Summary of Atomic Accidents: by James Mahaffey | Includes Analysis

By Instaread Summaries

PLEASE NOTE: This is a summary of the book and NOT the original book. 

 

Summary of Atomic Accidents by James Mahaffey | Includes Analysis 

 

Inside this Instaread Summary:

• Overview of the entire book

• Introduc

• Language: English
• Publisher: Instaread, Inc
• Release date: May 17, 2016
• ISBN: 9781683781967

Book preview

Book Overview

Scientist, consultant and author, James Mahaffey, provides a meticulously documented insider’s look into nuclear near-misses and actual disasters in Atomic Accidents. Two clear themes emerge. The first is that humanity will need to harness the potential of nuclear power as fossil fuels run out. The second is that nuclear power is quite safe. Most of its problems originate in human nature. Even people entrusted with designing and operating powerful nuclear reactors can fall victim to ambition, pride, greed, and stubbornness.

People were afraid of the power of steam when it was used to power locomotives because it could lead to massive explosions that had the potential of killing those unlucky enough to be nearby. Several showmen saw this as a perfect way to play on people’s fears and gain a little notoriety. Staged steam locomotive crashes became a form of entertainment that terrified and thrilled the American public from the 1890s to 1935.  

Like steam, people became increasingly fearful of radiation, a peril that they could not see, as scientists unlocked the atom’s secrets in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This fear was exacerbated by a lack of rules and regulations as scientists, con men and industrialists galloped into the atomic age without any regard for health and safety, including their own. Several well-known scientists died of radiation poisoning as a direct result of their work, including Marie Curie.

The Manhattan Project was an American enterprise during World War II that resulted in the world’s first atomic bomb. Scientists knew that uranium and plutonium isotopes could morph into bombs on their own if stored in certain ways, yet there was lax regard toward safety procedures. Physicist, Richard Feynman, instituted successful safety measures for the Manhattan Project, but they were top secret. The accident plagued nuclear program run by the Soviets, as well as other programs in Canada and Europe, could have benefitted from Feynman’s tips.

United States Navy admiral, Hyman Rickover, created a nuclear reactor that could be used in a very small space. It was designed to power submarines. Rickover tested his reactor design at a nuclear facility in Canada. Years later, it would become a standard for the civilian power industry.

Over the years, the United State engaged in multiple fuel reprocessing efforts. However, after President Jimmy Carter declared fuel reprocessing too dangerous, the country has ended up with nuclear waste sitting around waiting for someone to figure out what to do with it.

In the 1950s, Britain tried frantically to catch up with the United States in developing nuclear weapons. During this time, they also had a problem with a nuclear facility, Windscale, that ended up dumping radiation onto a large chunk of its dairy