A comprehensive, though specialized, summary of worker safety in response to Fukushima.
An industrial safety researcher evaluates the procedures at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear reactor following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
In this debut nonfiction book, Yasui draws on a background in occupational safety, including five years overseeing protections for the workers who dealt with the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, to evaluate the successes and failures of the Japanese government’s oversight of employee safety. The author also offers recommendations for readers charged with protecting workers in similar high-risk situations. The volume, based on a series of papers, many previously published in industry journals, addresses the immediate response to the catastrophe, the ongoing monitoring of workers’ health and radiation exposure, the impact of the cleanup efforts, and recommendations for responding to future emergencies. Yasui explores many of the problems faced by those responsible for managing worker safety, including equipment shortages, inefficient tracking methods, and the variability of radiation exposure even within small areas. The author acknowledges both problems and solutions without emphasizing individual or organizational fault (“If there had been well-prepared manuals and a sufficient number of proper respiratory masks, the operators could have responded appropriately”). The book’s subject matter is of interest and relevance to a limited number of specialists, and as a result the prose and structure are not designed to appeal to general readers. The writing features a high concentration of both acronyms and technical jargon (“On March 22, 2011, TEPCO restarted internal exposure monitoring using two vehicle-mounted WBCs borrowed from JAEA and located at the Onahama Coal Centre 50 km from the APP”). But the information supplied is thorough, with hard data provided in many cases and detailed notes at the end of each chapter delivering both citations and sources for further examination. The book includes concrete recommendations for mitigating risk to workers involved in similar situations, and Yasui concludes with a suggested study design for evaluating the ongoing health needs of emergency workers, presenting guidance for monitoring the long-term effects of prolonged exposure to significant amounts of radiation. Appendices include a useful, detailed timeline of events following the nuclear emergency and government-issued press releases.
A comprehensive, though specialized, summary of worker safety in response to Fukushima.Pub Date: Sept. 25, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-974120-20-8
Page Count: 286
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Nov. 3, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An intriguing meditation on the nature of the universe and our attempts to understand it that should appeal to both...
Italian theoretical physicist Rovelli (General Relativity: The Most Beautiful of Theories, 2015, etc.) shares his thoughts on the broader scientific and philosophical implications of the great revolution that has taken place over the past century.
These seven lessons, which first appeared as articles in the Sunday supplement of the Italian newspaper Sole 24 Ore, are addressed to readers with little knowledge of physics. In less than 100 pages, the author, who teaches physics in both France and the United States, cogently covers the great accomplishments of the past and the open questions still baffling physicists today. In the first lesson, he focuses on Einstein's theory of general relativity. He describes Einstein's recognition that gravity "is not diffused through space [but] is that space itself" as "a stroke of pure genius." In the second lesson, Rovelli deals with the puzzling features of quantum physics that challenge our picture of reality. In the remaining sections, the author introduces the constant fluctuations of atoms, the granular nature of space, and more. "It is hardly surprising that there are more things in heaven and earth, dear reader, than have been dreamed of in our philosophy—or in our physics,” he writes. Rovelli also discusses the issues raised in loop quantum gravity, a theory that he co-developed. These issues lead to his extraordinary claim that the passage of time is not fundamental but rather derived from the granular nature of space. The author suggests that there have been two separate pathways throughout human history: mythology and the accumulation of knowledge through observation. He believes that scientists today share the same curiosity about nature exhibited by early man.
An intriguing meditation on the nature of the universe and our attempts to understand it that should appeal to both scientists and general readers.Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-18441-3
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Riverhead
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A magnificent account of a central reality of our times, incorporating deep scientific expertise, broad political and social knowledge, and ethical insight, and Idled with beautifully written biographical sketches of the men and women who created nuclear physics. Rhodes describes in detail the great scientific achievements that led up to the invention of the atomic bomb. Everything of importance is examined, from the discovery of the atomic nucleus and of nuclear fission to the emergence of quantum physics, the invention of the mass-spectroscope and of the cyclotron, the creation of such man-made elements as plutonium and tritium, and implementation of the nuclear chain reaction in uranium. Even more important, Rhodes shows how these achievements were thrust into the arms of the state, which culminated in the unfolding of the nuclear arms race. Often brilliantly, he records the rise of fascism and of anti-Semitism, and the intensification of nationalist ambitions. He traces the outbreak of WW II, which provoked a hysterical rivalry among nations to devise the bomb. This book contains a grim description of Japanese resistance, and of the horrible psychological numbing that caused an unparalleled tolerance for human suffering and destruction. Rhodes depicts the Faustian scale of the Manhattan Project. His account of the dropping of the bomb itself, and of the awful firebombing that prepared its way, is unforgettable. Although Rhodes' gallery of names and events is sometimes dizzying, his scientific discussions often daunting, he has written a book of great drama and sweep. A superb accomplishment.
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1986
ISBN: 0684813785
Page Count: 932
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1986
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
