Legends News Channel
Last updated: September, 2017
World News
The Korean War
-Ren Tohimaru
In recent news we see alleged “testing” of missiles by North Korea and its leader, Kim Jong-un. Naturally, many nations have shown concern for this missile testing, calling for reasons, calling for its cessation. As this situation has continued, news sources from BBC to CNN predict conflict between North Korea and the United States of America is imminent. But where does this come from? Why is this happening? What could possibly be bring forth even the faintest risk of a nuclear strike by any nation in existence?
In 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea. Led by the United States of America, United Nations forces rushed to the aide of South Korea. Only a few years after the end of World War II, North Korea’s attempt to unify Korea under one regime was met with resistance by the rest of the world. On July 27, 1953, an armistice, an agreement for cessation of hostilities, was signed between the United Nations (including South Korea and the United States) and North Korea, until “a more permanent peace can be found”.
Recently, with the increase in missile testing by North Korea, concern has returned world-wide. A single nuclear strike can wipe out cities, pollute environments, and damage our genome for generations. Don’t believe it? Look into Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the first and second atomic bombs; read about Chernobyl, or in history we all can remember, Fukushima. Nuclear disaster is catastrophic. And now with a nation that never really surrendered in its last war, who the United Nations, technically speaking, is still at war with, launching tests, what’s next? Is it really for the world to let this continue? End this through diplomacy. End this militarily. But end this before we experience the next major nuclear disaster. How many more can we survive?
Fukushima Nuclear Disaster
-Andrew Tai
What happened?
The Fukushima Daiichi Power Plant consists of six separate boiling water reactors designed by General Electric but maintained by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). On March 11, 2011, the Touhoku earthquake happened. The Touhoku earthquake was a megathrust earthquake that lasted about six minutes and was a 9.0 on the moment magnitude scale. At the time of the earthquake, reactors 4, 5, and 6 were shut down and cooling so they could be refueled. After the earthquake, reactors 1, 2, and 3 automatically shut down due to a government mandated procedure called SCRAM. Because the reactors could no longer generate electricity, backup generators came online automatically. These generators ran the coolant pumps, however the 13-meter tsunami destroyed the generators for reactors 1-5. The two generators for reactor 6 was enough to also power reactor 5. On March 12, without the cooling pumps, the reactors 1, 2, and 3 went into meltdown and their cores melted through the containment walls. Then, from March 12 – 15, a series of hydrogen-air reactions occurred in reactors 1-4.
What are the effects?
About 18,000 people died from the earthquake and resulting tsunami and no one died from the immediate effects of the nuclear meltdown. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that residents of the area who were evacuated were exposed to low amounts of radiation and radiation induced illness is expected to be low. However, in 2013 and 2015 the cases of thyroid cancer in Fukushima prefecture was 40 and 137 respectfully. This follows the trend seen in the Chernobyl accident, as thyroid cancer rates increased 3-5 years after the reactor accident. However, correlation does not imply causation and more data is needed to prove this link.
The soil in the Fukushima region contains cesium-137 (a radioactive isotope) at about 16,000 to 46,000 becquerels/km. 10,000 becquerels is the safe limit per kilometer. Plants were found with high levels of cesium-137 as were animals in the area. The cesium spread via the air and was absorbed into the soil and by plants and mushrooms. Animals would then bioaccumulate the cesium. In general, the results are mixed and more long-term studies need to be done to determine if population fluxuations are natural or influenced by the Fukushima disaster.
So, what about marine life? Are seafoods contaminated? The short answer is no. There are two types of cesium that scientists use to trace radioactive spills: Cesium-137 and Cesium-134. Cesium-137 has a half-life of about 30 years and therefore can't be used to trace the radioactive spill (cesium still exists from bomb tests in the 50s and 60s). However, cesium-134 has a half-life of only a few years. The results of studies from Stanford University show that the Cesium-134 levels rose 3% from normal levels but are still well below the health standards. Do understand just how low, right you can find about 2 becquerels per cubic meter off the coast of California. This is about 1,000 times lower than the EPA's safe drinking level. So, in general, the effects of the Fukushima disaster are negligible In the United States and the waters outside of Japan. Levels in Japan are stronger but still negligible. Several years after these studies were done, we can now expect even lower levels of hazardous material in the environment.
What is being done to fix it?
On April 17th 2011, TEPCO developed a plan for the Fukushima reactor area cleanup. First, achieve a cold shutdown in 6-9 months. Second, restore stable cooling to the reactors in three months. Third, apply covers to the units to reduce contamination. Fourth, create storage units to store radioactive water. Fifth, use radio controlled units to clean-up the area. Finally, create silt fences to prevent ocean contamination.
The main issue TEPCO had/has with clean-up in Fukushima is that there are three sources of high level radiation in close proximity. This causes simple problems to require complex solutions. One of the main problems they have had with clean-up is contaminated water leaking. Sea water in naturally corrosive, but radioactive sea water is much more corrosive and therein lies the problem. Despite some problems and set-backs, things are getting cleaned-up and contained. In addition to clean-up at the disaster site, the government plans on cleaning up around the site with 1 millisievert/year being the threshold. A detailed timeline can be found here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_Fukushima_Daiichi_nuclear_disaster
Should we use Nuclear Power?
In light of this, and other problems with nuclear power, should we continue with nuclear power? Let's take a look at the pros and cons of nuclear energy. Nuclear energy does require oil or coal and is therefore unaffected by un predictable prices. In addition, it is many times more efficient than coal or oil and is much cleaner than oil or coal. By cleaner, I mean that nuclear energy produces much less CO2 than oil or coal.
However, the fuel for nuclear power is the source of most problems. It is difficult to mine for and is deadly to be around. In addition, it contaminants the surroundings with radiation. In addition, the spent fuel is hazardous waste and there is no easy and safe way to dispose of it. Currently it is stored underground, but that method has had lots of problems with leakage. However, despite these problems, it might be the cleanest form of energy that we have. Both wind and solar energy have issues such as thousands of bird deaths or production of solar panels being toxic to the environment.
Fighting Racism With Understanding
-Ren Tohimaru
On August 10th, the stage was set for the most recent racism-based conflict in United States history. Jason Kessler, organizer of the rally “Unite the Right”, filed a lawsuit against Charlottesville, Virginia, for moving his protest from Emancipation Park to Mcintire Park. It’s a lawsuit that he would win, moving his rally back to its original site. On Saturday, August 12th, white nationalists and counter-protestors showed up at the appointed time. Violence would break out shortly after noon. The violence would be condemned, racism would be condemned. The final count was 3 dead and over 13 others injured.
The Unite the Right Rally was intended to protest the removal of the statue of Robert E. Lee, General of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. This was just one monument to the Confederate States of America being removed throughout the United States in response to the Charleston Church Shooting on June 17th, 2015. This event was a mass killing at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina by a White supremacist.
In short, the violence surrounding Charlottesville, and the events and influences leading up to it, involve racism; needless to say, this is more than controversial, going back since people realized there were other people than their own. But what is racism? In essence, it is the discrimination against people of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.
But what is race, really? People discriminate between “Blacks”, “Asians”, “Indians”, “Nazi’s”, “Communists”, “Fascists”, and many, many more. People discriminated by one group discriminate against the group on the same basis! People lash out against each other in the exact same way, but each side finds themselves “better”. White Supremacists, Black Lives Matter, and many other movements place themselves as better, yet in there names use the very words that divide and discriminate. So
what about another race-the human race? With internet, with culture, with planes, cars and trains we are bridging the physical gaps, only to find that in targeting each other, we have missed the most simple gap of all-skin color and other physical features not even brought about by culture, but by evolution based on survival. Africa has different requirements than Asia, than Europe, than North America. What we become beyond that is up to us. What will you choose? Our weapons are primed. Will we use them, or will we set them aside?