Why Are We So Afraid of Nuclear?

Uranium (Nuclear Minerals) / Nuclear Power - Economics, Design, & Industry

Date posted: 07/07/14

Dr. Conca suggests that there is little doubt that the words nuclear and radiation engender fear and anxiety in many humans. What is less certain is why. Although we tend to interpret reality through the lens of our present knowledge and awareness, the roots of common societal sentiments are not as obvious as images of mushroom clouds. They are the result of how humans interpret and project fundamental symbols of good and evil, how they incorporate new ideas and new capabilities into their existing lore. Understanding this fear requires understanding how knowledge arises and is passed between generations in the complex system of a society of aware beings, an understanding that is in its infancy and that uses the concept of a meme. A meme can be considered the sentient version of the biological gene. For this discussion, I would like to fuse the scholarly works of Dr. Spencer Weart (The Rise of Nuclear Fear, 2012 Harvard University Press, ISBN 0-674-052331) with that of Professor Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion, 2006 Bantam Press, ISBN 13-978-0618-91824-9) and Professor Daniel Dennett (Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon, 2006 Penguin Group, ISBN 0-670-03472), together with extensive discussions with Dr. Judith Wright (The GeoPolitics of Energy, 2007 BookSurge Publishing, ISBN 1-419-675885). Dawkins originated the idea of memes as sentient traits that can compete and be passed along to subsequent generations as vigorously as physical traits are expressed through biological genes. Subsequently, Dennett discusses memes in the conceptual framework of the evolution of human society, e.g., belief systems, political structures, taboos, mythologies, etc.