So Long, May the Odds Be Ever in Your Favor!

     Bonjour awesome readers and fellow bloggers! The iBloggers are here to give you our sixth and final post. Two months ago, the Urban Guru, headmaster of Blogwarts, gave us our 4th Quarter CEO (Creative Expansive Output). We, Euxine, Arketa, Kurt_Cobain94, pRiNnyThE, and Lionhart, were grouped together to bring you iBlog. In this project, we have to share with the world our expeditions in the diverse world of Science. Since this was our first time blogging, we were excited and anxious at the same time. 

How to Blog

     One weekend, we trooped to Euxine's house to plan our CEO. Finding a name for the blog was probably the most challenging part of this project. The suggested names went from 9Blog to Kurt Cobain is Awesome to other very odd names that are too shameful to divulge. After six long hours of thinking (with a big chunk of time spent on eating and goofing around), we eventually decided on a name - the iBlog. It was only then that we were actually able to work on the first post. We agreed to take turns in writing and improving the entries. We also created a Facebook Secret Group to help in discussing comments, posts, pictures, and layouts. 


     We've discovered that blogging, though it is fun and exciting, is definitely not an easy task. We encountered several problems while doing this project. There were lots of discussions on who would write, comment, edit, and add pictures. Some members grew "eye luggages" staying up until four in the morning just to fix the blog posts. Who would have thought that five short paragraphs would take ten hours to write? Eventually, we got the hang of blogging and we were able to write with a bit more ease. We've discovered the potential of each of our members. Some have the knack for writing, others for campaigning and advertising. Some have skills in designing and arranging the layout, while others provide the comic relief which came in handy when everyone was tense and tired. We also learned that it takes a lot of hard work and team collaboration to create an awesome group blog. 


     Given the chance, we would definitely do this again. Blogging has opened an opportunity for us to share our thoughts and experiences to the whole world. Through this undertaking, we discovered the joy of writing and the thrill of knowing that our entries are being read and appreciated. Even in our young age, we do have something to say. We know we can get better given more time and opportunity to blog. 


     In our opinion, it would be great if this activity could be expanded to cover other subjects such as English, HeKaSi, Filipino, Art, and Sports. We could write about things that interest us like music, films, mythology, current events, fashion, sports and many more. It would improve not only our skill in writing, but also our sense of responsibility when it comes to submitting the posts on time.


     We have to say that this was one of the best CEOs we've ever had and one of the most enjoyable too. The Urban Guru's specific, well-phrased, and concise guidelines surely helped us in writing our posts and comments. However, being novice writers, we had trouble dealing with deadlines.  Nevertheless, we had the best time making iBlog and it was surely a great way to end the school year.


      Hope you all had fun reading this blog as much as we enjoyed writing it! And remember, just because this will be our final post for the Science Blogging Project doesn't mean that we'll stop blogging. Maybe not on this site and maybe it won't be about Science this time, but definitely this won't be the last time you'll hear from us. And with that, the iBloggers are signing off.  

We, the iBloggers are legen- wait for it- dary!

      

    

By Order of the Presidents, Let There be Light!

     Hello readers and fellow bloggers! Welcome to our fifth post. In this post, we'd like to take you on a journey to our conjured up world. The year is still 2012, our country is facing its worst power crisis ever due to sky-rocketing global prices of oil. Now, the Executive Body of the land (yup, we are now governed by a committee of 5, which are, and you guessed it, Presidents Euxine, Lionhart, Arketa, Pimpleface and PrinnyThE) must decide on whether to go nuclear by harnessing power from the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant or not . Come, imagine with us...
                                             
     "Our beloved citizens, our country is in dire need of a dependable source of energy. One that is not controlled by the select few, but one where we can harness almost limitless amount of power at a reasonable price.

Bataan Nuclear Power Plant

     "Some of our advisers are mentioning the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant. Nuclear power, after all is very reliable. It produces amounts of energy that coal can only dream of. In fact, 1 cubic foot of Uranium has the same amount of energy as that of 1.7 million tons of coal, 7.2 million barrels of oil or 32 billion cubic feet of natural gas. That means, no more brownouts!  Not to mention that fuel rods only need to be changed every 3 years. Plus, only 1/3 of the original set of fuel rods need to be replaced, the rest can be recycled. Nuclear energy also produces less pollution (1/3 CO2/ kWatt as compared to coal) than the present sources of energy. Which means that there would be less deaths caused by respiratory cancer."

     "However, Uranium is a non-renewable energy source and is not a local fuel. It is still controlled by a select few namely Kazakhstan, Canada and Australia. It doesn't come cheap too."

     "They may produce less CO2 than fossil fuel but they still pose many threats to people and the environment. Threats from uranium mining, processing, transport and storage of radioactive nuclear wastes, etc. have plagued the more advanced nations of the world. The disposal of highly toxic and radioactive nuclear wastes away from society is super tough since by-products remain radioactive for thousands of years. Small accidents may be catastrophic."

     "Think of the Three Mile Island meltdown in Pennsylvania. A simple mechanical failure led to a release of moderate amounts of radioactive gases and radioactive iodine into the environment including 40,000 gallons of radioactive waste water directly into the Susquehanna River. Think about the Chernobyl explosion in Ukraine where four hundred times more radioactive materials were released than the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. This Chernobyl accident led to almost 1 million pre-mature cancer deaths and had contaminated their rivers and reservoirs. Even the flora and fauna of neighboring countries were found to still be radioactive 25 years after the meltdown."

     "Our fellow citizens, the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant is a mere 8-minute drive to the Pawikan Conservation Center and just a few kilometers aways from human settlement. Imagine what would happen to our people and our environment in case an accident happens at BNPP. We are not discounting the fact that our engineers and scientists are excellent in their field of expertise. But weren't the Americans and the Russians pioneer in the field of nuclear technology as well? In fact, the Russians were already operating nuclear plants for 30 years prior to the Chernobyl incident. Some would argue that with modern technology and increase funding, the BNPP can be operated safely. But, think about the Fukushima Daichii meltdown that rendered the surrounding areas uninhabitable for decades. Wasn't Japan one of the most developed countries with state of the art nuclear technology and highest degree of quality control? Yet, the meltdown in Fukushima shows that no one has complete control over nuclear safety."
   
     "Consider too that the BNPP is located between two volcanoes, Mt. Natib and Mt. Mariveles. It is also suspected to lie on a fault. Imagine what could happen if a magnitude 8 earthquake strikes in that area. Is it really worth the risk?"

Renewable Energy

     "Our dear fellowmen, we think not. We believe that the future of energy lies not in nuclear but on natural, renewable sources. The sun still shines, the wind still blows, the water still flows, and the depth of the earth is still burning. Sure, we may not get as much energy now as what the nuclear plants can provide. But, a little conservation and sacrifice is not such a bad thing. Besides, cutting-edge researches are now being conducted all over the world to improve and perfect the harvesting of renewable energy. Do you know why dear citizens? Because even the developed nations who are using nuclear energy believe in the power and potential of renewable energy."

     "With that, we the Presidents, say NO to the opening of the BNPP."

To B or Not to B(NPP)

     Hola readers and fellow bloggers! The iBloggers are back to talk about another expedition. Right after we went to the Pawikan Conservation Center (PCC) we drove for eight minutes to the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP). Here we learned about nuclear power. But, what is nuclear power?

     Nuclear energy usually means the part of the energy of an atomic nucleus, which can be released by fusion or fission or radioactive decay. Nuclear power is any nuclear technology designed to extract usable energy from atomic nuclei via controlled nuclear reaction. In nuclear power plants, uranium goes through nuclear fission in order to produce nuclear energy.

     Now, what are the advantages of nuclear energy? Well, one advantage is that it produces less pollution. Burning coal creates carbon dioxide (CO2) which causes global warming and the depletion of the ozone layer. Creating nuclear energy on the other hand produces only 1/3 CO2/ kWatt as compared to coal. Uranium, though not really "carbon-free," does produce less pollution than regular fuel. Soft coal has sulfur, and sulfur mixes with rain water which creates acid rain. Coal-fired power plants produce more radiation.

The BNPP

     Another advantage is that nuclear power is one of the safest methods of producing energy. Each year, 10,000 to 50,000 Americans die from respiratory diseases due to the burning of coal, and 300 are killed in mining and transportation accidents. In contrast, no Americans have died or been seriously injured because of a reactor accident or radiation exposure from American nuclear power plants. 


     Also, nuclear power is very reliable. It is impossible to make a high amount of energy from a single coal- fired power plant. Nuclear power plants need little fuel. This means that they are less vulnerable to shortages because of strikes or natural disasters. Did you know that nuclear power plants can sustain operation for two years without taking on a fresh supply of fuel?

      Although there are many advantages, there are also lots of disadvantages. One is that nuclear power is not a sustainable source of energy. The world's supply of Uranium will only last for at least 200 years. Uranium, a non- renewable energy source is also not a local fuel. Most of the world's Uranium mines are found in Kazakhstan, Canada and Australia.

Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

     Another disadvantage is that nuclear power plants take 20 to 30 years to build, yet, it is still impossible to build one that is 100% safe. Devastating events such as those that occurred in the Three Mile Island (1979), Chernobyl (1986) and Fukushima (2011) show that even with strictest quality control, accidents can still happen.

     Accidents involving nuclear power plants are the worst kind since they produce radiation. Massive exposure to radiation can cause immediate death. The other major effects include cancer, radiation sickness and genetic mutation. The worst nuclear disaster was a meltdown in 1986 at the Chernobyl facility in the Ukraine. An explosion and fire ripped apart the casing of the core, releasing large quantities of radioactive isotopes into the atmosphere which spread over much of Western USSR and Europe. Thirty-one people died as an immediate result. According to Chernobyl, a Russian publication, 985,000 premature cancer deaths occurred worldwide between 1986 and 2004 as a result of radioactive contamination from Chernobyl. Plants and animals within 6 km of the nuclear plant also died. Twenty-five years later, animals as far as Germany and Norway still tested positive for radiation from the Chernobyl meltdown. 

Effects of the Chernobyl radiation

     The cleanups for these accidents are also very expensive. The Chernobyl meltdown clean-up involved 500,000 workers and cost an estimated 18 billion rubles (around $600 million), which crippled the Soviet economy. The Three Mile Island cleanup started in August 1979 and officially ended in December 1993, with a total cleanup cost of about $1 billion. A private think tank says the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant could cost Japan up to 250 billion dollars over the next 10 years.

      The disposal of highly toxic and radioactive nuclear wastes can also pose problems. The byproducts of the fissioning of uranium-235 remains radioactive for thousands of years. This requires safe disposal away from society until they lose their significant radiation values. Many underground sites were constructed, only to be filled within months. Storage facilities are not sufficient to store the world’s nuclear waste, which limits the amount of nuclear fuel that can be used per year. Transportation of the waste is risky, since many unknown variables may affect the containment vessels. If one of these vessels were compromised, the results may be deadly.

     Weighing the advantages and disadvantages of using nuclear energy, we think that harnessing energy from nuclear reaction is not the solution to the world's energy needs. Although it is be a very efficient and powerful way of producing energy, it is still dangerous, risky and expensive. The Fukushima accident shows that even the most advanced economy cannot master nuclear safety. We believe that in choosing our energy pathways, we should prioritize our environment and people's health, safety and security.

     We believe that other energy sources should be considered, particularly renewable form of energy. In 2008, the world's energy supply by power source was oil 33.5%, coal 26.8%, gas 20.8% (fossil 81%), renewable (hydro, solar, wind, geothermal power and biofuels) 12.9%, nuclear 5.8% and other 4%. Oil and coal combined represented over 60% of the world energy supply but, renewable energy source was more than that of nuclear energy. In our opinion, renewable energy is the answer to the world's long-term energy needs.

To switch or not to switch?

     Now, let's talk about our trip to the BNPP. We were very curious and excited to get a glimpse of what's inside the controversial BNPP. For most of us, we were most fascinated by the control room which contained over a hundred different buttons that controlled the entire BNPP. Some of our friends were trying to find the main power switch that would turn on this nuclear power plant.


     We listened earnestly as the officials of the National Power Corporation (NPC) talk about the history of the BNPP. According to them, President Corazon Aquino decided not to open the BNPP in 1986  because that was also the same year when the accident at Chernobyl happened. They also lectured us about the advantages and disadvantages of opening the BNPP. BNPP officials claimed that they are very capable of operating the said nuclear power plant and that all they needed were funds and improved facilities. Hmmm...our two cents' worth? Channel the funds and improved facilities instead in harnessing and developing renewable sources of energy.


GO GREEN! And with that, the iBloggers would sign out for now, til next time!