Chernobyl

I heard it was brilliant and then found out for myself just how amazing it was and how accurately it captivated the era and the Soviet mindset and system of absolute faith in the apparatus of the state. 

When I reached the end of the second episode an incident resonated with me in a strange way, and I felt the need to share. 

Boris Shcherbina the deputy Chairman of the council of deputies was asked to take the Nuclear Physicist Valery Legasov and fly to the Reactor to assess the damage. On the helicopter ride, the deputy asked the Physicist to explain how a nuclear reactor worked. When the Physicist answered that it would take too long to explain the Chairman bullied him into a very basic explanation. 

When they landed at Chernobyl and were trying to break through the lies and cover-ups, the Director used the highly technical information he just acquired to appear as if he knew all about the reactor core and what had happened. This surprised the specialists at Chernobyl and won their co-operation. 

Over the years I have often found myself in over my head. Looking down the barrel of some incredibly complex technology that only the very best and brightest understood.  Having just read a few words on the topic I often find myself able to make an impression with the specialists, who are surprised at the depth of my understanding. (mostly smoke and mirrors) 

I do however do my best to fill out the gaps as soon as I can but often the first impression is the one that lasts and in that moment I am utterly faking it. 

Having shared this with my peers I had Limz point out the second part of the same scene that I had forgotten. 

When Boris  the Chairman was told that the "broken chunks" on the roof were actually concrete and not graphite, he answered  that he might not be a Nuclear Physicist but he knew concrete as he had worked with it all his life. 

The conversation with a super-specialist often strays to an area where you might actually have the upper hand. 

(compliments of Limz) 

M Parak

Nov 2019