Hiroshima to Fukushima ― Biohazards of Radiation

Set against a backdrop of the recent disaster at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, "Hiroshima to Fukushima" examines the issue of radiation safety. The author provides important and accurate scientific information about the radioactive substances arising from nuclear power plants and weapons, including the effects of this radiation on living organisms. Currently, humankind is at a crossroads and must decide whether to phase out or increase its reliance on nuclear power as weapons and an energy source. Although a few countries, mostly European, have vowed to abolish nuclear power as an energy source, many other countries are about to increase their nuclear power programs. This book is written from a Japanese perspective and thus provides an alternative to views of Western writers. The author includes rigorous scientific analyses, however maintains a broad scope, which allows the book to be accessible to decision-makers and non-specialists.

Eiichiro Ochiai was born in Tokyo and earned his PhD from the University of Tokyo. He has taught and carried out research in chemistry at universities in Japan, Canada, the USA and Sweden. At the time his area of research, bioinorganic chemistry, was a new field and he has published several books on the subject including “Bioinorganic Chemistry, an Introduction” (Allyn and Bacon, 1977), “Bioinorganic Chemistry, a Survey” (Elsevier, 2008). His other books include a general chemistry book: “Chemicals for Life and Living” (Springer, 2011), and “Life and Metals” (in Japanese, Kenkyu-sha, 1991), “Nuclear Weapons and Nuclear Power Plants” (in Japanese, Rokusai-sha, 2012).