Topic: RED ALERT: MAJOR EARTHQUAKE, TSUNAMI & NOW VOLCANO STRIKE JAPAN

[michelleo]

With winds and currents, how far can radiation be carried and still be considered dangerous?

That's going to be the big question of the day tomorrow I'm guessing.  Meanwhile the Nikkei is in free-fall. It's falling by the minute.  At this moment it's down 14% so far today.  Doesn't Japan have a similar mechanism to America where the markets close at some point in case of a precipitous drop?

[trapeze]

The Japanese stock exchange is plunging like crazy over this whole mess.

If you take history into account (and you should) the US market also took a bath post 9/11. Money invested when it tanked made great gains in the years afterward. There is probably an opportunity in this situation for someone who is willing to take a risk. I mean, does anyone seriously think that the Japanese won't come back from this? What they are experiencing is beyond horrible and will get worse (much worse) before it gets better. But they have proven before that they can come back from horrible circumstances...they are the only people in history to have been nuked and the firebombing of Tokyo was worse in some ways. They took a horrible beating in WWII (so did the Germans). And yet they came back to become the world's third largest economy. So they have a track record. They will need investors to rebuild. I think it's probably not that risky a bet and the payoff could be substantial.

Or you could invest in Obamabucks.

[rickl]

With winds and currents, how far can radiation be carried and still be considered dangerous?

That depends on the specific isotopes and their half-lives.

Emissions from a nuclear plant will probably not get lofted high enough to be carried by the jet stream.  That kind of scenario is more likely to occur in a nuclear explosion, which will not happen here no matter how bad the meltdown gets.

In other words, even in a worst-case scenario at the Japanese nuclear plant, the radiation is mostly a local concern.  It's not going to come to the U.S. in any significant quantities.

[Libertas]

I think the links Michelle provided bear that out.  This is not like Chernobyl or 3 Mile Island. 

It is interesting that the ChiCom's are looking into the LFTR technology, it appears we should be doing the same.  As far as they uranium lobby goes, just SWAG on my part, but I'll bet 'ol Dingy Harry is a top recipient.

PS-Thanks for the KI link Michelle, nice to know there are options out there, since domestic stocks of pills have dried up!

[Libertas]

Explosions, more quakes...these poor folks have to think their world is ending!

http://hotair.com/archives/2011/03/15/japan-orders-140000-people-to-seal-themselves-indoors-after-nuclear-leak/

[Libertas]

Heard some report about all workers being pulled out of Fukushima, not sure if all reactors or just some.  Hope this means they are throwing in the towel.  I have no idea what a last ditch containment effort might entail...pouring a zillion tons of cement laced with lead over the damn thing or what?

jibtv reporting what they are seeing right now, not what authorities are doing.  See white smoke rising, but picture is a bit blurry...coming from that cooling area?  Reporter thinks it is from #1 reactor.  Footage is lagging 20 minutes.

Guess we'll find out in the morning...

http://jibtv.com/program/fullscreen.aspx?page=0

[trapeze]

And, BTW, if you want some extra paranoid stuff to think about, there are some Coast-To-Coast With Art Bell types who are pushing the notion that the moon is going to have a big effect on the fault line (i.e. produce another big quake and then another tsunami). The moon is supposed to be nearing its closest distance from Earth sometime pretty soon.

That the moon's weak gravitational pull is able to affect the tides is indisputable. That it can possibly have a measurable effect on tectonic plates is pretty nutty. I'm no geologist or seismologist but this seems to me to be an offshoot of the global warming stuff. Scientific wishful thinking.

[trapeze]

Economic ripple effect...


[blockquote]The U.S. is feeling the aftershocks of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in several ways, some good, some bad.

While the U.S. stock markets fell, the price of oil was also dropping even as the demand for raw materials to rebuild Japan is likely to rise sharply on top of already rising global demand.

With all the American investments in Japanese companies, Wall Street was the first to feel the pain as it reacted to the Japanese markets, which plunged 16 percent in just two days.

“If there's going to be some damage to our economy probably it will occur most directly more quickly through the stock market, says Mark Zandi, chief economist with Moody’s Analytics.

And much of that damage could come as a result of the economic question marks surrounding the disaster.[/blockquote]

[ToddF]

Actually the moon is why the earth is volcanically active, at this stage in our evolution.  The main theory goes, the earth being volcanically active is also responsible for life on this planet.  I don't remember the details, but it has something to do with all that activity stirring up the elements in a way that is good, overall, for life.

So yes, the moon does cause earthquakes.  A little closer, a little more likely?  I kind of doubt that.

[Libertas]

The moon!  The moon!  We're all gonna die!

I'm surprised, with all the hype and noise, not see that headline linked on Drudge!

 

 

[Libertas]

On the market front, looks like the Nikkei got back 5 1/2%.  We'll see what news the day brings...

[Glock32]

In some of the moons of the gas giant outer planets, the tidal forces can be so strong that magma is definitely pulled out on the planet-facing side, resulting in huge volcanic eruptions. In some cases the moon's orbit is disrupted so much that it slams into adjacent moons. This is one of the theories on how Saturn's rings were formed.

Earth's crust is too rigid for tidal action to affect it to that extent, but it does have some influence. Most of Earth's seismic energy comes from the radioactive decay of the core generating enormous heat.

[Pandora]

Most of Earth's seismic energy comes from the radioactive decay of the core generating enormous heat.

Just so long as it doesn't stop rotating.

[Libertas]

Heh.  If it did that, you'd know pretty quick...we'd all be flying off the surface!

 

 

[Pandora]

Heh.  If it did that, you'd know pretty quick...we'd all be flying off the surface!

 

 

The core.  "The Core".  Geddit?

[Libertas]

Heh.  If it did that, you'd know pretty quick...we'd all be flying off the surface!

 

 

The core.  "The Core".  Geddit?

Check.  I was thinking planet rotation.

Core, affects our magnetic field and convection that in turn affects tectonic plates.

But hey, there's some precious metals in the core right?  Why can't some of this shifting around stuff throw up something useful!   

[charlesoakwood]

And, BTW, if you want some extra paranoid stuff to think about, there are some Coast-To-Coast With Art Bell types who are pushing the notion that the moon is going to have a big effect on the fault line (i.e. produce another big quake and then another tsunami). The moon is supposed to be nearing its closest distance from Earth sometime pretty soon.

That the moon's weak gravitational pull is able to affect the tides is indisputable. That it can possibly have a measurable effect on tectonic plates is pretty nutty. I'm no geologist or seismologist but this seems to me to be an offshoot of the global warming stuff. Scientific wishful thinking.

March 18 or 19, we will have a full moon and it will be approximately only 225,000 miles from earth, that's half way across Texas.  It's gravitational pull will grab that 50x100 mile crack in the crust and rip it into space. We are doomed.

[trapeze]

There is actually a field of study all about the effect of the moon and other astronomical objects on humankind.

It's called Astrology.

[charlesoakwood]

Correct, and they all agree, WE'RE DOOMED!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=CdRo7okHCAc#at=16

[Libertas]

Hmmm...

Go out with a bang or a rip...

I'll take door #3!