Your Virtual Front Page, Monday, March 28, 2011

Well, I’m running late today, but I hate to let the day pass without getting this done. After all, it looks like I’m on track for the blog’s second-biggest month ever, in terms of page views. So I can’t slack off now. Gotta keep those plates spinning:

Libyan Rebels Close In On Key Gadhafi Stronghold (NPR) — It’s looking as though the last day or so MAY have been a tipping point.
Rebel Advance Halted Outside Qaddafi’s Hometown (NYT) … or not. Too soon to tell, really, on that “tipping point” thing.
U.S. deploys low-flying attack planes (WashPost) — In other words, we’re talking serious air support for rebels on the ground.
Toxic Water Rises at Japanese Reactor; Plutonium Is Found in Soil Samples (WSJ) — Bad news just coming in bunches.
Engineer speaking to USC stresses long-term effects of nuclear exposure (thestate.com) — Nothing like bringing in people from the one country that TOTALLY screwed up running a nuclear plant to scare the bejeebers out of students at the optimum moment. My favorite part of this report is the Russian scientist’s dramatic body language in this photo — reminds me of Count Floyd saying, “Ooooohhh… This one is REALLLLY scary, kids — and in 3D!”
China ‘to overtake US on science’ in two years (BBC) — I could have rounded out the page with bad news from Yemen, or the Mideast generally, or one of the usual recent suspects, but I thought I’d give you something completely new to worry about. You can thank me later.

6 thoughts on “Your Virtual Front Page, Monday, March 28, 2011”

Boyd Summers March 29, 2011 at 9:51 am

I like the new web site picture header..Talented photographer

bud March 29, 2011 at 11:39 am

I was ready to support expanded nuclear but with the situation in Japan getting more dramatic by the minute I’ve changed my mind. The stuff is just too dangerous. Besides uranium is a scarce resource that we’ll have to import. How is that an improvement on oil?

bud March 29, 2011 at 1:23 pm

Can someone explain why we’re not pursuing Thorium reactors like the Indians and Chinese? This seems like it’s too good to be true and may very well be but so far I can’t find what the holdup is. Here’s a blurb from the long Wiki article about Thorium:

“Thorium, as well as uranium and plutonium, can be used as fuel in a nuclear reactor. A thorium fuel cycle offers several potential advantages over a uranium fuel cycle including much greater abundance on Earth, superior physical and nuclear properties of the fuel, enhanced proliferation resistance, and reduced nuclear waste production.”