Rachel Carson
50 years after the publication of SILENT SPRING
Exploring the Legacy
of
Nuclear Testing
FILM: Radio Bikini
(56 min, Robert Stone Productions, 1988)
Moderator - John Reilly, Ph.D.
Monday Sept. 24th
Whitaker Hall 129
5:00-8:00pm
Description: Nominated for an Academy Award(s) as well as the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, Radio Bikini is a sensational, eye-opening film that gets to the bottom of one of the most terrifying tragedies of the nuclear age. In the tradition of THE ATOMIC CAFE, RADIO BIKINI transports us back to The Cold War, a terrifying time when the threat of nuclear war was part of daily life. Told in a hauntingly perceptive tone, this critically-acclaimed film is one of the most powerful and insightful films ever made on the overwhelming destructiveness of nuclear power. By using extraordinary and rarely seen archival footage, much of which was once kept classified by the U.S. government, director Robert Stone brings to light the largely untold story of Bikini Atoll. A peaceful and tropical island located in the Pacific, it was the unwitting sight of a series of high-profile atomic bomb tests conducted by the US in 1946.
Topic(s) to discuss: How do we deal with the past and future nuclear testing? Extension: How do we deal with fallout from nuclear plant mishaps?
Bio: John Reilly is an associate professor of chemistry in the department of Chemistry and Mathematics. He graduated with his Ph.D. in chemical engineering from The Johns Hopkins University. He worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland and also at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia before joining the research technology division of Colgate-Palmolive Co. His research focuses on the properties of a skin enzyme that plays an important role in maintaining acidity of skin.
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