This 1960s United Nations produced program INTERNATIONAL ZONE looks at the value of using atomic energy for peace and the benefit of mankind. The production of atomic energy begins deep in the core of a nuclear reactor where atoms break each other in a chain reaction, known as fusion (3:29-3:47). The result is energy that can generate electricity, such as at Calder Hall, England (3:58); the Ural Mountains, Russia (4:03); and U.S. shipping ports (4:09). Atomic fuel can extend a ship’s stay at sea to up to a year, as used by a Soviet icebreaker (4:04). The first nuclear-powered U.S. merchant ship, the NS Savannah, is launched (4:31) in the late 1950s. A room full of knobs and dials represent the complexity of running a reactor (4:51-5:18). The International Reactor School teaches students (5:20-5:40). India and Canada jointly build a nuclear reactor at Trombay (5:58). The process of creating radioisotopes is shown (6:05-7:00) to create useful energy from radioactive materials. Highly radioactive isotopes are stored in heavy metal containers (7:01) and handled using master-slave manipulators (7:25-7:46). Radioisotopes can be used to rearrange a material’s structure, measure the thickness of material, and trace materials in plants (8:02-8:18). They can be shipped, such as shown on a Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) plane (8:53).

The use of tracer isotopes is shown in agriculture spraying methods (9:03-10:54). Their use in India has eradicated the screw-worm fly, a pest that killed sheep and cattle. Male flies subjected to radiation become sterile and are released (11:19-12:21).

Radioisotopes were used to change the heredity genes of plants, studied in gamma fields (12:49-13:43). Shown are peanuts, tomatoes, grapes, and wheat. To study isotopes for manufacturing, the Isotope School in Howell, England (14:20) show new applications, such as measuring liquid levels in closed steel tanks (14:41). X-ray machines can examine welds and the erosion of brick molten metal furnace walls (15:25-16:43). They can be used in oil drilling (16:44-17:24), radiating plastic materials to make them more durable (17:25), and killing bacteria to sterilize medical equipment individually or packaged on a conveyer belt (18:55-19:16). Next is their use in medicine. A doctor loads a centrifuge (10:20). Thyroid goiters were treated by drinking radioactive iodine (20:00-21:03). Cancer cells are shown under a microscope actively dividing until radiated (22:03). A teletherapy unit uses gamma rays from the radioactive isotype Cobalt-60 (22:13-22:59). Pituitary glands are treated by directly inserting radioisotopes (23:02-24:00). The Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York is the world’s first atomic reactor designed exclusively for clinical research (24:18).

International research was shared (24:31) in seminars in New Delhi and the Isotope Training School in Tokyo. The International Atomic Energy Agency has traveling laboratory buses to educate people (24:45 -25:10). To further develop atomic energy, atom smashers (25:14-15:44) must be built; also known as cyclotrons, synchrotrons, betatrons, and cosmotrons.

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