5 ms·

stop calling it fallout.

• jpitz 16y ago
  I'm hard pressed to come up with an alternative. Fallout is fissile byproducts falling to ground from the atmosphere after a "nuclear explosion." While Fukushima did not experience a nuclear explosion, the results are similar, if not vastly safer. The problem I had with the article was that it didn't deal with public health risk until the very end.
  • orenmazor 16y ago
    you can call it radioactive contamination, which is what it is. fallout is a _type_ of radioactive contamination, as well as an excellent dessert survival game. but you're right. its easy to pick the wrong word without thinking. it just bugs me that 'fallout' is the one they go with, because I know its done to get eyeballs.
    • JonnieCache 16y ago
      I know this is pedantic, but the phrase "dessert survival game" is just too good to let go. And now I'm hungry.
      • orenmazor 16y ago
        hahaha. yes! if you make it, I want to get to name at least one dessert.
      • MichaelGG 16y ago
        Artists rendition of dessert survival: http://www.pbfcomics.com/?cid=PBF145-Nunez.jpg http://www.pbfcomics.com/?cid=PBF145-Nunez.jpg
• jamesbritt 16y ago
  Why, and what's the proper term? (And if it's the wrong term, why are researchers at MIT and Cornell calling it "fallout"?)
  • orenmazor 16y ago
    I've really only been following http://mitnse.com http://mitnse.com these days, because so far they've been pure facts. I haven't seen any use of 'fallout' there. links?
    • gamache 16y ago
      That's likely because aerial fallout is as yet a non-issue, and will likely (hopefully!) remain so.
  • deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
• aj700 16y ago
  ...and stop calling nuclear reactors "nukes". (Oh the people who do were conflating the terms WITH THE INTENTION of scaring the stupid?!)