The September issue of Wired (still, just about, on the newsstands in the UK), has an article on nuclear power in China. It won't appeal to ideological environmentalists who want us to use less energy. Then again, Wired isn't noted for an anti-technology line. The article discusses how China is going to cope with increasing demands for electricity and improve air quality at the same time. "What's an energy-starved autocracy to do? Go nuclear."

The article talks about how pebble-bed nuclear reactors are going to take over from more traditional and how these reactors have the nice side-effect of helping to extract hydrogen from water. The article doesn't mince words when saying that: "To power a billion cars, there's no practical alternative to hydrogen."

But what about safety? Wired says: "Suppose a coolant pipe blows, a pressure valve sticks, terrorists knock the top off the reactor vessel, an operator goes postal and yanks the control rods that regulate the nuclear chain reaction - no radioactive nightmare. This reactor is meltdown-proof."

It's an interesting article, well worth reading in full.