Nuclear Issues

Safety has always been an important criterion for designing nuclear reactors, but in addition to safety, there are at least four other values that play a key role, namely, security (i.e., sabotage and proliferation), sustainability (i.e., environmental impacts, energy resource availability), economic viability (i.e., embarking on new technology and its continuation), as well as intergenerational justice (i.e., what we leave behind for future generations). This chapter reviews the evolution of generations of nuclear reactors (I, II, III, III, and IV) in terms of these values.

This 1992 book offers a critical reappraisal of traditional relationships between the military and industry.

This discussion is derived from the study by the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine of how science and technology might assist in countering catastrophic terrorism. This study was initiated by the presidents of the three branches of the Academy shortly after initial discussion with a large group of experts on September 25, 2001.