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Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Pakistan nukes

The fallout of the political turmoil in Pakistan is going to be disadvantageous to India. The Pak President has already warned that there is a likelihood of nuclear weapons getting into the hands of Taliban or other terror groups mushrooming in Pakistan.

All said and done, Pak will always consider India as its enemy number 1 and use the funds obtained from western countries to produce more and more nuclear weapons to fight against India. Now the risk is augmented by the terror groups in Pakistan soil, such as Al Qaida and Taliban.

So, any kind of softening of Indian war preparedness against Pakistan will be disastrous for India. Remember Kargil. Nuclear deals apart, India should not sign any pacts with USA or other countries which are likely to curb Indian preparedness against any attacks from the neighbouring countries.

All efforts by, diplomatic or otherwise should be made by the world leaders to ensure safety and security of nuclear weapons in Pakistan.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Plutonium – not as deadly as assumed

Plutonium (Pu), since its discovery in 1940, is extensively used in military and in reactors for power generation. It is artificially produced in the nuclear reactors on absorption of a neutron by the Uranium-238 (U-238) atom and subsequent beta decay of the U-239 to Neptunium (Np-239) which further undergoes beta decay to form Pu-239. It is an excellent fissile material (which undergoes fission reaction to release energy) and hence can be used in the manufacture of nuclear devices.

However, whenever plutonium is mentioned in news media, the name of the element is preceded by adjectives such as “deadly” or “most dangerous”, lethal, etc. This is clear a matter of misinformation to sensationalise the news. It is well known that many workers, years ago, have inhaled plutonium in measurable quantities and have not suffered any serious ill effects. Plutonium, like other elements in Periodic Table such as Radium and Thorium and Uranium is radioactive and decay by alpha radiation emission. These radioactive elements are present in trace amounts in soil, food, water and in our bodies. Thorium is used in gas mantles.

Since plutonium is an artificially produced element, the exposure of the public to plutonium is not possible except in situations of nuclear accident or any terrorist attack using so-called Dirty Bombs containing plutonium. Plutonium is not much of a chemically toxic element, but its radioactivity per unit gram is high and hence it is a radiotoxic element. In case of any intakes involving insoluble plutonium compounds, the fraction absorbed by the body fluids is almost negligible and in case of intakes involving soluble compounds of plutonium compounds only a small fraction, of the order of 0.0001, is absorbed by the body and over time gets deposited in bone and liver. Inhalation of air contaminated with plutonium particles needs to be prevented, and in case of an emergency situation, even a simple respirator of the type used in hospitals will provide considerable protection against the inhalation hazard.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Nuclear Techniques can be used for Diagnostics and Control of Animal-Origin Diseases – Swine flu

United Nations official said that increased cooperation and vigilance on the part of both international and national health systems can help curb the continued threat of a major new influenza A (H1N1) pandemic - popularly known as swine flu. There is still a real threat of a pandemic, and the world health bodies and governments remain in full alert until this danger passes over.

With at least two new pathogens capable of harming humans emerging each year, 75 per cent originating in the animal kingdom, the prompt diagnosis of and response to disease in animals is vital both for disease control and for assessing practices that are most likely to result in risks to animal health and for people.

New nuclear and related techniques, are essential in ensuring appropriate diagnostics and control of animal-origin disease such as avian and H1N1 influenza pandemics, known as zoonotic diseases (source:IAEA News).