Exercise 5. Write a short essay summarizing the advantages and disadvantages of nuclear power using the table below. Use the following plan.
1.Introduction (State the problem).
2.Arguments «for».
3.Arguments «against».
4.Conclusion.
Use the following phrases for expressing «for» and against» views:
The good/bad thing(s) is/are…
One advantage/disadvantage is that… On the one hand… on the other hand…
There is one more argument in favor of/against… As far as positives go/As for negatives
Besides, however, in the meantime, finally, eventually
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
Nuclear power costs about the |
Although not much waste is pro- |
same as coal, so it is not expensive |
duced, it is very, very dangerous. |
to make. |
The waste must be sealed up |
Does not produce smoke or car- |
and buried for many years to allow |
bon dioxide, so it does not contribute |
the radioactivity to decay. |
to the greenhouse effect. |
Nuclear power is reliable, but a |
Produces great amounts of en- |
lot of money has to be spent on safe- |
ergy from small amounts of fuel. |
ty, if it goes wrong, a nuclear acci- |
Produces small amounts of waste. |
dent can be a major disaster. |
Nuclear power is reliable. |
|
Reading 6-B
The Problem of Safety
Before reading the passage refer to the list of terms below. They will help you understand the text.
1. |
Routine reactor operation |
a) Нормальная работа реактора |
2. |
Nuclear accident |
b) Ядерная авария |
3. |
Volatile fission products |
c) Летучие продукты деления |
4. |
Fuel pellets |
f) Топливные таблетки |
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5. |
Reactor vessel |
g) Корпус реактора |
6. |
Containment building |
j) Здание защиты |
7. |
Economic damage |
k) Экономический ущерб |
8. |
Reactor explosion |
l) Взрыв реактора |
9. |
Probability of an accident |
m) Вероятность аварии |
10. Consequences of an accident |
j) Последствия аварии |
|
1.Nuclear fission is the only major non-fossil power source the world can rely on for the rest of the century and for some time afterwards. However, many objections are raised against this source of power. The main concern is expressed over the risk of a release of radioactivity either in routine operation or as a result of a nuclear accident.
2.Some concern is expressed over the fact that nuclear reactors in routine operation release radioactivity through out-flowing liquids. However, most modern fission power plants release a very small amount of radioactivity.
3.A more common fear is that a reactor accident would release catastrophic amounts of radioactivity. Such an accident would involve the release of about half of the volatile fission products contained in the reactor. It is a huge amount since an operating reactor contains about 100,000 tons of fission fragments.
4.Fortunately, the probability of such an event is small. First, the nuclear material in the reactor can never explode under any circumstances, because the content of U-235 in it is 3% (a reactor is not a bomb). Second, an accident could occur only if two or more essential
elements in the reactor fail simultaneously. Third, there are at least 3 barriers to a release of radioactivity. They are fuel pellets, a strong reactor vessel and a containment building. The nuclear industry has been very successful in avoiding such accidents. In over 14,500 reactoryears of operation, there have been only three major accidents to nuclear power plants - Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima
5. Anyway, what would be the consequences of a major release of radioactivity? The immediate effects depend on the population density near the reactor and on the wind direction and other weather conditions. Such effects would include:
early fatalities
radiation sickness
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latent cancers
genetic changes
economic damage
psychological effects.
6.However, a nuclear accident would not exactly be the end of the world. It is less serious than most minor wars, and these are unfortunately frequent. Some industrial accidents can be more serious, such as explosions and fires in gasoline storage tanks. Compared with other accident risks that our society routinely accepts, the risk from nuclear reactors is very small.
Exercise 1. The following six sentences (A-F) summarize the six paragraphs of Reading 6-B. Read the sentences and then match them to the paragraphs of Reading 6-B, 1-6.
A.Routine releases are not dangerous because they produce very little radioactivity.
B.The risk from nuclear reactors is less serious compared to other man-made risks.
C.Many objections are raised against nuclear power.
D.The consequences of a major release of radioactivity would include numerous effects.
E.The probability of an accidental release is small.
F.A reactor would release a catastrophic amount of radioactivity in case of an accident.
Exercise 2. In the following sentences the verbs have been omitted. Put in the missing verbs. Use the appropriate verb forms.
1.Many objections ______ against nuclear power.
2.Some concern ______ over the risk of routine releases of radioactivity.
3.Nuclear reactors in routine operation _____ a very small amount of radioactivity.
4.A reactor accident _____ the release of about half of the volatile fission products.
5.Fortunately, the probability of such an event _____.
6.Nuclear reactors ______ to avoid such accidents.
7.Anyway, the consequences of an accident _____ on many factors.
8.The immediate effects _____ early fatalities, radiation sickness and more.
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9. However, a nuclear accident _____ less serious than many industrial accidents.
10.Our society _____ the risk from nuclear reactors.
Exercise 3. Use Reading 6-B to make sure you know the following words and word combinations.
Единственный источник энергии, полагаться на ядерную энергетику, вызывать возражения против, выражать опасения по поводу, работа в штатном режиме, в результате ядерной аварии, влечь за собой выброс осколков деления, летучие продукты деления, вероятность события, содержание урана 235, важные элементы реактора, отказывать одновременно, прочный корпус, непосредственные эффекты, плотность населения, погодные условия, острая лучевая болезнь, частые войны, пожары на нефтехранилищах, по сравнению с промышленными авариями, соглашаться на риск.
Exercise 4. Listen to the MP3 recording of Reading 6-B and answer the questions below.
1.What is the most reliable source of power currently?
2.What concerns are expressed over nuclear power?
3.What happens at nuclear power plants in routine operation?
4.Why are routine releases of radioactivity not dangerous?
5.What is a more common fear?
6.What would a reactor accident involve?
7.Why is the probability of an accidental release of radioactivity small? Give three reasons.
8.What would the consequences of a major release of radioactivity include?
9.What would they depend on?
10.How can the risk from a nuclear accident be compared to other man-made risks?
Do you know?
The safety of a nuclear power plant depends on the operation of its various safety systems, from cooling water to the control rods that slow down or stop the nuclear chain reaction. Such shutdowns are known as “scrams”. A scram is a rapid emergency shutdown of a nuclear reactor. The name comes from the safety control rods that were moved by ropes
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on Fermi's first primitive reactor. To prevent a runaway reaction, a man with an axe (топор) stood ready to literally chop the rope, which would drop the control rods by gravity and stop nuclear fission if a meltdown was going to happen. So scram is an abbreviation meaning “safety control rod axe man”, SCRAM for short. There are no longer axe men at nuclear power plants, but the term remains. Scrams can occur for everything from a loss of coolant to a loss of auxiliary power.
Reading 6-C
Nuclear Accidents that Shook the World
Nuclear power is well known to have a difficult history. Even though it provides us with clean, carbon-free energy, it has revealed its dangerous side with releases of radioactivity and core meltdowns. Here we take a look at five of the most devastating nuclear accidents to date.
Windscale (October 10, 1957)
Britain’s first nuclear reactor, known as Windscale, was built in the late 1940s. It was designed to produce plutonium for the country’s nuclear weapons program. On October 10, 1957, workers conducting
standard maintenance discovered that the reactor’s uranium-filled graphite core had caught fire. Plant operators risked their lives to fight the flames with cooling fans, carbon dioxide and water. The fire finally died out on October 12, but by that time a radioactive cloud was already spreading across the United Kingdom and Europe.
While no evacuation occurred, officials stopped the sale of milk from the affected area for about a month. Scientists estimate that radioactive fallout from the Windscale fire caused some 240 cases of cancer.
Kyshtym (September 29, 1957)
In the years following World War II, the Soviet Union constructed dozens of secret facilities in order to strengthen their nuclear arsenal. One of these, the Mayak nuclear fuel processing plant in the Russian town of Ozyorsk (Озерск), became the site of a major accident. The cooling system in a waste storage tank failed. This caused the radioactive material it contained to overheat and explode. A cloud of deadly particles spread over Ozyorsk and the surrounding region with an area of about some 300 square miles. A week passed before the affected
zone’s 10,000 residents were evacuated; because the plant was shrouded in secrecy, they received no explanation for their resettlement.
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