First Advisor

Max Nielsen-Pincus

Date of Award

Spring 6-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Environmental Science and University Honors

Department

Environmental Science and Management

Language

English

Subjects

nuclear energy, risk perception, public trust, cultural narrative, climate change

DOI

10.15760/honors.1709

Abstract

This thesis traces the cultural and emotional roots of nuclear fear in the United States and explores how those inherited anxieties continue to shape public resistance to nuclear energy in the face of a worsening climate crisis. Drawing on personal narrative, risk perception theory, and the history of nuclear discourse - from Hiroshima to Chernobyl to today - the research examines how trust, rather than technology, remains the largest barrier to progress. By analyzing the stories we tell about energy, disaster, control, and overall perceived risk, this work asks what it would take for Americans to imagine nuclear energy not as a symbol of catastrophe, but as a public good. Through a blending of scientific context and cultural reflection, the thesis reframes the conversation around energy, showing that our future power systems will depend as much on rebuilding narrative consent as on engineering innovation.

Rights

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Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/43815

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