An affect

After handing in my portfolio today based on The Curve of Binding Energy, by John McPhee, I thought that I have heard the last of nuclear bombing and testing for a while. Well I was wrong. The article that I read was Artillery Shrapnel Hits House, Kills Cat that deals with some of the things that we have discussed in previous classes about the book.

In The Curve of Binding Energy, we learn about Ted Taylor and the live that he has while he lives on a compound where nuclear bombs are created. We see how different exponents factor into the testing and making of nuclear weapons. For one of the pieces that I worked on for the portfolio was a proposal about what my final paper would be about. I chose the topic of the affects that nuclear weapons have on both people and the environment that the testing takes place.

In the news article, there was a family that had to place their cat to sleep after a piece of artillery shrapnel went through the family’s roof. The piece ended up in the ten year olds room where her bed is. Luckily the girl was not in the room as she was picked up moments before, but the cat stayed sitting on the bed where they have been before Cassandra left. The family’s house is located about three miles away from a military research area. Based on some research that I have done for the paper, I have found that at this distance from a test of a nuclear weapon site the results is something goes wrong can be deadly. This unfortunate accident proved how badly things could turn out.

Overall, I am glad to hear that the girl was not home and that no one was hurt. I think it is ashame that they had to put their cat to sleep. I am glad that the government is going to look into making the testing safer so that there is no other accidents like this one in the future.