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42 episodes with Plutopia
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In this wide-ranging Plutopia podcast episode, Dr. Neil Baer — television writer, physician, and public health advocate — discusses The Promise and Peril of CRISPR, a book he edited that…
The legendary Sandy Stone returns to the Plutopia podcast this time as we discuss “Girl Island,” an upcoming partially-animated film based on her life and early visions of gender identity.…
This time on the Plutopia podcast, climate scientist Michael Tobis, our man in the Great White North, joins us to talk about U.S.-Canadian relations. As Canadians go to the polls…
Ray Thompson, a revenue and operations executive and managing partner at Buy Build Sell LLC, joined the Plutopia podcast while on a 23,000-mile road trip across the U.S. with his…
On this episode of the Plutopia podcast, singer-songwriter Axon Chamberlain (aka “The Herban Cowboy”) rejoins Plutopians to debut tracks from his newly released CD “Pub Fare,” recorded live in tap…
Austin activist Suzy Shelor joins the Plutopia podcast to discuss a range of pressing issues with the politics of the moment, including Elon Musk's increasing influence over government, Trump's authoritarian…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, British immunologist David Miles discusses his book How Vaccines Work and considers the science of vaccines, viruses, and the societal impact of vaccine…
On this Inauguration Day episode of the Plutopia podcast, we discuss the past, present and future of democracy. We also acknowledge the return of Felonious Trump, the 45th and 47th…
This time on the Plutopia podcast, we turn on our time machine and take you back to 1979. King Crimson guitarist and founder Robert Fripp was touring with his Frippertronics…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, communication coach and author Michelle Gladieux discusses her book Communicate with Courage: Taking Risks to Overcome the Four Hidden Challenges. She highlights the…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, we explore the evolving dynamics of online interaction, contrasting the personal connections fostered by early online communities with the algorithm-driven experiences of modern…
This time on the Plutopia podcast we explore an immigration crisis, not the one you might think, but one that occurred almost 50 years ago. We focus on the 1975…
Dr. Ann-Marie Wilson, a psychologist and senior research advisor with the Orchid Project, joined the Plutopia podcast to discuss her extensive efforts to combat female genital mutilation (FGM). Drawing on…
Our Thanksgiving episode of the Plutopia podcast features Tiffany Lee Brown, a writer and interdisciplinary artist, and Jane Hirshfield, an award-winning poet and essayist. Tiffany is also an astrologer, Tarot…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, Jaye Robinson, a multifaceted professional with experience as an attorney, navy diver, and AI specialist, joins Jon and Scoop to explore the societal…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, writer and cyberculture celebrity R.U. Sirius discusses the evolution of Mondo 2000, a groundbreaking magazine he co-founded that blended tech, art, and psychedelics.…
Sustainability pioneer Gil Friend joins the Plutopia podcast this time. He has been called one of the 10 most influential sustainability voices in America. Gil is the founder, chair, and…
Filmmaker Nadya Wynd recently premiered her new movie “At Her Feet” in Hawaii and select mainland theatres. She joins the Plutopia podcast this time as we explore her creation of…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, Linda Castellani and Tim Powers join Jon to discuss the legendary science fiction author Philip K. Dick. Linda and Tim recount their personal…
Climate scientist Dr. Michael Tobis returns to the Plutopia podcast with an update on the current state of the Earth’s climate. The current state, it appears, is not so good.…
This time, on the Plutopia podcast, blogger and author Susan McCarthy, a noted authority on apologies, helps us perform a verbal autopsy on the worldwide CrowdStrike security meltdown. Unlike most…
David Miles, a British immunologist, joins the Plutopia podcast to discuss vaccines and vaccine hesitancy, sharing insights from his book, How Vaccines Work. The conversation covers the history of vaccine…
Nate Wilcox has many opinions and he is not afraid to use them all. Nate joins the Plutopia podcast this time as we discuss politics, politicians, and other dangerous predators.…
In this episode of the Plutopia Podcast, Jon and Scoop discuss the origin of the name “Plutopia” as well as the organization, and its connection to digital convergence. We also…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, hosts Scoop Sweeney, Wendy Grossman, and Jon Lebkowsky have an open discussion without a guest, considering what’s buzzing at the moment. The conversation…
ACLU Senior Policy Analyst Jay Stanley joins the Plutopia podcast this time. Jay works with the ACLU Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, where he researches, writes, and speaks about technology-related…
Madeline Bocaro describes herself as a passionate fan of rock music. In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, she explains her passion for all things rock and roll. We also…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, hosts Jon Lebkowsky, Wendy Grossman, and Scoop Sweeney discuss with guest Mike Nelson, a senior fellow at Carnegie Asia, the evolution and impact…
This time on the Plutopia podcast, our evil alien overlords, Jon and Scoop, talk about their favorite science fiction films and TV series.
This time on the Plutopia podcast, we investigate Texans’ love affair with high school football. Football culture… Capture the energy of high school football in Texas, and you could power…
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, we discuss the various technologies and sites that comprise the Fediverse. Johannes Ernst and Tom Brown have explored the Fediverse since the early…
Plutopia’s own Jon Lebkowsky was an early adopter of digital technology and the internet. On this episode of the Plutopia podcast, Jon presents a personal history of digital tech, life…
Educator and author Amy Bruckman joins the Plutopia podcast this time. Amy is Regents’ Professor and Senior Associate Chair in the School of Interactive Computing at the Georgia Institute of…
Wagner James Au thinks there may be a metaverse in your future! He joins the Plutopia podcast as we explore the various incarnations of the metaverse, including Second Life and…
Climate activist, former hippie flower salesman and politician Max Nofziger returns to the Plutopia podcast. We discuss Max’s political career in Austin, his environmental activism, his in-progress memoir and much…
Zen Buddhist priest Renshin Bunce joins the Plutopia podcast to discuss Buddhism and Renshin’s life as a priest. Renshin received dharma transmission in 2013. She worked as a hospice chaplain…
In this Plutopia podcast, we’re joined by Joanna Bryson, an academic expert in intelligence, both natural and artificial. In a conversation led by Wendy Grossman, we explore intelligence, both artificial…
Former Austin City Council member and environmental activist Max Nofziger joins the Plutopia podcast. Max explains the evolution of Austin’s motto, “the Live Music Capital of the World,” and the…
This time on the Plutopia podcast, our friend Screamish Joy joins Jon and Scoop, as we discuss all things Texan. In this rebroadcast of our March Second live show, the…
In this, the first Plutopia podcast of 2023, the Plutopian brain trust offers you their postmortem report on the late, and not quite lamented year, 2022. Jon: So the point,…
Science fiction author, activist and journalist Cory Doctorow returns to the Plutopia podcast. We discuss his latest book, Chokepoint Capitalism, and his definition of a chokepoint. We also explore the…
Author, scholar, and translator Pablo Vazquez is our guest this time on the Plutopia podcast. We discuss their conversion from Catholicism to Zoroastrianism, and its influence on other religions. Pablo…
Author, media theorist, and fellow podcaster Douglas Rushkoff joins the Plutopia podcast as we discuss his latest book, Survival of the Richest: Escape Fantasies of the Tech Billionaires. We also…
In this episode we discuss Eclipse Szn, intentions for Sagittarius Szn and our solar return. We also acknowledge and celebrate 1 year of Plutopia
Konsumpcjonizm po radziecku, obcisłe spodnie, bikiniarze i rock and roll.
Dr. Roy Casagranda, Professor of Government at Austin Community College, and wise observer of politics, returns to the Plutopia podcast. Roy is also a political philosopher, aspiring feminist, author, internationalist,…
Bezstronne badania to te, które dają wyniki jakich oczekujemy.
Odwilż? Może trochę. Kontrola? Jak najbardziej!
Sądzicie, że Czarnobylska Strefa Wykluczenia jest jedynym tego typu obszarem? To posłuchajcie.
Problemów było już sporo, ale teraz zaczęły się te natury radiologicznej.
Żadna historia o Rosji nie może obyć się bez... wódki.
Jak sowieci uratowali Richland. I historia bezklasowego społeczeństwa w mieście, którego nie było.
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, AKMA Adam discusses his path to the priesthood, faith, interpretation and belief, doctrine, rock and roll, and postmodern thought. My work is interpreting…
Gułag, więźniowie, strażnicy i kilometry drutu kolczastego - czyli radziecki sposób na "tanie i szybkie" budowanie tajnych obiektów. Oczywiście nie było to ani tanie, ani szybkie, ani też nie udało się zachować tajemnicy.
Stalin, Beria i Kurczatow czyli radziecki projekt bomby atomowej.
Author and futurist Jamais Cascio joins the Plutopia podcast as we explore the future of a world undergoing chaotic change. Selected by Foreign Policy magazine as one of their top…
Gorzała, gruszki i łososie - takie były początki.
This time on the Plutopia podcast, maker, writer and former editorial director of Make Media Gareth Branwyn joins Jon and Scoop for a wide-ranging discussion about makers and making. We…
Dwa miasta na przeciwległych krańcach świata. Nie mogłyby różnić się bardziej. A jednak były do siebie bardzo podobne.
Kate Brown, author of the award-winning Manual for Survival: A Chernobyl Guide to the Future, is a historian of environmental and nuclear history at MIT and the author of Plutopia, which won seven major awards. Here, she shares information that is as timely now as it was when we first spoke, on Monday, April 15,...
In this episode of the Plutopia podcast, Jon and Scoop check in with an obituary for 2021 and its politics. Our dynamic duopoly wax poetic about fascism, the election fraud…
In this week’s Plutopia podcast, Jon and Scoop make a deep dive into death… also Halloween, sex, pagan celebrations, and Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). “Everyone is…
This time, we dig deep into the archives for a flashback to the final episode published prior to our seven-year “sabbatical”. “Miller is as quirky and delightful as ever, treating…
Climate scientist Michael Tobis returns to the Plutopia podcast. He discusses the conflict of fascism vs. internationalism, the right wing co-opting of the anti-vax movement, conservative resistance to climate science,…
This Week’s Featured Interviews: Kate Brown is the author of Manual for Survival: A Chernobyl Guide to the Future. She is an historian of environmental and nuclear history at MIT and the author of Plutopia, which won seven major awards. Her research has been funded by the American Academy in Berlin and by Carnegie and Guggenheim...
Members of the Plutopia team discuss social media (including Clubhouse and Facebook), streaming entertainment, cancel culture, cartoons, gurus, and cults. What is social media for? What is it good for?…
January 14 Plutopia Livestream with guest Tom Jennings! Jon, Scoop and Suzy talk to Tom about some of the history of network communications, as well as about current events. Tom…
Plutopians Jon Lebkowsky and Scoop Sweeney discuss the history of Plutopia, the Chuckwagon riot, protests, COINTELPRO, sensemaking, narrative wars, information overload, filter bubbles, and the Plutopian non-conspiracy! Sign up for… The post Jon and Scoop: History of Plutopia (etc.) appeared first on Plutopia News Network.
Chernobyl Fire – representation of radioactive smoke dispersion over Europefrom the 3+ week wildfire in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone This Week’s Featured Interviews: Kate Brown is the author of Manual for Survival: A Chernobyl Guide to the Future. She is an historian of environmental and nuclear history at MIT and the author of Plutopia, which won...
Today's guest is Kate Brown, a professor of science, technology, and society at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is the author of a new book called “Manual for Survival: A Chernobyl Guide to the Future,” as well as the books “Dispatches from Dystopia” (2015), “Plutopia” (2013), and “A Biography of No Place” (2004). She spoke to Kevin about her research into the April 1986 Chernobyl disaster, her work on the nuclear industry more broadly, and of course her thoughts about the recently aired HBO miniseries, “Chernobyl.”(10:02)Local archives(12:05)Choosing an author's voice(14:19)The West's role in expertise on global nuclear disasters(19:01)The Lifespan Study of the Japanese Bomb Survivors(23:46)Counting the fallout(27:39)Why do others put the death count so much lower?(39:28)HBO's “Chernobyl” miniseriesVisit Professor Brown's faculty page:https://sts-program.mit.edu/people/sts-faculty/kate-brown/Get her latest book:https://www.amazon.com/Manual-Survival-Chernobyl-Guide-Future/dp/0393652513Support this very podcast here:www.patreon.com/kevinrothrockMusic:Ну погоди, episode 14, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncHd3sxpEbo&t=7sОлег Анофриев, Бременские музыканты, “Говорят, мы бяки-буки,” www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-3wC7gkMDQHenrik Lundkvist, “Kalinka on a Balalaika,” www.youtube.com/watch?v=hH5znHQ9QRYSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/kevinrothrock)
Chernobyl radiation impact on a father and son This Week’s Featured Interview: Chernobyl Radiation’s true health impact revealed: A very special interview with Kate Brown, author of Manual for Survival: A Chernobyl Guide to the Future. She is an historian of environmental and nuclear history at MIT and the author of the Plutopia, which won...
Next time on Global Ethics Forum, University of Maryland Baltimore County's Professor Kate Brown details the ethical, social, and health costs of nuclear power since World War II. In this excerpt Brown, author of "Plutopia," and journalist Stephanie Sy discuss the little-known Cold War era nuclear production plants in the Soviet Union and Washington State.
Next time on Global Ethics Forum, University of Maryland Baltimore County's Professor Kate Brown details the ethical, social, and health costs of nuclear power since World War II. In this excerpt Brown, author of "Plutopia," and journalist Stephanie Sy discuss the little-known Cold War era nuclear production plants in the Soviet Union and Washington State.
Chernobyl is considered the greatest nuclear disaster of all time. But over decades America's Hanford plant and Russia's Mayak plant each issued almost four times the amount of radiation as Chernobyl. Historian Kate Brown explains that in the closed atomic cities serving these plutonium plants, "residents gave up their civil and biological rights for consumer rights." How does today's America mirror these segregated plutopias?
Chernobyl is considered the greatest nuclear disaster of all time. But over decades America's Hanford plant and Russia's Mayak plant each issued almost four times the amount of radiation as Chernobyl. Historian Kate Brown explains that in the closed atomic cities serving these plutonium plants, "residents gave up their civil and biological rights for consumer rights." How does today's America mirror these segregated plutopias?
Pluto Mickey Mouse - Plutopia
Pluto Mickey Mouse - Plutopia
Exploring the hidden histories of the American and Soviet "atomic cities" with Kate Brown, author of Plutopia
Kate Brown‘s Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters (Oxford University Press, 2013) is a tale of two atomic cities–one in the US (Richland, Washington) and one in the Soviet Union (Ozersk, Russia)–united by their production of plutonium. Seeking the security they believed could come only from settlements of middle class, nuclear families, the governments of the US and the USSR created plutopias: highly-subsidized communities in hard-to-reach places that provided workers excellent salaries and handsome benefits, like first-class health care and great schools. But a dark bargain was struck in Plutopia. These sites' hermetic isolation was part of a unique social geography that divided the areas in which the plants were situated into nuclear and non-nuclear zones. Outside the healthy confines of Plutopia, plant officials freely polluted, dumping radioactive waste into local rivers and dispersing it into the air. Over a period of four decades, the Hanford and Maiak plutonium plants released an amount of radiation equivalent to four Chernobyls. This is not only a story of plutonium production and the creation of sleek “cities of the future.” It is also a history of intelligence and nuclear security; the environment and public health; and of risk distributed unevenly across lines of race, class, and gender. It is a story about people's willingness to forgo aspects of freedom, like private property or local governance, for a state-sponsored and highly insular form of paternalism, and also about their readiness to trade some kinds of rights–civil and biological–for consumer plenty. It is also a story of how “corporate contractors … privatized … tremendous profits from nuclear weapons production while socializing the risks to health and environment.” Kate Brown's Plutopia is the product of serious archival spadework, oral interviews, and an ethnographer's alertness to the telling or ironic detail. It is equally rich in insight and indignation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Kate Brown‘s Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters (Oxford University Press, 2013) is a tale of two atomic cities–one in the US (Richland, Washington) and one in the Soviet Union (Ozersk, Russia)–united by their production of plutonium. Seeking the security they believed could come only from settlements of middle class, nuclear families, the governments of the US and the USSR created plutopias: highly-subsidized communities in hard-to-reach places that provided workers excellent salaries and handsome benefits, like first-class health care and great schools. But a dark bargain was struck in Plutopia. These sites' hermetic isolation was part of a unique social geography that divided the areas in which the plants were situated into nuclear and non-nuclear zones. Outside the healthy confines of Plutopia, plant officials freely polluted, dumping radioactive waste into local rivers and dispersing it into the air. Over a period of four decades, the Hanford and Maiak plutonium plants released an amount of radiation equivalent to four Chernobyls. This is not only a story of plutonium production and the creation of sleek “cities of the future.” It is also a history of intelligence and nuclear security; the environment and public health; and of risk distributed unevenly across lines of race, class, and gender. It is a story about people's willingness to forgo aspects of freedom, like private property or local governance, for a state-sponsored and highly insular form of paternalism, and also about their readiness to trade some kinds of rights–civil and biological–for consumer plenty. It is also a story of how “corporate contractors … privatized … tremendous profits from nuclear weapons production while socializing the risks to health and environment.” Kate Brown's Plutopia is the product of serious archival spadework, oral interviews, and an ethnographer's alertness to the telling or ironic detail. It is equally rich in insight and indignation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Kate Brown‘s Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters (Oxford University Press, 2013) is a tale of two atomic cities–one in the US (Richland, Washington) and one in the Soviet Union (Ozersk, Russia)–united by their production of plutonium. Seeking the security they believed could come only from settlements of middle class, nuclear families, the governments of the US and the USSR created plutopias: highly-subsidized communities in hard-to-reach places that provided workers excellent salaries and handsome benefits, like first-class health care and great schools. But a dark bargain was struck in Plutopia. These sites’ hermetic isolation was part of a unique social geography that divided the areas in which the plants were situated into nuclear and non-nuclear zones. Outside the healthy confines of Plutopia, plant officials freely polluted, dumping radioactive waste into local rivers and dispersing it into the air. Over a period of four decades, the Hanford and Maiak plutonium plants released an amount of radiation equivalent to four Chernobyls. This is not only a story of plutonium production and the creation of sleek “cities of the future.” It is also a history of intelligence and nuclear security; the environment and public health; and of risk distributed unevenly across lines of race, class, and gender. It is a story about people’s willingness to forgo aspects of freedom, like private property or local governance, for a state-sponsored and highly insular form of paternalism, and also about their readiness to trade some kinds of rights–civil and biological–for consumer plenty. It is also a story of how “corporate contractors … privatized … tremendous profits from nuclear weapons production while socializing the risks to health and environment.” Kate Brown’s Plutopia is the product of serious archival spadework, oral interviews, and an ethnographer’s alertness to the telling or ironic detail. It is equally rich in insight and indignation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Kate Brown‘s Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters (Oxford University Press, 2013) is a tale of two atomic cities–one in the US (Richland, Washington) and one in the Soviet Union (Ozersk, Russia)–united by their production of plutonium. Seeking the security they believed could come only from settlements of middle class, nuclear families, the governments of the US and the USSR created plutopias: highly-subsidized communities in hard-to-reach places that provided workers excellent salaries and handsome benefits, like first-class health care and great schools. But a dark bargain was struck in Plutopia. These sites’ hermetic isolation was part of a unique social geography that divided the areas in which the plants were situated into nuclear and non-nuclear zones. Outside the healthy confines of Plutopia, plant officials freely polluted, dumping radioactive waste into local rivers and dispersing it into the air. Over a period of four decades, the Hanford and Maiak plutonium plants released an amount of radiation equivalent to four Chernobyls. This is not only a story of plutonium production and the creation of sleek “cities of the future.” It is also a history of intelligence and nuclear security; the environment and public health; and of risk distributed unevenly across lines of race, class, and gender. It is a story about people’s willingness to forgo aspects of freedom, like private property or local governance, for a state-sponsored and highly insular form of paternalism, and also about their readiness to trade some kinds of rights–civil and biological–for consumer plenty. It is also a story of how “corporate contractors … privatized … tremendous profits from nuclear weapons production while socializing the risks to health and environment.” Kate Brown’s Plutopia is the product of serious archival spadework, oral interviews, and an ethnographer’s alertness to the telling or ironic detail. It is equally rich in insight and indignation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Kate Brown‘s Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters (Oxford University Press, 2013) is a tale of two atomic cities–one in the US (Richland, Washington) and one in the Soviet Union (Ozersk, Russia)–united by their production of plutonium. Seeking the security they believed could come only from settlements of middle class, nuclear families, the governments of the US and the USSR created plutopias: highly-subsidized communities in hard-to-reach places that provided workers excellent salaries and handsome benefits, like first-class health care and great schools. But a dark bargain was struck in Plutopia. These sites’ hermetic isolation was part of a unique social geography that divided the areas in which the plants were situated into nuclear and non-nuclear zones. Outside the healthy confines of Plutopia, plant officials freely polluted, dumping radioactive waste into local rivers and dispersing it into the air. Over a period of four decades, the Hanford and Maiak plutonium plants released an amount of radiation equivalent to four Chernobyls. This is not only a story of plutonium production and the creation of sleek “cities of the future.” It is also a history of intelligence and nuclear security; the environment and public health; and of risk distributed unevenly across lines of race, class, and gender. It is a story about people’s willingness to forgo aspects of freedom, like private property or local governance, for a state-sponsored and highly insular form of paternalism, and also about their readiness to trade some kinds of rights–civil and biological–for consumer plenty. It is also a story of how “corporate contractors … privatized … tremendous profits from nuclear weapons production while socializing the risks to health and environment.” Kate Brown’s Plutopia is the product of serious archival spadework, oral interviews, and an ethnographer’s alertness to the telling or ironic detail. It is equally rich in insight and indignation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Kate Brown‘s Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters (Oxford University Press, 2013) is a tale of two atomic cities–one in the US (Richland, Washington) and one in the Soviet Union (Ozersk, Russia)–united by their production of plutonium. Seeking the security they believed could come only from settlements of middle class, nuclear families, the governments of the US and the USSR created plutopias: highly-subsidized communities in hard-to-reach places that provided workers excellent salaries and handsome benefits, like first-class health care and great schools. But a dark bargain was struck in Plutopia. These sites' hermetic isolation was part of a unique social geography that divided the areas in which the plants were situated into nuclear and non-nuclear zones. Outside the healthy confines of Plutopia, plant officials freely polluted, dumping radioactive waste into local rivers and dispersing it into the air. Over a period of four decades, the Hanford and Maiak plutonium plants released an amount of radiation equivalent to four Chernobyls. This is not only a story of plutonium production and the creation of sleek “cities of the future.” It is also a history of intelligence and nuclear security; the environment and public health; and of risk distributed unevenly across lines of race, class, and gender. It is a story about people's willingness to forgo aspects of freedom, like private property or local governance, for a state-sponsored and highly insular form of paternalism, and also about their readiness to trade some kinds of rights–civil and biological–for consumer plenty. It is also a story of how “corporate contractors … privatized … tremendous profits from nuclear weapons production while socializing the risks to health and environment.” Kate Brown's Plutopia is the product of serious archival spadework, oral interviews, and an ethnographer's alertness to the telling or ironic detail. It is equally rich in insight and indignation.
Kate Brown‘s Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters (Oxford University Press, 2013) is a tale of two atomic cities–one in the US (Richland, Washington) and one in the Soviet Union (Ozersk, Russia)–united by their production of plutonium. Seeking the security they believed could come... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Kate Brown‘s Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic Cities, and the Great Soviet and American Plutonium Disasters (Oxford University Press, 2013) is a tale of two atomic cities–one in the US (Richland, Washington) and one in the Soviet Union (Ozersk, Russia)–united by their production of plutonium. Seeking the security they believed could come only from settlements of middle class, nuclear families, the governments of the US and the USSR created plutopias: highly-subsidized communities in hard-to-reach places that provided workers excellent salaries and handsome benefits, like first-class health care and great schools. But a dark bargain was struck in Plutopia. These sites’ hermetic isolation was part of a unique social geography that divided the areas in which the plants were situated into nuclear and non-nuclear zones. Outside the healthy confines of Plutopia, plant officials freely polluted, dumping radioactive waste into local rivers and dispersing it into the air. Over a period of four decades, the Hanford and Maiak plutonium plants released an amount of radiation equivalent to four Chernobyls. This is not only a story of plutonium production and the creation of sleek “cities of the future.” It is also a history of intelligence and nuclear security; the environment and public health; and of risk distributed unevenly across lines of race, class, and gender. It is a story about people’s willingness to forgo aspects of freedom, like private property or local governance, for a state-sponsored and highly insular form of paternalism, and also about their readiness to trade some kinds of rights–civil and biological–for consumer plenty. It is also a story of how “corporate contractors … privatized … tremendous profits from nuclear weapons production while socializing the risks to health and environment.” Kate Brown’s Plutopia is the product of serious archival spadework, oral interviews, and an ethnographer’s alertness to the telling or ironic detail. It is equally rich in insight and indignation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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