Certainly, after straggling out of the three hour ride that was the Oppenheimer movie, one could very well start to wonder if some of that summative radioactive pollution from all the tests done by every country in the world, along with the instances of radioactive fallout during Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Chernobyl etc. etc. etc. is going to affect us as modern world radioactivity.
The fact is, this summative nuclear fallout was estimated to be about 2 years worth of natural background radiation on the the earth's surface, according to atomicarchive.com. Background radiation is stuff like radiation from the sun, gases in the air, microwaves etc. That is very, very, very miniscule compared to the effects of people who were near ground zero at the time of the bombing or testing. Though the contribution is tiny, they are still estimated to produce around 2 to 25 cases of genetic diseases per million live births in the generation after 1970.
The nuclear test ban treaty of 1963 has caused the major players like the US, UK and the Soviet Union to stop atmospheric or underwater nuclear testing, atleast as far as we - the public- know. France is still conducting underground explosions and our dear friends India and Pakistan have not signed the treaty at all.
Raizel's rantings: India, India, India. Contributing to modern world radioactivity. It doesn't ban nuclear tests, doesn't support Ukraine, tortures and kills tribal Christians in its own land. I have a sneaky suspicion that it would become the World Leader in a few more decades, considering these are the exact shenanigans countries like the UK and US did when they were (and are) lording it over the world. India is already number 1 population wise, so, why not in this? )
But India does have a 'No First Use' policy, which is probably supposed to offer some little comfort.
In Japan, the radioactivity decayed rapidly at the blast sites- but there were effects felt in the form of a few radioactive elements generated in the blast embedding themselves in humans, livestock, the water etc. as long - enduring radioactive pollution. Today, Hiroshima and Nagasaki are up and running- a sign of their beautiful resilience but with the memories of countless victims hanging over them like a prayer.
In contrast, the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant caused more devastating consequences and the place still cannot be entered today. According to an article in National Geographic, the site around the plant may not be habitable for the next 20,000 years. The city of Pripyat nearby - orginally built to house the workers - is now a ghost town. https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/environment/2019/05/chernobyl-disaster-what-happened-and-long-term-impact#:~:text=Though%20many%20trees%20have%20regrown,the%20area%20in%20recent%20years.
We don't want to even think about the consequences of Oppenheimer's creation in case something majorly goes wrong. Whatever I 've listed as radioactive pollution till now- you can expect it to magnify a thousand, hundred thousand times. Climate would change drastically, and the atmosphere polluted long term to wreck havoc on all life. This isn't what we want. We want life to thrive and be peaceful.
Einstein knew, Oppenheimer knew- yet inevitably these two men could be thought of as the reason we now have nuclear weapons . It is hard to think of what might have happened if Einstein hadn't written to Roosevelt. I'm sure the Allies, especially the British, would have twisted America's arm into making the weapons somehow...but still it's an 'if only' situation.
Radioactivity was discovered and then studied by scientists like Marie Curie for the good of the people. Some of the common benefits of radioactivity in the modern world today are tools like imaging, radioisotopes used for diagnosis and treatment and radiation therapy for cancer. Modern X rays and CT scans are safe, accurate and essential. To put it in context, the amount of radiation that we receive from one chest X-ray is around the same as 10 days of natural background radiation we are all exposed to. CT scans equal a few months or years of background radiation. These wonderful imaging tools helps us look inside the body and fix a problem. Iodine isotopes help to diagnose and treat thyroid problems. Isotopes used for diagnoses include those of technetium, thallium, strontium etc. Radiation can kill cancer.
Modern world radioactivity can be a boon, but only if humankind uses it very very cautiously. Fire is good, isn't it disastrous if used wrongly or carelessly? If Oppenheimer was the American Prometheus, then let me echo what the good parents say: "Let's not play with fire, it's dangerous. Be careful".
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