Power
I was standing in my significant other’s kitchen, doing what I usually do: eating her food, creating a mess and accidentally knocking things over.
She was letting me do my thing while she read her electricity bill. She slapped it down on the bench. “Jeeeeeeez. Thanks bloody Julia Gillard.”
It was a whopper - like most of them nowadays. According to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures released yesterday, the most significant consumer price rises in the September quarter were for electricity, up more than 15 per cent.
Continue reading "Your electricity company, telling you who to vote for" »
If you’re a science or nuclear energy buff, you’ll have to excuse us for starting pretty much at the bottom of the knowledge tree here. First of all, let’s define a meltdown: basically it’s when the core of a nuclear reactor is unable to cool, because of some kind of system failure like, oh, a 10 metre wall of sea water crashing into a nuclear power plant. Radiation can then be released, and that’s when things get really dangerous. So is it happening in Japan? Latest reports say no, not yet and hopefully not at all.
Click this link for an incredible series of graphics on the internal workings of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, pictured above. This really is some amazing work the New York Times has done at short notice. There’s another really helpful infographic here:
Despite what appears to be an easing - or at least a temporary containment - of the threat of a major radiation leak, let’s dwell briefly on the worst case scenario. Could we be facing another Three Mile Island or Chernobyl? The answer, according to the Science Media Centre of Japan, is almost certainly no. Read a full Q&A at the SMCJ website here. Highly informative, yet accessible, material. Well done them.
Continue reading "A busy person’s guide to Japan’s nuclear threat" »
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Mel says:
I am most curious about the thorium reactors that have been mentioned a few times on ABC 24, but so far not too much mention on other tv stations. Sounds like it could be a goer - without cooling needs, and without the production of materials for nuclear weapons production. Read more »
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skepdad says:
@alcotrel: it is my understanding that a comprehensive risk analysis was done, but with Japan’s total lack of natural resources they had a choice of massive energy imports or nuke plants. Not hard to see how they arrived at the decision, and to be fair the plants have stood up… Read more »
A woman does not have to be a man to succeed in business. And it only appears to be a hell of a lot easier if you are. You can’t argue with the statistics.
Women are poorly represented in positions of power.
But conceding the premise that the number of women in executive positions is dismal does not logically lead to the conclusion that you have to be a man to do well.
Continue reading "Big business is still giving men a leg up" »
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Ms P says:
Hi Tory, I attended the Don Dunstan Foundation evening last week and I enjoyed all the speeches and debates. One thing has stuck with me ever since. And I pose the question to you… I agree with your sentiment that success is achieving your own personal goals rather than a… Read more »
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Cate P says:
DG you haven’t sacrificed your career, you have made living a full, balanced and happy life your career. My husband is the same, and more power to you, real mature men. You are prepared to sacrifice much for the right things - love and family. There’s lots of you out… Read more »
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