1924-2012) ; Barry Commoner (1917-2012) ; Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890-1969) ; Mohamed ElBaradei (1942- ) ; Enrico Fermi (1901-1954) ; John Gofman (1918-2007) ; Henry M. Jackson (1912-1983) ; Abdul Qadeer Khan (1936- ) ; David E. Lilienthal (1899-1981) ; Lise Meitner (1878-1968) ; Karl Z. Morgan (1907-1999) ; Mayumi Oda (1941- ) ; J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967) ; Dixy Lee Ray (1914-1994) ; Hyman G. Rickover (1900-1987) ; Glenn T. Seaborg (1912-1999) ; Karen Silkwood (1946-1974) ; Lewis L. Strauss (1896-1974) ; Leo Szilard (1898-1964) ; Grace Thorpe (1924-2008) ; Stewart Udall (1920-2010)
  • Organizations : Alliance for Nuclear Accountability ; American Institute of Physics ; American Nuclear Society ; Argonne National Laboratory ; Beyond Nuclear ; Center for Nonproliferation Studies ; Environmentalists for Nuclear Energy ; International Atomic Energy Agency ; Nuclear Energe Agency ; Nuclear Energy Institute ; Nuclear Information and Resource Service ; Nuclear Threat Initiative ; Oak Ridge National Laboratory ; Union of Concerned Scientists ; U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy ; U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ; World Information Service on Energy ; World Nuclear Association
  • 5. Data and documents : Historical background ; The nuclear industry ; Background: What is nuclear energy? ; Reactor designs ; Fuel cycle and storage ; Regulation, safety, and risks ; Debating the future of nuclear power
  • 6. Resources for further research : Overview and reference ; Historical developments ; Economic, regulatory, and legal aspects ; Environmental and health effects ; Risks, disasters, and safety in nuclear plants ; Nuclear waste and the fuel cycle ; Proliferation and terrorism ; New designs and technologies ; Climate change and the future of nuclear power
  • 7. Chronology.