You are looking at the atomical structure of Americium.

The ingredient that enables the detection of smoke in those alarms.

Its a byproduct if you like of the Nuclear Generation.

That includes Nuclear Medicine, Nuclear Physics, Nuclear Power and of course Nuclear Weaponry.

What they all have in common is science, and that’s why its interesting to ponder the origins and outcomes of the discovery.

The quantum world already exists, but its interesting to see what happens when its discovered and explored by various aspects of humanity.

The historic generational aspects of the 20th century ambassadors harbingers of scientific and political change deserve mention.

For whatever reason the world had been obsessed almost religiously to regular and fierce killing to protect and preserve national and notional ideas of social control (democracy) and an economic ideal based on the principle of scarcity, somewhat at odds with other aspects of science emerging spontaneously at the same time.

And then a generation looking back in horror at the severity and rapid speed of our history, and barely any time to rebuild or consider the costs..our freedom had been preserved and we would continue to explore and the train of energy pushing the global emergence…had not stopped…the new technology was here and would be tested and given the results surely or not it would prove a panacea for this human ailment known as ‘war’? Or not?

That could be a plausible question to the answer of why we are still in shock by what our ancestors and family did, but ironically they sleep quietly in their graves unbeknown of all the fuss and shananigans created in this Nuclear Age. Understanding the generational and historical perspective of the issues which effect us today, may reconcile the differences created in these time belts.  What was the intended justification and as unplausible as it seems in your mind could it possibly be valid – for the times?  Is our protest or indifference the product of this generational shift and our forgetting of part of our own genetic memory, pushed away from the facts perhaps by a desire to reach a better truth.

Should we react with horror at the word ‘radioactive’ and ‘isotope’ and should be collapse at the concept of nuclear fission…how should we react to something which is so close to the truth? Can we be trusted with our own knowledge and do we ever have the awareness to appreciate (at the time) the full implications of our passion and work and who did we trust when we asked questions about the nature of the expected outcome from such a fantastic and powerful gadget?

So many questions to ask people about how they felt the after effects of two major wars and then the demonstration of ’special’ weapon, courtesy of the intelligencia of academia, corporatoria, and geo and local political reckoners.

The emergence of science and politics follows a peculiar path and the memory distort effect varies over time creating a resonant political echo not necessarily cognisant of the facts.

Its our ability to explore the past human realities and viewpoints that will create a three dimensional viewpoint of our current being and the aspects of ourselves that mirror history, and how we change old programs as we learn to live without intent.

Is the smoke alarm a modern miracle or a residue of a forgotten age that we forgot to delete from our current reality, whichever way it makes you think.

Its probably not the aspects of radiation and contamination and death that disturbs us ( we created the weapon) it may well be something buried deep which speaks about our uncertainty with technology we seem so familiar and yet at the same time elements within us use it as a matter of contempt.

We are our biggest threat not the weapon or the smoke alarm and this is where we need to analyse the messenger as well as whats been spent.

In the meanwhile sleep well knowing that Americium is flying overhead in anticipation of fire or some other unanticipated event.

OR

Don’t sleep and calculate the debris and junk arising from our modern life and nuclear generation.

Americium (pronounced /?æm??r?si?m/, AM-?-RIS-ee-?m) is a synthetic element that has the symbol Am and atomic number 95. A radioactive metallic element, americium is an actinide that was obtained in 1944 by Glenn T. Seaborg who was bombarding plutonium with neutrons and was the fourth transuranic element to be discovered. It was named for the Americas, by analogy with europium.^[1] Americium is widely used in commercial ionization chamber smoke detectors, as well as in neutron sources and industrial gauges. (Wiki)

Americium was first isolated by Glenn T. Seaborg, Leon O. Morgan, Ralph A. James, and Albert Ghiorso in late 1944 at the wartime Metallurgical Laboratory at the University of Chicago (now known as Argonne National Laboratory). The team created the isotope ²⁴¹Am by subjecting ²³⁹Pu to successive neutron capture reactions in a nuclear reactor. This created ²⁴⁰Pu and then ²⁴¹Pu which in turn decayed into ²⁴¹Am via beta decay.^[10]

Seaborg was granted a patent for “Element 95 and Method of Producing Said Element,” whose unusually terse claim number 1 reads simply, “Element 95.”^[11] The discovery of americium and curium was first announced informally on a children’s quiz show in 1945.^[12]

Smoke Alarms are said to contain 1/5000 of a gram of Americinium….60kg is said to be required to create enough critical mass to create a bomb – calculating the hundreds of millions of smoke detectors all over the world – no doubt enough for a few bombs but instead that radiation is distributed evenly across the globe in a innocuous flashing household appliance. Diabolical waste disposal or clever human ingenuity – you be the judge.

Nasa and Honeywell devised the ionising chamber aadjustable smoke detector to protect the Skylab

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. NASA engineers knew that simple fact when they were designing Skylab in the 1970s. Skylab was the first U.S. space station, and the astronauts would need to know if a fire had started or if noxious gases were loose in the vehicle. Teaming up with Honeywell Corporation, NASA invented the first adjustable smoke detector with different sensitivity levels to prevent false alarms.

You can read about smoke detectors in more detail in How Smoke Detectors Work, but the first one to hit the consumer market is called the ionization smoke detector. That essentially means that it uses a radioactive element called americium-241 to spot smoke or harmful gasses. When clean air particles of oxygen and nitrogen move through smoke detectors, the americium-241 ionizes them, which creates an electrical current. If foreign smoke particles enter the smoke detector, it disrupts that interaction, triggering the alarm.

In an exclusive news poll conducted by the Australian newspaper, ‘The Australian’, readers answer the tough question themselves.

Answer the question yourself and we all come closer to and learn more about the latest rising star on the horizon, the Australian dollar ($AU.) Putting the survey to the test we recorded no change in one heartland of spending and bounty, postcode 3000 Melbourne…your typical male.

And here are the results so far for the nation:

Clearly its good news for almost half Australians and bad news mainly for the other half…

A good chunk clearly see no change but then again when you change the postcode it could all be different:

The Australian’s exclusive poll – Is the rising Australian dollar good or bad for you?

Conclusion left for you.

A few weeks back, the Australian Veterans of the atomic tests launched a class action against the Australian Federal Government – on the basis that at the time of exposing Australian troops to nuclear blasts the Government knew that the exposed troops were placed in danger from internalisation of fission products.

The story so far:

Australian Nuclear Veterans Association’s website until last week was here: users.bigpond.net.au/anva/

This Web Site is maintained by Australian Nuclear Veterans who were involved in nuclear testing. This site has been a constant resource on the net.

Bigpond is owned by Telstra, which used to be the government telecom monopoly.
Australian Federal Law is strong on national security and strong on maintaining security of Telecom services. Ergo:

A claim against the government is lodged and the next thing the organisation lodging the claim is suddenly without a net presence.

There is a long history of such actions against veterans in this country in my opinion. Some years ago a Veteran preparing to participate in a TV interview witnessed the studio go dark as the power was pulled. The interview had to be abandoned as I recall. (Source: Not the ANVA)

The man in charge and who largely maintained the site and its contents is not well. I am told that though the site is down, and material has been lost, some material has been successfully recovered. The telco in my personal opinion are saying they had nothing to do with it.

I believe, and it is my personal opinion this is bull and that the tactic of enforced social isolation is a habitual one used against veterans and in my personal opinion I believe, without concrete proof (I was not present when the orders to take the site down were issued.) that the site is down as a direct result of orders issued under the authority of the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia. Veterans have been harassed by government in this country since the 1950s. It hasnt stopped in my opinion.

The email address of the Australian Nuclear Veterans Association is nucvet@bigpond.net.au

• If anyone out there is interested in sending an email of support to the Australian Nuclear Veterans Association, please do.

• If anyone wishes to ask the Australian government if it had anything to do with taking down the ANVA website, please do.

• If anyone wishes to ask Telstra if it was merely “following orders” in this regard (if it wasn’t it is very incompetent if it was, the Nuremburg Defence is not defence), please do.
  John Faulkner
  Defence.Minister@defence.gov.auSenator the Hon Stephen Conroy
  Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy
  minister@dbcde.gov.au

Signed

Paul Langley

(Ed – Perhaps Telstra can clarify/confirm/deny/help restore connectivity – Ziggy? I know you have left but did you have anything to do with this? )

Featured on the ANVA site:

Here is a 1955 document ( from the downed site) showing lack of concern by Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden about the effects of nuclear Radiation on our troops… ‘ a pity, we cannot help it ‘ ….. lets hope the courts take the matter a little more seriously…..cannot help it!!!!:

A callous disregard for indigenous Australians:

The British tests in Australia failed to recognise the impact of radioactive fallout on indigenous Australians (aborigines). As a result ad hoc management at best was taken to protect aborigines, and there are many reports in the McClelland Royal Commission that demonstrate the callous disregard for the safety and welfare of these people during the tests. In many situations authorities had a callous, and incompetent approach to Aborigines, with little regard for their safety, rights or future well being.

Aborigines living outside of town centers remained predominantly outdoors, with little clothing or footwear, seeking shelter only in times of rain. Groups often traveled between locations, and could cover large distances. They were extremely vulnerable to the effects of fallout onto their bodies, through respiration of particles and dust, fallout onto the land, in water and deposition onto food sources.

In the meanwhile folks visit the archived site, enjoy the olde time grooves and lend whatever support you can muster.

A convenient map of Nuclear Nuclear Explosions since 1945 – a sobering reminder of the nuclear mentality.  Not sure of accuracy in all counts shown of the nuclear tests. A revealing and frank appraisal of the uranium industry downstream channels can be found in : Use of Depleted Uranium Is a Form of Radiologic Warfare… ‘That’s my opinion” says MD, pediatrician and President of the Nuclear Policy Research Institute, Helen Haldicott.

Further Information:

The Law firm below is thankfully acting on behalf of ANVA and so any Australian participants in the Atomic tests can contact Tom GoudKamp (tom@stacksgoudcamp.com.au)  or Ric Johnstone of ANVA (nucvet@bigpond.net.au)

CLASS ACTION BY NUCLEAR VETERANS HEADED BY SYDNEY LEGAL TEAM – NO WIN NO FEE

Maralinga 50 years on: ignoring the lessons of history , Published Friday, 29th September, 2006 - by James Arvanitakis

FAST FIX

If your dream is on our menu we can help you forget.

(Quote from Fast-Fix employee – name withheld – don’t think he registered this 2nd job with ATO)

Current Menu Suggestions:

If you have certain other originally defined political requirements or diet on special information, this menu may not be for you.

While all causes on the menu appeared fresh on publication, some unsettling may have occured between recent issues and contents of packaging nay have spoiled since the last election. Choose from the menu cautiously as some have experienced upsets from seemingly plausable when advertised but on closer ingestion, quite unpalatable information…which then may cause unexpected and expensive delays… to the repair process.  The only alternative many see is to become active and choose from the menu and align, knowing this will for the moment remove that nagging thought that you are still not doing enough to save the planet!

You cant back every winner but here is my picks for who is most likely to save the planet – given enough support ; 

Greens: Fresh and Organic – Great things in store for you and your family, Gunn’s not allowed and not too impressed with Nuclear either…enough to make the party release black balloons last week, hardcore activist party, not for your everyday suit but we are seeing more of them coming out at last.

Wilderness Society – Yeah right -  these people have the finger on the pulse, campaigning to Save something,  a share market scam, a Marathon something like that – radical again, will hurl themselves in front of large trucks to stop a mine if they have to….very switched on crew really, they are the Paddy Pallin of the save the something world…always alert and ready…don’t ask too many questions and it will be easy to digest. Certainly don’t ask any of their street campaigners any questions that arn’t already shown in their quick cheat environmental issues sheets!

Getup : Apologies, Getup was a bit on the nose this morning so sadly has been taken off the menu while the board is re-shuffled. In the meanwhile any corporate donations will be accepted by Rosettamoon – thankyou!

ACF : As fired up as ever and still has a sting in it’s tail without the Oil Rockers radical influence. In fact insiders say the ACF is more radical then ever and gearing up to close every toxic mine it has ever rattled on about, and its planning new campaigns as well, so if you are a little less radical but nonetheless cashed up and guilt ridden, this could be the soul replenishing morsel for you.

Save the Children : If we save the Children we are saving the future yeah – that is the arseholes that made the children in the first place, the point is that children need to be saved as well so give generously when you see them on the street and you are bound to feel much better – save the children just issued a press release – to reduce overhead’s they are requesting we start being nice to all children and therefore have requested that you stop sending donations – The Wilderness Society have kindly offered to purchase all stationary and signs which will be altered by retarded children to read “Save the Wilderness”.

Greenpeace : Is like way cool but out of date so if you haven’t canceled  your membership, don’t like brag about it at a party or work, as they are definitely of the eighties and not so way cool as the Sea Shepherds which is way cooler believe me so much so that they didn’t meet the criteria to make it on the Fast Fix menu.

EarthDay : For the Kids they will love turning the lights off once a year and see how much better they feel and see how it all goes dark and it will stop Climate Change and Poverty in third world countries, and you can reduce your footprint even smaller, yes earthday may be the one’s that save the day, so they say.

ANTAR : Be really cool and be a white dude help the dark brother with all those woes from mining and the other bad stuff that just seems to happen every time an empire expands its wings.

More of course is always on the menu but then you are probably quite full ( or even sick) , feel free to return next time you need invest a little health and vigour into the well being of your conscience.

Another Disturbing  Announcement From Martin Ferguson:

 The Announcement:

‘MINISTER WELCOMES GORGON GAS DEAL’

The Minister for Resources and Energy, Martin Ferguson AM MP, has welcomed Australia’s largest long-term LNG contract with India, following yesterday’s signing of a Sales and Purchase Agreement between ExxonMobil and Petronet LNG.

The Government warmly welcomes this development, which represents the dawning of a new trading relationship for Australia and brings the Gorgon gas development one step closer to fruition…The Government hopes this new partnership with India will grow to be as significant as our LNG export trade with our friends in East and North East Asia…I would particularly like to congratulate Exxon Mobil Australia on this very significant deal and acknowledge the company’s long and important history of investment in Australia…We are a country built on foreign investment, and investments which develop our natural resources to the benefit of all Australians will continue to be welcomed by the Australian Government.

The New York Times 2007:

The partners have already agreed to sell Gorgon’s 10 million tons per year of gas output to customers in Japan, China and India, with half of those deals agreed last month in a move that appeared likely to ensure the project’s progress. The Gorgon gas fields, first discovered in 1981, have certified gas reserves of over 1.1 trillion cubic meters, or 40 trillion cubic feet, enough to power a city of one million people for 800 years.

On this basis and old figures, enough gas to cleanly supply all Australian Cities big and small for the next forty years has just been snared and grabbed by a 100% foreign consortium, to be supplied in a completely non greenhouse friendly manner to a foreign country. Given that Australia has one of the most well developed natural gas distribution networks in the world, this raises a plethora of questions.

Firstly, why is the worlds biggest per capita green house gas polluter (us) embarking on an export program which is in denial of a local solution and adding further to the global wastage of energy through the absurd oil tanker transport of LNG to countries abroad? Secondly, why is the most significant green party in Australia, the Australian Greens, not at least raising its own ire and public awareness about the absurd rhetoric of ETS in relation to this and other perverse energy policies announced on a regular basis by this sinking vessel referred to as the ‘Australian’ government?

It would appear that the entire process upon which a simple and intelligent democracy is based has collapsed in Australia, and for anyone in doubt this announcement is surely ample confirmation. The issue is that Chevron and the consortium are able to profit immensely by this project, but at no point has there been an examination of the energy costs associated with liquefying and transporting natural gas for sale offshore, nor has attention been drawn to the obvious opportunities and policies of lacking locally in relation to natural gas.  This type of project and the other LNG projects approved by Martin Ferguson renders the ‘Emissions Trading Scheme’ and ‘Clean Coal’ as pure folly, and its an insult to every Australian that has been mislead by the Rudd governments barrage of Climate Change rhetoric. The simple fact is that Australia has the gas reserves and infrastructure to produce the in total nations energy requirements and operate transport from natural gas. The government is clearly co-operated and fingered by a Greenhouse Mafia that is making a mockery of every Climate Change related utterance coming from the Ministers and the Prime Ministers Mouths.

The final question is the most perplexing. If Australia has the technology, infrastructure and energy reserves to be a grade A Greenhouse friendly Climate Change Graduate, why do our politicians mislead the public so and insist that we sit continually in dunce corner?  Why has the ALP or the Coalition for that matter, never developed a national energy policy on either stationary  energy or transport grounds? The evidence of the past three decades points to a monoculture continuum of perverse and wasteful policies with the perhaps desired effect of running supply ship Australia into the ground.

It has become very clear that all Australian politicians have become the well rewarded mouthpieces for global enterprise intent on supplying the well advertised and promoted gluttonous and consumer world.  The sobering reality is the roles of opposition parties and minority ‘green’ have degenerated to such a degree that any chance of concept of sustainability now becomes one of individual choice and not the one announced in terms of the biggest ‘trade deal’ which in fact represents the biggest plan to waste energy and produce greenhouse gases, sanctioned and supported by our government, rules out any credibility of positive intentions of chorus of politicians all echoing the same problem of climate change, while failing to address micro reform of energy and industry which admittedly has been absent from party platforms. That’s the current game of global energy exchange that Australia is playing, and although it doesn’t make sense in terms of sustainability, security, economics or logic, when such a ridiculous deal is arranged, the whole world will line up in this wholesale export of energy around the world while most media including the ABC will report the sideshow sell-off without reflecting deeply or at all into the environmental and economic implications for the nation. Australia in a sense is being robbed and now we get to watch Peter Garrett justify this in terms of natural gas and carbon burying being an opportunity for Australia to clean the world of climate change, while Chevron , Exxon-Mobile and Shell, continue ( business as usual) to reap the benefits of intensive energy extraction, processing and transport – this is the current state of sovereign ownership of assets which is set to intensify energy wastage between our trading partners, but in reality is compounding the problems associated with a liquid fossil fuels lobby which continues post Howard to operate the cabinet and direct debate in the parliament.

In relation to these basic economics, a pertinent quote from Ollie Clark , Natural Gas Vehicle Association:

The thing that strikes me as being rather quaint, to put it mildly, is that we pay anywhere from about $8 billion to $25 billion to import the oil and we get a paltry $4 billion for the gas that we sell to overseas countries. It seems odd to me, especially given gas is a superior fuel for many, many purposes including the use in motor vehicles. ABC 7.30 Report : (Natural Gas: The Future of Fuel? )

Recent Media:

First Australia-India LNG deal reached,  August 11, 2009, SMH 

I am very pleased to finalise this long-term agreement for the provision of LNG to our new terminal in Kochi, supporting more than $US2 billion ($A2.4 billion) of related energy infrastructure investment in India.  Energy consumers in Kerala State will now have access to a clean-burning base load fuel, which will enhance the economic development of the region and maintain the pristine ecology of Kerala. (Petronet MD Prosad Dasgupta )

Earlier on Monday, the West Australian government gave final environmental approval for Gorgon, the nation’s biggest resource project.WA Environment Minister Donna Faragher announced the latest step in the process towards development of the expanded $50 billion Chevron-led Gorgon LNG project on Barrow Island.

The project’s environmental approval process is now in the hands of federal Environment, Heritage and Arts Minister Peter Garrett, who visited Barrow Island last week.

Gorgon gas development on Barrow Island approved – Perth Now – August 10. 2009.

Barrow Island ecology threatened further:

In April, EPA conditionally approved Chevron’s proposal to revise and expand the Gorgon LNG development on the Barrow Island nature reserve. Despite its conditional approval, EPA Chairman Paul Vogel said the agency still opposed the location of industry on Barrow Island, a Class A nature reserve. Vogel stated,

“Given the very high environmental and unique conservation values of Barrow Island, which are reflected in its status as a class A Nature Reserve, it is the view of the EPA that, as a matter of principle, industry should not be located on a nature reserve and specifically not on Barrow Island.” ( Emerging Energy News)

$50b Gorgon gas project gets green light  ABC, April 30 , 2009

The general manager of the Gorgon Gas Project, Colin Beckett, has refuted claims by Greens and others the project will damage the fragile environment of Barrow Island and surrounds.

Despite Barrow Island being a gazetted A Class reserve for more than a century, there has been oil facilities there since the mid 60s

Mr Beckett says that history shows industry can handle the environmental issues around oil and gas.

The proof is in the pudding, …we have been there for 40 years and this is still a superb ecosystem…we have protected both the flora and fauna on Barrow Island during that time. I think it would be fair to say that if it wasn’t for Chevron’s stewardship of Barrow Island it would already have quarantine breaches.

See Also:  LNG – Killing Us Softly With Exports?

More Recent Media:

The rush for compensation The Australian,OPINION: Mike Steketee | August 22, 2009

Name Origin – ‘Gorgon’

In Greek mythology, the Gorgon (plural: Gorgons) (Greek: ?????? or ????? Gorgon/Gorgo, “terrible” or, according to some^[who?], “loud-roaring”) was a vicious monster with sharp fangs. She was a protective deity from early religious concepts. Her power was so strong that anyone who dared to look upon her would be turned to stone. Therefore, such images were put upon items from temples to wine kraters for protection. The Gorgon wore a belt of serpents that intertwined as a clasp, confronting each other.

In late mythology, it was said that there were three Gorgons and that one of them, Medusa, had hair of living, venomous snakes that she received as a punishment from Athena, an image that has become especially famous. However, the Gorgon exists in the earliest of written records of Ancient Greek religious beliefs such as those of Homer.

The Gorgon held the primary location at the pediment of the temple at Corfu. It is the oldest stone pediment in Greece and is dated to c. 600 BC.

From wikipedia

The perspective from the Clean state of California:

LNG and Clean Energy Laws are on a Collision Course in California

By Rory Cox
California Program Director
Pacific Environment www.pacificenvironment.org