radiation | Onelargeprawn

2009 proved a mediocre year for Raven Software who produced X-men Origins: Wolverine and Wolfenstein. They’re back, but this time with a wholly original IP and an altogether different enemy. It’s not the dastardly Germans out to ruin the world, rather the other equally hated nation of Russia. In the 1950s, the mysterious island of Katorga-12 experienced a devastating event known as the “Singularity” and now in 2010, the ever-meddling U.S. government has noticed strange radiation signatures emanating from the island. Players assume the role of Captain Nathaniel Renko, a crack black-ops soldier sent in to investigate the situation. You find out the place was a research station where Cold War scientists were experimenting with E99, a powerful but terrifyingly unstable element only found on the island. It even has the ability to alter time itself, and that plays a major part of the story where strange events result in Captain Renko being sent back and forth in time, his actions in the past have massive consequences in the present. Renko needs to battle soldiers and all manner of mutated life forms to fix what is broken. It’s hardly an original concept and this is further experienced when you explore Katorga-12. Even though it’s themed fit the USSR theme complete with the Cyrillic Иs and Яs and dodgy accents, the moody environments and certain game mechanics share an uncanny familiarity with Bioshock, which is not necessarily a bad thing…

Earlier in July, the 40th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 11 was celebrated. Today, however, another notable but deeply saddening event is remembered.

At approximately 8:15am on August 6th 1945, the U.S. B-29 bomber “Enola Gay” dropped its 4,000 Kg uranium bomb onto the Japanese city of Hiroshima. After freefalling for 57 seconds, the “Little Boy” detonated at an altitude of 580 metres. The calm and sunny Monday morning was shattered by a white light that burned patterns of clothing onto skin and the shadows of bodies onto walls.

The blast wave that followed destroyed almost every building within a three mile radius and the searing heat set off a raging firestorm. With a power of 13 to 16 kilotons, the bomb killed 66,000 people immediately, and by the end of 1945 the death toll was thought to be 140,000.

To mark 64 years since the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Boston.com takes a poignant look at the event. There are 34 pictures in total – see them at The Big Picture.