What's happening now?

I'm sure everyone has heard all about the nuclear reactors in Fukushima. I'm also fairly certain that a lot of the information you are hearing may be inaccurate. If you want the full scoop, I would work backwards (by date) on MIT website and find out the scoop. There's a lot of reading, but it might be worth it to ease your mind a bit. I read it and felt better.

Yes, there are some big problems at the reactor in Fukushima. Some of the containment is working very well (reactors 1 and 3). There's still some work to be done (reactors 2 and 4), but overall the information that we are getting in Japan is less hysterical in feeling and more informed. There are some delays in information, but in the end I feel like the government and TEPCO are doing their best to get people safe and keep people informed.

That being said, it doesn't mean that people are listening. The US Embassy given the information available is not asking citizens to evacuate. The French and Germans are. Overall the population of Eastern Japan is doing a great job of dealing with scheduled blackouts and all of that without much problem at all. There were some runs on instant foods (ramen in particular) when the blackouts began, but things are back to normal.

To ease some fears at home and here (Shimon), I'm heading out tomorrow for where Shimon's mom lives. That puts a lot of miles between me and Fukushima (which is already about 300km away) and maybe gives people some peace of mind. To be fair, I could use a rest from the stress that has accompanied the situation. I am not really complaining because I have very little to complain about, but it will let me have a bit of a break and give people at home a little peace of mind as well.

I'll keep everyone updated as I know things. I'd make one more plug for the website I linked to... there's a lot of up to date information from the science guys who know this stuff best. I know CNN is a new leader, but I'm pretty sure they don't have access to nuclear physicists the caliber of those at MIT.

Be safe.