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I think the most important button ever created is the SCRAM (emergency shutdown) button on a nuclear reactor, they don't fuck around making it look pretty. You

I think the most important button ever created is the SCRAM (emergency shutdown) button on a nuclear reactor, they don't fuck around making it look pretty. You know where the button is and you never ever want a seconds hesitation in getting it pushed. https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7244/7300035260_8e872e201c_b.jpg https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7244/7300035260_8e872e201c_b.j... Probably somewhere close on the list is the MAGNET STOP button on a MRI machine, it destroys the superconducting magnet and vents the incredibly expensive helium into the atmosphere. http://a406.idata.over-blog.com/0/01/25/36/magnetic-field-stop-button-mri.jpg http://a406.idata.over-blog.com/0/01/25/36/magnetic-field-st... No cover, no toggle, no delay, you want them big and red and able to be pressed by someone with two broken wrists.

fabian2k 11y ago
Quenching the magnet has a chance to cause damage, but it doesn't necessarily destroy the magnet. And while liquid helium isn't cheap, filling the dewar once isn't that expensive compared to the MRI itself. You have to contiuously refill liquid helium, which is a significant running cost.
- steckerbrett 11y ago
  I meant it destroys the superconducting-ness rather than the whole magnet. The costs of not having a MRI machine are probably even higher than operating one, though I'm not sure how you'd go about quantifying that.
pistle 11y ago
How does an "emergency" shutdown button get that dirty? That looks heavily used.
- steckerbrett 11y ago
  Other photos of SCRAM buttons show signs of wear too, from my limited knowledge I think a SCRAM is also used in normal operating procedure as a rather extreme "off" button. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scram#/media/File:NS_Savannah_SCRAM_MD1.jpg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scram#/media/File:NS_Savannah_...
- swamp40 11y ago
  The SCRAM button in that photo is from the EBR-1 breeder reactor in Idaho. It got pushed once in 1955 by a supervisor who had to jump over the table to hit it, because the employee in charge of the panel was chatting on the phone with his wife. It was hit too late though, and half the core melted down. (That's particularly bad for breeder reactors, because it can cause a nuclear explosion.) Ironically, the entire chain-of-events was precipitated by a different wrong button being pressed.
arethuza 11y ago
I remember working with a chap who had what he described as "the worst support call ever" - involving an irate engineer who was apparently standing on top of a nuclear reactor and complaining that the monitoring system had crashed. He said it wasn't particularly fair as the company he worked for wasn't responsible for the system having the problem, they just did the display part and made the mistake of displaying their company name rather conspicuously. Try explaining that to an angry man standing on top of a nuclear reactor...

fabian2k 11y ago

Quenching the magnet has a chance to cause damage, but it doesn't necessarily destroy the magnet. And while liquid helium isn't cheap, filling the dewar once isn't that expensive compared to the MRI itself. You have to contiuously refill liquid helium, which is a significant running cost.

steckerbrett 11y ago
I meant it destroys the superconducting-ness rather than the whole magnet. The costs of not having a MRI machine are probably even higher than operating one, though I'm not sure how you'd go about quantifying that.

pistle 11y ago

How does an "emergency" shutdown button get that dirty? That looks heavily used.

steckerbrett 11y ago
Other photos of SCRAM buttons show signs of wear too, from my limited knowledge I think a SCRAM is also used in normal operating procedure as a rather extreme "off" button. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scram#/media/File:NS_Savannah_SCRAM_MD1.jpg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scram#/media/File:NS_Savannah_...
swamp40 11y ago
The SCRAM button in that photo is from the EBR-1 breeder reactor in Idaho. It got pushed once in 1955 by a supervisor who had to jump over the table to hit it, because the employee in charge of the panel was chatting on the phone with his wife. It was hit too late though, and half the core melted down. (That's particularly bad for breeder reactors, because it can cause a nuclear explosion.) Ironically, the entire chain-of-events was precipitated by a different wrong button being pressed.

arethuza 11y ago

I remember working with a chap who had what he described as "the worst support call ever" - involving an irate engineer who was apparently standing on top of a nuclear reactor and complaining that the monitoring system had crashed. He said it wasn't particularly fair as the company he worked for wasn't responsible for the system having the problem, they just did the display part and made the mistake of displaying their company name rather conspicuously. Try explaining that to an angry man standing on top of a nuclear reactor...