1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,450 Three reasons why we should stop using nuclear energy. 2 00:00:03,450 --> 00:00:06,298 One: Nuclear weapons proliferation. 3 00:00:06,298 --> 00:00:10,783 Nuclear technology made a violent entrance onto the world stage. 4 00:00:10,783 --> 00:00:15,052 Just one year after the world’s first-ever nuclear test explosion in 1944, 5 00:00:15,052 --> 00:00:18,470 two large cities were destroyed by just two single bombs. 6 00:00:18,470 --> 00:00:23,504 After that, reactor technology slowly evolved as a means of generating electricity, 7 00:00:23,504 --> 00:00:27,335 but it’s always been intimately connected with nuclear weapons technology. 8 00:00:27,335 --> 00:00:30,123 It’s nearly impossible to develop nuclear weapons 9 00:00:30,123 --> 00:00:32,245 without access to reactor technology. 10 00:00:32,245 --> 00:00:35,390 In fact, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty 11 00:00:35,390 --> 00:00:38,215 serves the purpose of spreading nuclear reactor technology 12 00:00:38,215 --> 00:00:41,495 without spreading nuclear weapons with limited success. 13 00:00:41,495 --> 00:00:44,894 In 40 years, five countries have developed their own weapons 14 00:00:44,894 --> 00:00:46,991 with the help of reactor technology. 15 00:00:46,991 --> 00:00:49,492 The fact of the matter is that it can be very hard 16 00:00:49,492 --> 00:00:52,398 to distinguish a covert nuclear weapons program 17 00:00:52,398 --> 00:00:54,968 from the peaceful use of nuclear energy. 18 00:00:54,968 --> 00:00:59,591 In the 1970s, the big nuclear powers were happily selling peaceful technology 19 00:00:59,591 --> 00:01:03,599 to smaller countries, which then developed weapons of their own. 20 00:01:03,599 --> 00:01:09,154 The road to deadly nuclear weapons is always paved with peaceful reactors. 21 00:01:09,154 --> 00:01:12,008 Two: Nuclear waste and pollution. 22 00:01:12,008 --> 00:01:15,371 Spent nuclear fuel is not only radioactive, 23 00:01:15,371 --> 00:01:19,756 but also contains extremely poisonous chemical elements like plutonium. 24 00:01:19,756 --> 00:01:24,529 It loses its harmfulness only slowly over several tens of thousands of years. 25 00:01:24,529 --> 00:01:27,922 And there is also a process called reprocessing, 26 00:01:27,922 --> 00:01:31,635 which means the extraction of plutonium from spent nuclear fuel. 27 00:01:31,635 --> 00:01:33,537 It can be used for two purposes: 28 00:01:33,537 --> 00:01:36,554 to build nuclear weapons or to use it as new fuel. 29 00:01:36,554 --> 00:01:38,934 But hardly any of it is used as fuel, 30 00:01:38,934 --> 00:01:41,640 because we don’t have the right kind of reactors for that. 31 00:01:41,640 --> 00:01:45,202 A milligram will kill you; a few kilograms make an atomic bomb; 32 00:01:45,202 --> 00:01:49,872 and even an inconspicuous country like Germany literally has tons of the stuff, 33 00:01:49,872 --> 00:01:54,427 just lying around, because reprocessing sounded like a good idea decades ago. 34 00:01:54,427 --> 00:01:56,334 And where will all the waste go? 35 00:01:56,334 --> 00:02:00,162 After dumping it into the ocean was forbidden, we’ve tried to bury it. 36 00:02:00,162 --> 00:02:02,933 But we can’t find a place where it will definitely stay secure 37 00:02:02,933 --> 00:02:04,727 for tens of thousands of years. 38 00:02:04,727 --> 00:02:08,337 Over 30 countries operate nearly 400 reactors, 39 00:02:08,337 --> 00:02:11,394 managing several hundred thousands of tons of nuclear waste 40 00:02:11,394 --> 00:02:14,456 and only one is currently serious about 41 00:02:14,456 --> 00:02:18,621 opening a permanent civilian waste storage: tiny Finland. 42 00:02:18,621 --> 00:02:21,691 Three: Accidents and disasters. 43 00:02:21,691 --> 00:02:26,018 Over 60 years of nuclear power usage, there have been seven major accidents 44 00:02:26,018 --> 00:02:29,528 in reactors or facilities dealing with nuclear waste. 45 00:02:29,528 --> 00:02:31,481 Three of those were mostly contained, 46 00:02:31,481 --> 00:02:36,146 but four of them released significant amounts of radioactivity into the environment. 47 00:02:36,146 --> 00:02:42,925 In 1957, 1987, and 2011, large areas of land in Russia, Ukraine, and Japan 48 00:02:42,925 --> 00:02:47,031 were rendered unfit for human habitation for decades to come. 49 00:02:47,031 --> 00:02:51,494 The number of deaths is highly disputed, but probably lies in the thousands. 50 00:02:51,494 --> 00:02:55,435 These disasters happened with nuclear reactors of very different types, 51 00:02:55,435 --> 00:02:58,799 in very different countries, and several decades apart. 52 00:02:58,799 --> 00:03:01,740 Looking at the numbers, we may as well ask ourselves. 53 00:03:01,740 --> 00:03:07,553 Are 10% of the world’s energy supply worth a devastating disaster every 30 years? 54 00:03:07,553 --> 00:03:13,110 Would 30% be worth another Fukushima or Chernobyl somewhere on Earth every 10 years? 55 00:03:13,110 --> 00:03:18,081 What area would have to be contaminated, so we say "no more"? 56 00:03:18,081 --> 00:03:19,630 Where is the line? 57 00:03:19,630 --> 00:03:22,601 So, should we use nuclear energy? 58 00:03:22,601 --> 00:03:25,118 The risks may outweigh the benefits 59 00:03:25,118 --> 00:03:27,564 and maybe we should stop looking into this direction 60 00:03:27,564 --> 00:03:29,834 and drop this technology for good. 61 00:03:29,834 --> 00:03:32,113 If you want to hear the other side of the argument 62 00:03:32,113 --> 00:03:35,776 or a short introduction to nuclear energy, click here. 63 00:03:35,776 --> 00:03:39,192 Our channel has a new sponsor: Audible.com. 64 00:03:39,192 --> 00:03:42,523 If you use the URL Audible.com/nutshell 65 00:03:42,523 --> 00:03:45,605 you can get a free audiobook and support our channel. 66 00:03:45,605 --> 00:03:48,864 Producing our videos takes a lot of time 67 00:03:48,864 --> 00:03:52,059 and we fill a lot of it by listening to audiobooks. 68 00:03:52,059 --> 00:03:56,266 For a really entertaining book, we recommend “Into Thin Air” by Jon Krakauer. 69 00:03:56,266 --> 00:03:59,963 He’s a great writer, and the story is really absorbing and true. 70 00:03:59,963 --> 00:04:03,866 Go to Audible.com/nutshell to get the book for free. 71 00:04:03,866 --> 00:04:08,611 Thanks a lot to Audible for supporting our channel and to you for watching!