[ RadSafe ] RE: Little Leagues and Radioactive Terrorism

Tue Aug 21 14:20:07 CDT 2007

John,

The U-238(n, 2n)U-237 reaction has a threshold of 6MeV -- no yield in a
reactor.

http://www.nndc.bnl.gov/exfor7/servlet/X4sPlotZvd?File=E4R2164_e4&ID=151355_
1&yAxis=Auto&xAxis=Auto&xMin=&xMax=&yMin=&yMax=&xUnits=MeV&yUnits=b&l

I believe the process requires U235, not U238.

Jaro
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

-----Original Message-----
From: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl]On
Behalf Of John R Johnson
Sent: August 21, 2007 3:02 PM
To: Brennan, Mike (DOH); radsafe at radlab.nl
Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] RE: Little Leagues and Radioactive Terrorism

Mike

I have done bioassay for Pu-238. I think it was "made" in reactors by the 
U-238(n, 2n)U-237 ->Np-237(n,gamma)Pu-238 process.

John
***************
John R Johnson, PhD
CEO, IDIAS, Inc.
Vancouver, B. C.
Canada
(604) 222-9840
idias at interchange.ubc.ca

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Brennan, Mike (DOH)" <Mike.Brennan at DOH.WA.GOV>
To: <radsafe at radlab.nl>
Sent: Tuesday, August 21, 2007 11:26 AM
Subject: RE: [ RadSafe ] RE: Little Leagues and Radioactive Terrorism

>I knew someone many years ago who was very resistant to having a
> plutonium powered pacemaker installed, even though other options were no
> longer viable (I don't remember all the details).  Finally is was
> pointed out to him that the radiation could only be a danger to him if
> he was alive, and without the pacemaker that wouldn't be the case for
> much longer.  He finally consented and in a fairly short time was
> healthier that he had been in years.
>
> On a related topic, has anyone here been involved in making Pu238?  I
> have long been curious about the process.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl] On
> Behalf Of Brunkow, Ward
> Sent: Tuesday, August 21, 2007 10:16 AM
> To: Shawn Hughes (Road2); radsafe at radlab.nl
> Subject: RE: [ RadSafe ] RE: Little Leagues and Radioactive Terrorism
>
> All this rhetoric brings up the question of nuclear pacemakers. When I
> was an RSO at a major university and medical school 20 years ago, we
> were actively installing them and removing some of them from patients,
> when we weren't taking bullets out of President Reagan. I was
> flabbergasted to find out the total quantity of Pu238 in one of these
> things. I can't remember now how much ..but I would think it would be a
> concern in our day and age, especially if the perpetrator was able to
> get several of them. They are stainless double encapsulated devices yet
> the low energy photon scatter was still giving the patient a couple
> hundred millirem a year external exposure..or should I say internal....
> As a new RSO, I was called in during an emergency operation one night
> when they were removing one and stood outside the operating room  door.
> The Doctors were always very anxious to get rid of these things as you
> can imagine, and before long plop.......I had a bloody pacemaker in my
> hand. What a night mare to ship back to the manufacturer also. Maybe all
> the nukes have been replaced now with batteries, and the everready
> bunny....but they were really realiable..just like the RTGs INL is still
> building for space ships and satellites.
>
> W. G. (Ward) Brunkow
> U.S. DOE Contrator
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl] On
> Behalf Of Shawn Hughes (Road2)
> Sent: Tuesday, August 21, 2007 9:21 AM
> To: radsafe at radlab.nl
> Subject: [ RadSafe ] RE: Little Leagues and Radioactive Terrorism
>
> Quote: "I should think this would be intimidating.  Youi're trying to
> watch a baseball game and all of a sudden a bunch of gorillas packing
> heat are standing over you asking  nosy personal question.  In this age
> of post-Sept. 11 paranoia I doubt that the interrogators were very
> congenial.  I wonder if any of them have wives?"
>
> Ignoring the baited comment as to referring to me as a gorilla, I would
> say that we have always been as polite and as unobtrusive as the
> situation would allow. Especially in light of the Health Information
> Portability Act.
> Generally, the way things are handled is once an above-background
> reading is made, the area of the anomaly is narrowed down using devices
> that do not resemble the classic 'frisker' you here may be familiar
> with. At that point, when the spike is narrowed to as few physical
> entities (could be a package, could be a vehicle, on occasion a person)
> as possible, that person is approached by Law Enforcement trained in for
> lack of a better term 'radiological incidents', and identifies themself.
> Packages and vehicles are handled similarly - in a manner designed to
> not cause alarm. Most of the time, the panic would be a greater risk for
> injury than the finding.
>
> I won't go into the details, but the dialog is somewhere along the line
> of that we are testing equipment designed to better help in radiation
> accidents, and for some reason, the sensors indicate a mildly higher
> level of activity around you. Can you help us to understand why? People
> with nothing to hide are always up front about it. Many even have a
> little card from their doctor.
>
>
> Quote:Is the post-Sept. 11 paraonia so bad that our ostensible
> protectors believe terrorists (or perhaps run of the mill crackpots) are
> going to be throwing around 'lethal radioactive substances' at a Little
> League game?
>
>
> If you have to question why, in 2007, a highly publicized event like
> children from around the country playing ball might be a target for
> violence, I might humbly suggest getting out of the lab more often. I
> offer
> that RAM as a tool for Bad Guys has been a fact for a long time. It is
> unclassified that the Russians had an incident where RAM was left in a
> park
> as a demonstration of the ability of a group to use radiation as a
> weapon.
> People have had sources intentionally placed under their seats, and
> beams
> operated through walls towards them as a criminal act. I am sorry if
> this is
> surprising, but it is a reality of the world we live in today. Does it
> make
> me more fearful? Nope. More watchful? Yup.
>
>
>
> Quote: I don't know why Oklahoma City was chosen.  My guess is that
> there
> were many reasons for choosing it, and I doubt that its presence in the
> "heartland" had much to do with it.
>
> McVeigh had little to do with target selection. His transient lifestyle
> led
> him to people at a compound called 'Elohim City', where they had been
> planning for years to blow up the Murrah Building. He drank the koolaid
> and
> the rest is history.
>
>
>
> Quote: To answer what I consider to be the most important question, how
> many
> contingencies do you want to prepare for?
>
>
> Well, ah, we plan for them all. Not just at the government level. So do
> my
> friends and families. There is nothing wrong with being a Prepared
> Citizen;
> it is what seperates us from the rest of the sheeple.
>
>
>
> Quote: Shall each of us be assigned a policeman, or FBI agent, or BATF
> agent, or Homeland Security agent, or *someone*, to accompany us
> everywhere
> to make certain we don't blow someone up?
>
> I could be catty here, as you are fond of doing. I will say that in your
> theory, you totally ignore the reality of how many people are in Law
> Enforcement versus how many people are in the population. It sounds so,
> so
> very good at the rally, but in the real world, it is unworkable. And, I
> know
> you know that, Stephen.
>
>
>
>
> Quote of quotes: Franklin Roosevelt said "The only thing we have to fear
> is
> fear itself."  Thoreau said, "Nothing is to be so much feared as fear."
> As
> a people and as a nation, we need to get a grip on ourselves.
>
>
> I can play quote wars with you, but the bottom line is this: taking some
> persons' words out of context do not change the fact that history is
> replete
> with examples where lack of attention brought about the downfall of
> someone/something/somewhere. You are trying unsuccessfully to link fear
> and
> awareness, and they are not the same concept.
>
>
>
> Quote: She might have had a recent bone scan to look for metastases. The
> Tc-99m would still be detectable a day later.
>
> Actually, after I had the nuc treadmill, I was able to detect above
> background in me for a couple of days, and especially in my liquid
> output.
>
>
> Quote: That "wires or seeds" might be implanted is to my knowledge a
> ridiculous explanation by a wannabe "RADSAFE expert".
>
>
> Uh, here's your ridiculous explanation -  AP News: Breast Cancer
> Treatment
> Uses 'Seeds'
> http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/333/343/345551.html
>
> Google 'brachytherapy' for more.
>
>
> Have a blessed day, y'all!
>
>
> -Shawn
>
>
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