Not only is the tasty and delicious Brazil Nut one of the most nutritious nuts around, it also happens to be the world’s most radioactive food – at least until Uranium Crisps hit the shelves.

A result of the extensive root system of this largest of Amazon Rainforest trees, the Bertholletia excelsa collects and concentrates an unusually high amount of radium from the soil – much of this being stored, as many toxins are, in the fatty meat of the nut. It has been estimated that the Brazil nuts contains up to 1,000 times more radium than the next highest radioactive food.

So high is the level of radiation found in the nut, it has been shown to register “33 percent hotter than the natural radiation level of [a] room.” (Steven Levingston, Very Hot Commodities, 2003) on a standard Geiger counter. Special mention should be made that the opinion of the Historical Instrument Collection (Oak Ridge, TN) differs insofar as they claim that though “radioactivity is not high enough to be detectable with a simple survey instrument, a one to five minute count on the powdered meat of the nut with a pancake GM or ZnS detector connected to a scaler will indicate that the beta and alpha activities are significantly above background.” I will be testing it myself early next week when my new CD V-715 Geiger Counter arrives.

Though the radioactivity of the nut is the highest found in any food, and though there have been virtually no studies of the impact of Brazil nut radiation on the human body, most authorities agree that there is little to no risk of ill-effect from eating the nuts, even in quantity. Despite the prestige of occupying the top radioactive spot, the amount stored and radiated is nevertheless miniscule and simply does not compare to the level of radiation found elsewhere in our daily lives.

In fact, many would be surprised to discover just how radioactive our world is. It’s common knowledge that many early 20th century consumer products made use of radioactive materials. Most notable among them are the luminous paints – Undark and others – that were once used to paint the hands and faces of watches and clocks during the late teens and early 20’s.

Created by the US Radium Corporation – which had a lucrative defense contract at the time – the radioluminescent paints used in their New Jersey factory were responsible for the deaths of many of the female employees. Unaware of the dangers, the female employees contracted to paint watches were encouraged by the corporation to keep the tip of their brushes well pointed by wetting and shaping with their tongue and lips. Many of these girls would also paint their teeth or nails with the radium paint for the novelty of having glowing parts. The corporation was sued by a group of five female employees who, along with the other employees exposed, became known as the Radium Girls. More recently, the US Radium site in Orange, New Jersey has been classified as a Superfund site.

But what many don’t know is that even modern consumer products are often laced with radioactive material. These include smoke detectors, spark plugs, certain 3M tape dispensers, cat litter, low-sodium salt and my favorite – glossy magazines. Certain clays used in glossy magazines – to create a smooth surface on the paper – are radioactive and a truckload of glossy periodicals can trip a radiation detector.

Need we worry? Probably not, and this article isn’t intended to frighten – though it may have unintentionally done so. But it does go to show that, though we may feel safe and completely removed from danger, the very act of living in a modern society brings with it untold dangers, often of the invisible variety. These consumer products may be nothing to worry about, but if you didn’t know about them before let it be a reminder that it’s always better to be informed. A well-rounded education and critical mind will forever remain our most powerful tools and defense.

There is one thing that has become clear from all of this though: the world is more interesting with a Geiger counter.

Many thanks go to Oak Ridge Associated Universities for maintaining such an interesting repository of information.
Bertholletia excelsa, Historical Instrument Collection, Oak Ridge Associated Universities, brazil nuts, cd v-715, civil defense, geiger counter, radioactive, radium, radium girls, superfund, u.s. radium corporation

Temporarily cut-off from the media while traveling from show to show, I didn’t learn until today that French thinker Jean Baudrillard passed away in Paris yesterday at age 77.

Not prone to re-blogging, time nonetheless forces my hand today. I give you the Associated Press article about his death.

From the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy:

French theorist Jean Baudrillard (1929–2007) was one of the foremost intellectual figures of the present age whose work combines philosophy, social theory, and an idiosyncratic cultural metaphysics that reflects on key events of phenomena of the epoch. A sharp critic of contemporary society, culture, and thought, Baudrillard is often seen as a major guru of French postmodern theory, although he can also be read as a thinker who combines social theory and philosophy in original and provocative ways and a writer who has developed his own style and forms of writing.

Ironically enough (for those that know his thought), after hearing the report on NPR while driving, I’ve been unable to find much media coverage of the event.

baudrillard, french philosophy, hyperreality, simulation, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,NPR

On the evening of March 4, 2007 I, undoubtedly along with millions of others, watched a program aired on the Discovery Channel directed by documentary filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici entitled The Lost Tomb of Jesus.

The program explores the question of whether a tomb, known as the Tomb of the Ten Ossuaries, uncovered by construction workers in Jerusalem in 1980 while erecting a new apartment complex, could possibly be the tomb of Jesus of Nazareth and his family.

A truly engaging and compelling production, this film presented a wide range of evidence to support the claim, though it drew no conclusions. Instead, it was very clear to point out that no agreement has been reached – not only through its content but also by disclaimers both before and after the program aired – amongst scholars, scientists and archeologists and encouraged the viewer to apply their own critical faculty while watching and considering the evidence put forth.

Following the program was an hour-long discussion, hosted and moderated by Ted Koppel and featuring Simcha Jacobovici himself as one of several panelists. What ensued seemed more an hour-long attack upon the conclusions that Mr. Jacobovici drew – led by Mr. Koppel as ringmaster, a supposedly unbiased moderator – and criticism of his techniques.

The astonishing reality is that those doing the attacking – and again, this included Koppel – did not seem to understand that Mr. Jacobovici had not drawn any conclusions. He will be the first to tell you, and did so in direct response to a question from Koppel, that he feels strongly that he’s made a compelling case – compelling enough to warrant further investigation.

Simcha Jacobovici is a documentary filmmaker and is exceedingly clear in stating that he is not an archeologist, scientist or theologian. He has done some remarkable work with this latest project, but it amounts to nothing more than having brought questions to the fore and created an environment for debate, something that he posited as one of his goals.

Despite his own personal feelings or beliefs, it seems to me that Mr. Jacobovici has gone to great lengths to make it clear that more work needs to be done – unfortunately Koppel and crew did not want to hear it, and instead reacted to the film as if it were a personal attack upon their own beliefs, which it was not.

Most astonishing is that one of the key objections brought forth by Koppel and the theologians on the panel is that the dramatizations found throughout the film were compelling, powerful and persuasive. Mr. Jacobovici took the charges of compelling and powerful as a compliment, and well he should as a filmmaker, but by no means were they any more persuasive than any other visual imagery, and in fact paled in comparison to some of the glitz and glam persuasion found in modern news casting – something that Koppel himself seems to forget. And lest Koppel try to claim that his own show is stripped down, barebones and presents the raw truth through fact and not persuasion, let me just mention that authority is one of the biggest persuaders, and that is in fact the feel that he often tries to project.

How ironic that the theologians that so adamantly defend the stories of the bible and that most accomplished of storytellers, Jesus of Nazareth, should find such fault with a filmmaker and his own successful telling of tales. In fact, Mr. Jacobovici’s tales are enormously less sinister than biblical parables, for he is only showing us what may have been, rather than attempting to persuade us of what is. My prediction – or is that prophesy – is that Simcha Jacobovici will be the next one crucified for being a powerful communicator.

In the end, this film was intended to spark debate, encourage more research and hopefully inspire researchers to seek the truth through science and historical inquiry. Let us not forget that The Lost Tomb of Jesus is compelling – not concluding. The film presents a case, supplies available evidence and entertains us through good direction along the way. It does not claim to be complete, exhaustive or the last word on the subject. Never does it put forth a conclusion – in fact, it encourages the viewer to seek the answers. Simcha Jacobovici and producer James Cameron have created a wonderful work of documentary filmmaking and I applaud them for their efforts. Mr. Koppel – and all others that would attack this film, its director and producers – stop chasing the investigator and get back to the investigation.

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POSTSCRIPT: I feel particularly blessed (oh what a curious turn of phrase) that I’ve been traveling and isolated from the media surrounding this film and the controversy that it has kicked up. I was able to watch the program with a completely fresh and unbiased mind, but had I read such damning articles such as the one in the Washington Post entitled ‘Lost Tomb of Jesus’ Claim Called a Stunt, and countless other negative articles, I too may have been biased straight out of the gate. Thankfully this was not the case, but I fear that Mr. Koppel may have been swept away by the current of the popular media. I was particularly happy when he made his move to Discovery and have followed his work with pleasure, but found myself for the first time disappointed in him while watching the discussion that he hosted. I can only hope that this is only one slip-up in his otherwise insightful programs.

Many sources claim that the entire archaeological community is in stark disagreement with Jacobovici, but there is yet to be a clear exposition of why. What we need is clear communication and, above all else, further investigation. Perhaps this is all simply a stunt designed to generate money (that’s a big $4 million investment though) – and if it is, I still applaud Jacobovici and Cameron for one hell of a media manipulation – but I maintain that nothing will be accomplished unless we stop attacking the investigators and get back to the investigation.

Ascension, Discovery Channel, Felix Golubev, Israel Antiquities Authority, James Cameron, James Tabor, Jerusalem, Jesus of Nazareth, Mariamne, Mary Magdalene, Resurrection, Ric Esther Bienstock, Simcha Jacobovici, Talpiot, Ted Koppel, The Lost Tomb of Jesus, Tomb of the Ten Ossuaries,Ossuaries, Felix Golubev , Israel Antiquities Authority , Ric Esther Bienstock , Tomb of the Ten Ossuaries,Ossuaries