Science Vs

Nine countries, including North Korea, have nuclear weapons. What would happen if a nuclear bomb was dropped-- say, in New York City? We talk to nuclear historian Dr. Alex Wellerstein, nuclear engineer Dr. Tetsuji Imanaka, and epidemiologist Dr. Eric Grant. UPDATE 04/27: We've adjusted this episode to correct the elevated risk of cancer in survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear bombs. If you survived the atomic bombs your risk of cancer is 10% higher than someone who is the same age as you. Check out our full transcript here: http://bit.ly/2salOAK Selected readings: Alex’s nuclear weapon simulation website Tetsuji’s paper calculating the radiation exposure of Hiroshima survivors This review of the Life Span Study of atomic bomb survivors This sobering report on nuclear winter To find a list of our sponsors and show-related promo codes, go to gimlet.fm/sponsors This episode has been produced by Heather Rogers, Wendy Zukerman, our senior producer Kaitlyn Sawrey, Rose Rimler, and Shruti Ravindran, with