On Monday, January 3, 2011, China Central Television announced that scientists and engineers at the China National Nuclear Corporation's No. 404 Factory, located in the Gobi desert in Gansu province, had demonstrated their mastery of nuclear fuel recycling technology that would allow them to improve fuel utilization by a factor of 60 over the current once-through fuel cycle they are using. This means that a resource base that was projected to last between 50-70 years would now have the potential to last 3000-4200 years. For a country full of people who think in terms of millennia, I assume that this was very good news indeed.

The 33rd Carnival of Nuclear Energy Blogs: Year-End Edition is up at Yes Vermont Yankee.  The carnival features blog posts from the leading U.S. nuclear bloggers and is a roundup of featured content from them.

Can renewables rescue us?

Part 2 of this article, which appeared here on December 29, made the point (in part) that the nuclear power industry sequesters its nuclear "waste," while other power producing industries do not. This capturing of waste products matters when calculating the external costs of energy technologies.

Where does waste = external costs?

The often-ignored difference maker

The View from Vermont

Let's talk about food irradiation, which has made some in the general public fearful simply because a form of the word "radiation" is involved. Irradiation is used to destroy harmful bacteria and parasites that might be inadvertently present in some food matter. Irradiation makes the food safer for human consumption and, at low levels, it extends food's shelf life and can be used to control insects.

American Nuclear Society scholarship applications for the 2011-2012 academic year are now online! Since ANS was established in 1954, it has promoted the awareness and understanding of nuclear science and technology (NS&T). To further that mission, ANS administers scholarships each year that support the development and education of those who will research and implement future applications of NS&T.

It's not too late to go nuclear for the holidays. PopAtomic Studios, the non-profit organization that is dedicated to arts-integrated outreach in support of nuclear energy, is raising funds to help complete its 501c3 federal tax exemption application. Make a donation to PopAtomic's cause and receive a nuclear-themed gift, for you or to give to a family member or friend.

The 32nd Carnival of Nuclear Energy Blogs is up at Canadian Energy Issues.  The carnival features blog posts from the leading U.S. nuclear bloggers and is a roundup of featured content from them.

Click here for the National Nuclear Science Week flyer.

The 27th Carnival of Green Business blogs is up at Calfinder's Residential Solar Blog! This week's carnival is a roundup of featured content highlighting news, opinions, and insights on issues of interest to the green business community.

Deal with New Jersey will let it operate for 10 more years without having to build cooling towers

The Georgia Tech Student Section of the American Nuclear Society will host the 2011 ANS Student Conference on April 14-17, 2011, at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta.

In a previous post on the ANS Nuclear Cafe, I discussed how a Clean Energy Standard (CES) that included nuclear energy would be more effective (as well as more fair) than a portfolio standard that includes only "renewable" energy sources. There have been encouraging signs recently that this CES concept is gaining traction in Washington.

With Vermont's governor-elect, Peter Shumlin (D.)-the self-described number one opponent of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant-picking his cabinet and maintaining a high profile, the struggle continues unabated by the plant's proponents who want to keep it from being shut down.

This is the weekly Carnival of Nuclear Energy Bloggers with contributions from the leading pro-nuclear blogs in North America.

National Nuclear Science Week will be held on January 24-28, 2011. The week is designed to recognize the contributions of the nuclear science industry and those who work in it every day.

Wind turbines are now a politically popular way for generating emission-free electricity for the grid. There are now windmills operating in many parts of the United States and more of them are proposed.