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NUCLEAR FUEL AND ENERGY POLICY

Name: NUCLEAR FUEL AND ENERGY POLICY
Author: S. Basheer Ahmed
ISBN: 978-1-4196-3829-7

by S. Basheer Ahmed ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 17, 2006

A comprehensive address of nuclear power geared toward citizens privy to the complex issues involved.

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The re-emergence of nuclear power as an energy source lends new vigor to economist Ahmed’s 30-year-old study.

Nuclear power is very much back on the table after years of legislative and public resistance, as fossil fuels have shown themselves to be vulnerable from almost every angle. Handling radioactive waste has been foremost of concern in this re-emergence, but as Ahmed ably–if in tinder-dry academese–demonstrates, a number of other concerns that most be addressed to gain a full grasp on nuclear-power feasibility. This has been the case since the late 1970s, when this book first appeared. Ahmed’s text serves two different audiences, one being the professional energy analyst who’s comfortable in the heavy weather of econometrics, flow charts that resemble the works of Jackson Pollack, parameter estimations and microeconomic simulations. The visuals provide a credible economic framework to thoroughly examine the uranium fuel situation: resources and reserves, supply and demand, prices and costs of extraction and refinement. These concerns dovetail with the other audience of the book–the lay reader curious about the nature of U.S. uranium reserves, the cost of nuclear-power production, those in control of the resources and the processes associated with mining and milling. If the book shows its age by concentrating on the light-water reactor fission program, it is also prescient about the potential for industry monopolization. â€œPossible producers’ collusion can be inferred from the future trend in the prices of uranium,” the author writes, and price forecasts have proven very close to today’s production prices. The system flow diagram of power generation costs is invaluable, as it also serves as a remarkable overview of what is required–fuel, capital, operating and maintenance factors–to produce even a single watt of nuclear energy.

A comprehensive address of nuclear power geared toward citizens privy to the complex issues involved.

Pub Date: July 17, 2006

ISBN: 978-1-4196-3829-7

Page Count: -

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.