June 10, 2002

Things I learned from watching Atomic Twister on TBS. Nuclear power plants have a total of four technical staff and one security guard on the weekends. The security guard will die first. Safe operation of a nuclear power plant depends on transformers and generators locating outside next to the parking lot.  A nuclear power plant has one telephone line to the outside. When a problem occurs serve enough to alert the government, don’t bother to immediately shut the reactors down. When you do decide to shut the reactor down, to do so manually involves a lengthy walk through potentially radioactive areas. Having a water tower system in place to feed water to the pools holding radioactive material is not needed. Checking that the diesel generators actually have fuel is not important. Staff in a nuclear power plant turn off backup systems without telling each other. Staff in a nuclear power plant don’t known which switches control power to which systems. Before undertaking a time sensitive operation make sure to give a lengthy apology. Somebody in a movie called Atomic Twister will place a game of Twister. A person will tell a child how their mother died without telling them it was real and not a spooky story. The safety of nuclear plants depends on the ability of Sheriff’s deputies to hijack diesel fuel trucks. 12:37:19 AM