Download 09_PBS Nuclear Phobia Quiz

SPH3U – Energy
(Source: PBS Frontline - http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/reaction/interact/survey.html)
true |
false 1. All nuclear materials remain highly toxic for thousands of years.
true |
false 2. Man-made radiation is more toxic to humans than naturally occurring
radiation, even if the dose is the same.
true |
exposure.
false 3. The human body has the capability to repair damaged caused by radiation
true |
false 4. In the US, most cases of cancer in humans are known to be caused by
man-made radiation.
true |
false 5. I would rather live within a 50 mile radius of a coal-burning plant than a
nuclear power plant.
true |
false 6. One of the chief dangers from nuclear power plants is that they can
explode like a nuclear bomb.
true |
false 7. It is safer to drive behind a tanker truck carrying gasoline than a truckload
of spent nuclear fuel.
true |
false 8.On average, people are exposed to more radiation from nuclear power
plants than from radon gas in homes.
true |
false 9.Since the construction of the first nuclear power plant, man-made radiation
is known to have resulted in new species of plants and animals.
true |
false 10. The fact that nuclear power plants have elaborate evacuation plans for
the surrounding area indicates that they are inherently more dangerous than other types of plants.
Correct Answers:
1. F
2. F
3. T
# Correct Responses:
10
7-9
4-6
0-3
4. F
5. F
6. F
7. F
8. F
9. F
10. F
You’re a nuclear-phile! Are you a nuclear physicist?
You are nuclear-knowledgeable
You’re nuclear-phobic
You’re a nuclear-phobe
Nuclear Phobia Survey Answers
SPH3U – Energy
1. All nuclear materials remain highly toxic for thousands of years.
false -Some radioisotopes have-lives of seconds or days, while others like plutonium-239 has a half-life
of 2.4 x 104 years.
2. Man-made radiation is more toxic to humans than naturally occurring radiation even if the dose is
the same.
false - The body makes no distinction; it sees radiation as deposited energy regardless of its source.
3. The human body has the capability to repair damaged caused by exposure to radiation.
true - Many of the DNA lesions induced by ionizing radiation are similar to identical to those induced as
a consequence of normal metabolic activity. DNA repair mechanisms can act to reduce the consequences
of this damage.
4. In the US, most cases of cancer in humans are known to be caused by man-made radiation.
false - Most cancers have an unknown cause or etiology.
5. I would rather live within a 50 mile radius of a coal-burning plant than a nuclear power plant.
false - Actually a coal burning plant gives off slightly more radioactivity due to the thorium and uranium
content in coal. But in both cases the levels are extremely low.
6. One of the chief dangers from nuclear power plants is that they can explode like a nuclear bomb.
false - There's a big difference between a nuclear core and a nuclear bomb. After detonation, the density
of uranium (or plutonium) atoms in a bomb is incredibly high, enough for fissions to take place and
energy to be released in a hundred millionth of a second! So it flies apart. The density of atoms in a
nuclear core is much less, and, even in a meltdown situation would generate heat at a much slower rate
than is necessary to fly apart. The act of meltdown actually terminates the explosive process, because
when a core "melts down" it spreads out and goes sub-critical.
7. It is safer to drive behind a tanker truck carrying gasoline than a truck load of spent nuclear fuel.
false - People occasionally die in gasoline truck accidents, but the DOE and the nuclear industry claim
that no one has died or been hurt by a radiation release due to a nuclear waste transportation accident.
8. On average, people are exposed to more radiation from nuclear power plants than from radon gas
in homes.
false - An individual gets about 200 millirems of radiation per year from naturally occurring radon. A
normally functioning nuclear power plant exposes a person to about .01 millirem, if the person lives
within 50 miles of the plant.
9. Since the construction of the first nuclear power plant, man-made radiation in known to have
resulted in new species of plants and animals.
false - New species don't occur any more frequently today than before nuclear plants were built.
10. The fact that nuclear power plants have elaborate evacuation plans for the surrounding area indicates
they are inherently more dangerous than other types of plants.
false - Evacuation plans have only been around since 1980 and are an example of "regulatory ratcheting"
by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Other countries do not have these plans. Chemical plants do not
have evacuation plans even though evacuations in their vicinity are more likely to be necessary than
around a nuclear power plant. Most evacuations are due to rail or truck accidents involving toxic
chemicals.