1. Fundamentals : What is energy, and what is power? ; Is most energy that people use derived from nuclear energy? ; What is the origin of nuclear energy? ; What is "radioactivity"? ; Why is ionizing radiation a health concern? ; What is radioactive half-life, and how can knowing it help increase a country's security? ; How much more energetic is nuclear energy compared to chemical energy? ; Why has it been so difficult to commercialize nuclear fusion? ; How was nuclear fission discovered? ; What role, if any, did Albert Einstein play in the discovery of nuclear energy? ; What is a fission chain reaction? ; What is uranium, where did it come from, and how was it discovered? ; What is plutonium, how was it discovered, and how hazardous is it? ; Why can't nuclear reactors explode like a nuclear bomb? ; What is the nuclear fuel cycle? ; Why are certain activities in the nuclear fuel cycle called "dual use"? ; What are the various uranium-enrichment methods? ; What are the nuclear-proliferation concerns for uranium enrichment? ; What is the thorium fuel cycle? ; How does a nuclear reactor generate electricity? ; How many people's electricity demands can be supported with one large nuclear reactor? ; What are the different types of nuclear reactors used for electricity generation? ; Why were only a few types of reactor designs chosen for the present fleet of reactors? ; What are the Generation IV reactors, and why are they considered potentially revolutionary? ; What can nuclear reactors do besides generate electricity? -- 2. Energy security and costs of building power plants : What is energy security? ; Is energy independence feasible? ; Have countries ever been shut out of the nuclear-fuel market? ; Are European countries too dependent on Russian energy supplies? ; What role has nuclear energy played in reducing certain countries' dependence on fossil fuels? ; How could nuclear energy further reduce dependence on fossil fuels? ; What countries use commercial nuclear power, and how much electricity do they obtain from it? ; How many more countries are likely to acquire commercial nuclear power plants? ; How do the costs of nuclear plants compare to other types of power plants? ; How can nuclear power plants be made more cost-competitive? ; Why is it difficult for the supply chain to keep up with forecasts of demand for new nuclear plants? ; How many skilled people are required to build and operate nuclear plants? ; Can construction of nuclear power plants keep pace with the increasing demands for electricity? ; Will the world run out of uranium and, if so, when? ; Why have some countries pursued reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel for commercial purposes? ; Why did the United States decide to not pursue reprocessing, and will it revive this practice?
3. Climate change : What is the greenhouse effect? ; What is the difference between global warming and climate change? ; What are the observed and forecasted effects of climate change? ; What can people do to reverse excess global warming? ; Why don't nuclear plants emit greenhouse gases? ; Why does the nuclear fuel cycle emit some greenhouse gases? ; How helpful have nuclear power plants been in preventing more greenhouse gases from being emitted from coal and natural gas plants? ; How many additional nuclear plants would be needed to make a further major reduction in greenhouse gas emissions? ; Have nuclear power plants ever been built as fast as would be needed to make another major reduction in greenhouse gas emissions? ; Will global warming actually reduce the ability to use nuclear power plants to their full capacity? ; Should nuclear power be considered a "clean" energy source for climate-change agreements among nations? ; What are the differing views among environmentalists on nuclear power? -- 4. Proliferation : What is nuclear proliferation? ; Which countries have developed nuclear weapons, and how did they do it? ; How many nuclear weapons do the nuclear-armed countries have? ; How much weapons-usable fissile material is available worldwide, and where is it located? ; Has a country ever completely dismantled or given up its nuclear arsenal? ; What is the nonproliferation regime? ; What is the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty? ; What is the International Atomic Energy Agency, and what role does it play in preventing proliferation? ; What are nuclear safeguards, and how have they evolved? ; Are nuclear safeguards effective? ; What is the Nuclear Suppliers Group? ; Has commercial nuclear power ever been used to make nuclear weapons? ; What can be done to prevent proliferation? ; Can the nuclear fuel cycle be made more proliferation resistant? ; Can terrorists make nuclear weapons? ; What can be done to prevent nuclear terrorism?
5. Safety : What is nuclear safety? ; How safe is safe enough, and what is safety culture? ; What is the defense-in-depth safety concept? ; What are the major types of nuclear accidents? ; How is nuclear safety measured? ; How safe are today's nuclear power plants? ; Should a country choose one plant design instead of multiple designs, and what are the implications of such a choice? ; What is the China syndrome? ; How did the Three Mile Island accident happen and what were the consequences? ; How did the Chernobyl accident happen and what were the consequences? ; What happened to Soviet-designed reactors after the Chernobyl accident? ; How did the nuclear industry form self-policing organizations? ; Can the nuclear industry survive if another major accident occurs? ; How long can nuclear power plants operate? ; How can future nuclear power plants be made safer? ; Can nuclear power expand too fast to keep plants safe? ; How can nuclear facilities be made resistant to natural disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis? ; How did the Fukushima Daiichi accident happen? ; Were there design flaws in the Fukushima Daiichi reactors and were there safety concerns prior to the accident? ; What are the concerns about nuclear safety culture in Japan? ; What are the likely implications for the nuclear industry as a result of the Fukushima Daiichi accident? ; Why did the Fukushima Daiichi accident raise renewed concerns about the use of plutonium in nuclear fuel? -- 6. Physical security : What is nuclear security? ; What is a design-basis threat assessment? ; How are safety and security different? ; Why would someone attack a nuclear power plant or related nuclear facility? ; Who would attack nuclear facilities? ; What are the potential modes of attack or sabotage, and what has been done to protect against them? ; What more can be done to strengthen the security of existing and future facilities? ; What military attacks have there been on nuclear reactors? ; What can countries do to protect their nuclear facilities from military attacks?
7. Radioactive waste management : What are the types of radioactive waste, and how are they generated? ; What is the typical composition of spent nuclear fuel? ; How long does the radioactivity in spent fuel last? ; How hazardous is radioactive waste? ; How much spent nuclear fuel has been produced? ; What are the storage options for dealing with radioactive waste? ; What is the volume of radioactive waste, and how does this compare to other industrial toxic waste? ; How vulnerable are spent fuel pools? ; Does reprocessing reduce the amount of nuclear waste? ; How do nuclear plants and coal plants compare in terms of radioactivity emitted? ; What country is closest to opening a permanent nuclear waste repository? ; How hazardous is the transportation of radioactive waste? ; Why was Yucca Mountain chosen as the permanent repository in the United States, and what will be its fate? ; Will delays in opening a permanent repository for radioactive waste derail continued or expanded use of nuclear power in the United States? -- 8. Sustainable energy : What is meant by a "sustainable energy system"? ; What is a "renewable energy source"? ; Is nuclear energy a renewable energy source? ; Can nuclear energy contribute to developing sustainable energy systems? ; Can renewable energies compete with nuclear and other base-load electrical power sources?
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