Re: Help for middle school student. -Reply

[Charles Willis <CAW@nrc.gov>]

Kim,

Our reactions to "Closing the Circle on the Splitting of the Atom" are decidedly
different.  One rotten line may not spoil a book, but it certainly made me pay
attention when I read that: "In general, the risks of adverse health effects are
higher when exposure is spread over a long period than when the same dose is
received at one time."   I have no way of knowing whether this absurd statement is
simply a gaff or is a measure of the writer's knowledge or intent.  However, it must
be by choice that the book addresses contamination at great length but offers
nothing to provide perspective about the associated risks.  Certainly the reader is
told nothing of the epidemiological studies which indicate that workers in
AEC/DOE facilities, who were much more highly exposed that were members of
the public, show no ill effects of radiation.  

The book does have its virtues.  It is slick, well illustrated, and expensive-looking. 
It provides a broad, but cursory, overview of DOE operations with a wealth of good
pictures.  The glossary provides a few chuckles by saying that "any plutonium can
be used" for weapons production; calling U-235 "... the only fissile element;" and
defining radioactivity as "... of, caused by, or exhibiting radioactivity."

Some health physicists may find this book useful or amusing, but I would not
recommend it for the general public, and certainly not for a middle school student.

Charlie Willis
caw@nrc.gov
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