I’m within about 150 miles of Sellafield, but fortunately the wind usually blows from the other direction.
We used to have a very good respirator which was “liberated” from Sellafield, along with some iodine tablets. They have lockers full of both on every corner.
I’m told that in the safety drills there, the workers were advised not to swallow the tablets – too many vomitted into their respirators 😦
Fortunately Ireland didn’t build a nuke.
They closed one of their peat fired stations at Edenderry, and for the next few years, the workers turned up each day, read the paper for 8 hours and went home again, and received their pay packets. They may still be doing it.
Somehow that lack of management attention doesn’t inspire confidence.
Here’s an old one that deserves to become a classic. I’ll post the lyrics first:
Chris Smither Leave The Light On Lyrics
If I were young again, I’d pay attention – To that little-known dimension
The taste of endless time
Just like water – it runs right through our fingers
But the flavor of it lingers – Like a rich, red wine
In those days we were single – we lived them one by one –
Now we hardly see ‘em – they don’t walk – they run
But I got plenty left I’ve set my sight on
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Short break
I’ve never seen my life in such a hurry – But if I start to worry – I get left behind
It’s just a party, but you don’t get invitations – and there’s just one destination
You better be on time
For years we rhymed incouplets – And we sang ‘em two by two
Now we hardly rhyme at all – but here’s a few
And if they hurt there’s bullets left to bite on
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Short break
The only drummer in my head needs inspiration
There’s a lack of syncopation – and it holds me to a line
It’s just hard to leave these cages that we think in
By stages we’re just sink in – to a slow decline
For years we lived in waltz time – we danced three by three
Now it’s hard to dance, but if you stick with me –
We’ve got all we need to spend the night on –
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Break
These races that we’ve run were not for glory – No moral to this story –
We run for peace of mind
But the race we’re running now is never-ending – since space and time are bending, There’s no finish line –
I will live to be a hundred – I was born in ’44 – 37 left, but I ain’t keepin’ score –
I been left for dead before – but I still fight on – Don’t wait up – Leave the light on
I’ll be home soon
I’ve been left for dead before – but I still fight on – Don’t wait up – Leave the light on
I’ll be home soon
More Lyrics
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Leave The Light On by Chris Smither
If I were young again, I’d pay attention – To that little-known dimension
The taste of endless time
Just like water – it runs right through our fingers
But the flavor of it lingers – Like a rich, red wine
In those days we were single – we lived them one by one –
Now we hardly see ‘em – they don’t walk – they run
But I got plenty left I’ve set my sight on
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Short break
I’ve never seen my life in such a hurry – But if I start to worry – I get left behind
It’s just a party, but you don’t get invitations – and there’s just one destination
You better be on time
For years we rhymed incouplets – And we sang ‘em two by two
Now we hardly rhyme at all – but here’s a few
And if they hurt there’s bullets left to bite on
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Short break
The only drummer in my head needs inspiration
There’s a lack of syncopation – and it holds me to a line
It’s just hard to leave these cages that we think in
By stages we’re just sink in – to a slow decline
For years we lived in waltz time – we danced three by three
Now it’s hard to dance, but if you stick with me –
We’ve got all we need to spend the night on –
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Break
These races that we’ve run were not for glory – No moral to this story –
We run for peace of mind
But the race we’re running now is never-ending – since space and time are bending, There’s no finish line –
I will live to be a hundred – I was born in ’44 – 37 left, but I ain’t keepin’ score –
I been left for dead before – but I still fight on – Don’t wait up – Leave the light on
I’ll be home soon
I’ve been left for dead before – but I still fight on – Don’t wait up – Leave the light on
I’ll be home soon
Yep, they had the fire in one of the Windscale bomb reactor’s graphite moderator, and they weren’t too particular with their processes even after that.
The caesium is supposedly held in the salt deficient upland vegetation for years, so perhaps it was the fire in the fifties.
Dounreay also had the stupid disposal shaft which got all sorts of crap dumped down it including contaminated lathes, then a hydrogen explosion from the sodium and potassium coolant that was dumped in there blew hot particles out onto the beaches.
They were the sort of things that if you ingested one, it was certain cancer, and probably a bad burn from sitting on one on the beach.
There was a lot of work done in the late 90s to calculate how long coastal erosion would take to breach the shaft. it wasn’t long!
I’m not too sure. I think it’s usually a one-time dose of about 120-130 mg. It is administered to “flood” the body with soluble and immediately bioavailable iodine. This prevents the uptake of radioactive iodine by the thyroid gland. I think it’s a one-time prophylactic dose given at the time of evacuation from a contaminated area.
I swear, I learn something new every day. I had no idea that some countries use potassium iodate (KIO3) rather than potassium iodide (KI) for prophylaxis following accidental exposure to nuke materials. The local hospital stocked KI in tablets and as solution (SSKI or Saturated Solution of Potassium Iodide). Potassium iodate has chemical properties similar to those of potassium chlorate (KClO3). It is a powerful oxidizing agent. Very finely ground aluminum powder combined with KClO3 produces flash powder which is listed as a high explosive in the USA. I think you can still buy SSKI OTC in US pharmacies. Decades ago it was popular for cough treatment. It reduces the viscosity of respiratory mucous and makes it easier to cough up. But it reportedly tastes horrible and has largely been replaced by other agents.
Even Lugols solution has become difficult to obtain in recent times because it is used in methamphetamine processing.
In this iodine deficient country, a few drops of lugols in water occasionally is a very good practice.
Tasmania also has iodine deficient soils and all bread baked commercially down here has iodine added to it by statute. At home we use iodised salt in all our cooking. But I understand the adult RDI for iodine is about 150 μg, which translates to about a teaspoon over the course of a lifetime.
Ozboy… Iodine is also important because it can affect IQ it is absolutely necessary for brain development, there are places in Europe far from the sea where the locals verged on the cretinous due to lack of sea salt and iodine within it.
Supplemental dietary iodine is always a good idea. You need VERY little of it. Usually iodized salt is sufficient. Potassium iodide for radiation prophylaxis is quite a different story. I haven’t even thought about this in years (and Los Alamos National Lab is less than an hour away). This business in Japan and the predictable over-reaction by a bunch of nit-wits prompted me to review KI again.
Unless you’re in the proximity of the nuke plants in Japan I doubt that you’ll need KI tablets.
Knotted prop Blog 
I’m within about 150 miles of Sellafield, but fortunately the wind usually blows from the other direction.
We used to have a very good respirator which was “liberated” from Sellafield, along with some iodine tablets. They have lockers full of both on every corner.
I’m told that in the safety drills there, the workers were advised not to swallow the tablets – too many vomitted into their respirators 😦
Fortunately Ireland didn’t build a nuke.
They closed one of their peat fired stations at Edenderry, and for the next few years, the workers turned up each day, read the paper for 8 hours and went home again, and received their pay packets. They may still be doing it.
Somehow that lack of management attention doesn’t inspire confidence.
Luton Ian my cousin worked at Sellafield for a while he was a nuclear chemist smart man I think he ended up a desk jockey manager after a while.
Here’s an old one that deserves to become a classic. I’ll post the lyrics first:
Chris Smither Leave The Light On Lyrics
If I were young again, I’d pay attention – To that little-known dimension
The taste of endless time
Just like water – it runs right through our fingers
But the flavor of it lingers – Like a rich, red wine
In those days we were single – we lived them one by one –
Now we hardly see ‘em – they don’t walk – they run
But I got plenty left I’ve set my sight on
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Short break
I’ve never seen my life in such a hurry – But if I start to worry – I get left behind
It’s just a party, but you don’t get invitations – and there’s just one destination
You better be on time
For years we rhymed incouplets – And we sang ‘em two by two
Now we hardly rhyme at all – but here’s a few
And if they hurt there’s bullets left to bite on
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Short break
The only drummer in my head needs inspiration
There’s a lack of syncopation – and it holds me to a line
It’s just hard to leave these cages that we think in
By stages we’re just sink in – to a slow decline
For years we lived in waltz time – we danced three by three
Now it’s hard to dance, but if you stick with me –
We’ve got all we need to spend the night on –
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Break
These races that we’ve run were not for glory – No moral to this story –
We run for peace of mind
But the race we’re running now is never-ending – since space and time are bending, There’s no finish line –
I will live to be a hundred – I was born in ’44 – 37 left, but I ain’t keepin’ score –
I been left for dead before – but I still fight on – Don’t wait up – Leave the light on
I’ll be home soon
I’ve been left for dead before – but I still fight on – Don’t wait up – Leave the light on
I’ll be home soon
More Lyrics
Add this LyricsBox to your homepage or blog.
Leave The Light On by Chris Smither
If I were young again, I’d pay attention – To that little-known dimension
The taste of endless time
Just like water – it runs right through our fingers
But the flavor of it lingers – Like a rich, red wine
In those days we were single – we lived them one by one –
Now we hardly see ‘em – they don’t walk – they run
But I got plenty left I’ve set my sight on
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Short break
I’ve never seen my life in such a hurry – But if I start to worry – I get left behind
It’s just a party, but you don’t get invitations – and there’s just one destination
You better be on time
For years we rhymed incouplets – And we sang ‘em two by two
Now we hardly rhyme at all – but here’s a few
And if they hurt there’s bullets left to bite on
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Short break
The only drummer in my head needs inspiration
There’s a lack of syncopation – and it holds me to a line
It’s just hard to leave these cages that we think in
By stages we’re just sink in – to a slow decline
For years we lived in waltz time – we danced three by three
Now it’s hard to dance, but if you stick with me –
We’ve got all we need to spend the night on –
Don’t wait up – Leave the light on – I’ll be – home – soon
Break
These races that we’ve run were not for glory – No moral to this story –
We run for peace of mind
But the race we’re running now is never-ending – since space and time are bending, There’s no finish line –
I will live to be a hundred – I was born in ’44 – 37 left, but I ain’t keepin’ score –
I been left for dead before – but I still fight on – Don’t wait up – Leave the light on
I’ll be home soon
I’ve been left for dead before – but I still fight on – Don’t wait up – Leave the light on
I’ll be home soon
And here’s the link:(you’ll have to press start)
http://smither.com/music/leave-the-light-on/
I’d better add, do not trust the media or any gubmint about anything nuke.
After Chernobyl, the nuke scientists sent out to farms near Sellafield, were finding very hot silage bales.
Trouble was, the bales had been wrapped in polythene the year before Chernobyl went off.
The nuke scientists will admit that it wasn’t from Chernobyl, if you press them on it, but I’ve never got the true source out of them.
More than likely from releases from Sellafield from before they have had a number of accidental releases.
Yep, they had the fire in one of the Windscale bomb reactor’s graphite moderator, and they weren’t too particular with their processes even after that.
The caesium is supposedly held in the salt deficient upland vegetation for years, so perhaps it was the fire in the fifties.
Dounreay also had the stupid disposal shaft which got all sorts of crap dumped down it including contaminated lathes, then a hydrogen explosion from the sodium and potassium coolant that was dumped in there blew hot particles out onto the beaches.
They were the sort of things that if you ingested one, it was certain cancer, and probably a bad burn from sitting on one on the beach.
There was a lot of work done in the late 90s to calculate how long coastal erosion would take to breach the shaft. it wasn’t long!
Questions For Dr Dave,
Dr Dave,
what is appropriate dose of potassium iodate?
and,
how often does it need to be repeated?
Ian,
I’m not too sure. I think it’s usually a one-time dose of about 120-130 mg. It is administered to “flood” the body with soluble and immediately bioavailable iodine. This prevents the uptake of radioactive iodine by the thyroid gland. I think it’s a one-time prophylactic dose given at the time of evacuation from a contaminated area.
Google potassium iodide protocol.
Luton Ian,
I swear, I learn something new every day. I had no idea that some countries use potassium iodate (KIO3) rather than potassium iodide (KI) for prophylaxis following accidental exposure to nuke materials. The local hospital stocked KI in tablets and as solution (SSKI or Saturated Solution of Potassium Iodide). Potassium iodate has chemical properties similar to those of potassium chlorate (KClO3). It is a powerful oxidizing agent. Very finely ground aluminum powder combined with KClO3 produces flash powder which is listed as a high explosive in the USA. I think you can still buy SSKI OTC in US pharmacies. Decades ago it was popular for cough treatment. It reduces the viscosity of respiratory mucous and makes it easier to cough up. But it reportedly tastes horrible and has largely been replaced by other agents.
I found the following protocol for use of KI following exposure to radioactive contamination:
http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2007/oct2007_report_potassium_iodide_01.htm
Even Lugols solution has become difficult to obtain in recent times because it is used in methamphetamine processing.
In this iodine deficient country, a few drops of lugols in water occasionally is a very good practice.
Tasmania also has iodine deficient soils and all bread baked commercially down here has iodine added to it by statute. At home we use iodised salt in all our cooking. But I understand the adult RDI for iodine is about 150 μg, which translates to about a teaspoon over the course of a lifetime.
Ozboy… Iodine is also important because it can affect IQ it is absolutely necessary for brain development, there are places in Europe far from the sea where the locals verged on the cretinous due to lack of sea salt and iodine within it.
Brussels?
Oz: good one! : )
The effect on IQ is an interesting one.
My Grandfather wanted to go fight in WWI, but was denied the dubious pleasure as a goitre was considered to render him medically unfit for service.
Whether the goitre was due to iodine deficiency (the area is deficient), or a miss diagnosis of something else, we’ll never know.
He was quite bright and spent the war as a draughtsman in the ship yards, so no obvious cretinism.
Thanks for pointing out the iodate-iodide, I hadn’t picked up on it (must be getting deficient).
I’ve put SWMBO’s fancy salt to the back of the cupboard and brought the iodised stuff out again, and I’ll be eating a little more sea fish.
I tried to buy chlorate last year, to kill the weeds in the gravel, seems it is banned in Europe, we’ve got to use glyphosate instead. progress eh?
Pour salt on the weeds or bleach better still use a flame thrower.
Thanks Dr Dave,
The iodized salt has come out of hiding and SWM’s fancy stuff has gone to the back of the cupboard!
Luton Ion,
Supplemental dietary iodine is always a good idea. You need VERY little of it. Usually iodized salt is sufficient. Potassium iodide for radiation prophylaxis is quite a different story. I haven’t even thought about this in years (and Los Alamos National Lab is less than an hour away). This business in Japan and the predictable over-reaction by a bunch of nit-wits prompted me to review KI again.
Unless you’re in the proximity of the nuke plants in Japan I doubt that you’ll need KI tablets.
Sorry, reply went to the top
d’oh!