Sonic Deep Map

http://theradius.us/episode48

Sonic Deep Map, released in 2014, by Radio Aktiv, is an hour and a half long sound piece comprised of interviews, spoken, and sonic poetry. It uses direct quotes from residents of Pyhäjoki, Finland, along with abstractions of the negative emotional reaction to the potential threat of a nuclear power plant being placed in their town, to give a voice to further articulate and organize the rejection. An industrial pulse weaves in and out of the human voices as they describe the natural beauty of their seaside town, creating a cyborg landscape to listen in.

“To produce the audio content for Sonic Deep Map, Radio Aktiv conducted interviews with local activists of the organization Pro Hanhikivi, which is led by two mothers — local community members Hanna Halmeenpää and Helena Maijala — who fight every day to stop the proposed power plant; made field recordings in the stunning seaside landscape of the Hanhikivi Cape; did group vocalization exercises — humming and screaming to conjure the rage and sadness that the threat of the power plant proffers; traveled by boat; and documented the sounds made in a Geiger counter building workshop led by Erich Berger and Martin Howes.” 

This reminds me of the rejection the residents of Nevada had (and still have) for the plans for Yucca Mountain. This piece is an example of a way artists can speak out against nuclear power, or for it. The piece is completely biased against nuclear power, but it could also be biased completely for it. I think the reason people choose to have extreme biases, particularly in this issue, is because it’s so complicated to explain the positive and negative aspects that are inherent to it.

This piece is an episode from Radius, which is “an experimental radio broadcast platform based in Chicago, IL, USA.” One of the directors of Radius, Jeff Kolar, came in to speak to one of my classes about his work. He talked about Radius, and mentioned some of the more recent works produced under it, including this. Radius is local, and active. 

http://theradius.us

-Ava Threlkel

Something Funny When Considering Nuclear Weapons

Blame my roommate.
-Connie C.

Nuclear Slide Rule

slide rules that compute everything from dosage to the size of craters left by nuclear bombs. https://www.orau.org/ptp/collection/sliderules/sliderules.htm

More paper 2 resources

More articles on a few topics:

Iran

Talks about Iran's nuclear program, underway this week.  One of the interesting threads here is how these negotiations are seen as a 'proxy' for much bigger ideological and policy issues related to the Middle East.  One of the core terms being negotiated is how many centrifuges Iran is 'allowed' to operate, and this is arguably tied to how quickly they would be able to enrich uranium to bomb-grade levels if they wanted to (so-called 'breakout capacity').  But some have argued that if Iran really went for a bomb, they would do so in secret, so maybe this decision doesn't end up making any difference?  That would be an interesting place to weigh in, if you want to write about this topic.  A few starting articles:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/17/world/middleeast/nuclear-deal-with-iran-runs-into-obstacles-.html
http://www.theguardian.com/world/julian-borger-global-security-blog/2014/nov/19/the-iran-nuclear-talks-too-big-to-fail
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-30078132

CTBT

If you're thinking about this issue, check out this very recent speech by Rose Gottemoeller, our Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security:  http://www.state.gov/t/us/2014/233254.htm

Here's a recent opinion piece from a Washington political blog:  http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/politics/221692-new-senate-must-finish-what-ike-jfk-started

Here's a somewhat older anti-CTBT article that makes some good points:  http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/276530/reconsidering-comprehensive-test-ban-treaty-r-james-woolsey


Feel free to contact me if you could use some help finding reliable sources on other topics!

Hopefull video for fusion from BBC

http://youtu.be/DyB7Ho_W9RE?list=LLsU3Oi0jji1MUZGLyF6LcuQ
Sorry, I don't know why it didn't publish with the link the first time.
-Sappho Finnegan

Starting points for your papers

For the final paper for this class, you'll need to take a stand on a current nuclear weapons issue and back up your position drawing on what you have learned in class.

There are a lot of things going on in the world right now that relate directly to nuclear weapons, and I would like to call your attention to a few of them as starting points.  A number of these articles are from the New York Times, and if you run into the paywall issues, remember that you can get access to these through the library digital resources.

1.  Addressing flaws in the management and maintenance of U.S. Nuclear Weapons.  Here's a New York Times article about this but you can find other, tied to a recent Pentagon study and a press conference today by defense secretary Hagel.

2.  Disintegrating relations with Russia and their impact on nuclear disarmament and security issues.  Lately, we've been at odds with the world's other big nuclear superpower.  This has an impact on our overall nuclear stance (and theirs).  It might modify negotiations over treaties, alter what happens in Iran, or upset ongoing projects to prevent nuclear terrorism.  On this last point, this is a really interesting New York Times article.  

3.  Of course, taking a stand on what should happen with the current talks in Iran would be great.  However, this is unfolding right at the same time you will be writing your papers, so between your first and second drafts, things might substantially change!  Just be prepared!  Here's a CNN article to get started thinking about what's going on politically in the U.S. surrounding this issue.

4.  How is Obama doing on his goals for disarmament?  Do you support the planned expenditures on modernizing our nuclear weapons infrastructure?  Here's an analysis by the New York Times to start thinking about this. 

5.  Hey, Pakistan just tested a nuclear-capable long-range missile... should we be worried about this?

6. Treaties!  Of course, great places to weigh in are on the CTBT, the proposals for the FMCT, or what should follow New START.  I will post more resources on those soon.

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