back to article Radioactive hybrid terror pigs have made themselves a home in Fukushima's exclusion zone

Scientists have uncovered a new threat to humanity emerging in the area surrounding the former Fukushima nuclear power plant: indestructible radioactive hybrid terror pigs. The details emerged from studies of how radiation from the partial nuclear meltdown at the plant in 2011 had affected local wildlife, which has in many …

  1. Neil Barnes Silver badge

    Three words:

    Go Go Godzilla!

    1. redpawn

      Re: Three words:

      Man-Bear-Pigs are just a myth in Europe.

      1. Fred Daggy Silver badge

        Re: Three words:

        Fairly certain Human-Bear-Pigs are a real thing. Photographic evidence is available. Last one I saw was being hunted in the wee small hours, (ok, chatted up and felt up), by a mate after a suitably large amounts of beer. Pre-Covid.

        Not sure if he mistook her for a curry or what. But he'll never live that one down.

    2. Phil O'Sophical Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: Three words:

      Hogzilla, surely?

      1. zuckzuckgo Silver badge

        Re: Three words:

        "out of character for the Fukushima boar to combine into one huge, terrifying unit"

        But if they do: The Boarg?

    3. macjules

      Re: Three words:

      Wait until they start growing

      1. Korev Silver badge
        Coat

        Re: Three words:

        Just wait until they boar some holes and wait underground for their prey...

      2. Mark 85

        Re: Three words:

        Wait until they start growing

        I'm waiting for them to take over SpaceX.... Pig in Spaaaaaace!!!!

    4. BOFH in Training
      Trollface

      Re: Three words:

      Boarzilla?

    5. MyffyW Silver badge

      Re: Three words:

      Fukushima Terror Pigs!

      Right on, El Reg!

      Still giggling even now....

    6. Champ

      Re: Three words:

      > Go Go Godzilla!

      Oh no, there goes Tokyo!

    7. Daniel von Asmuth

      Re: Three words:

      The last time Japan threatened to conquer the planet, it took our foreboars two nuclear bombs to stop them, but these swine are radiation-resistant. What effect does a wide-bore gun have on them?

  2. fedoraman

    I, for one,

    welcome our new porcine overlords!

    1. vistisen

      Re: I, for one,

      Have they started walking on two legs yet?

      1. Shooter

        Re: I, for one,

        Have you seen Washington, D.C.?

        1. Michael Habel

          Re: I, for one,

          In all fairnes I think the Pigs would have a more functional brain the those in the current administration.

  3. Paul Crawford Silver badge
    Gimp

    To any visitors

    Squeal like a piggy! Squee! Squee!

    Closest to 'deliverance' I could see =>

  4. fedoraman

    With apologies to HG-

    No one would have believed in the last first years of the nineteenth twenty-first century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinised and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinise the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water.

    Yet across the gulf of space Sea of Japan, minds that are to our minds as ours are to those of the beasts that perish, intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic, regarded this earth with envious eyes, and slowly and surely drew their plans against us.

    1. Stumpy

      Re: With apologies to HG-

      I still think Jeff Wayne put it better.

      1. Anonymous South African Coward Bronze badge

        Re: With apologies to HG-

        My fave to-listen series when on the long road.

      2. Shades

        Re: With apologies to HG-

        OOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

      3. Frumious Bandersnatch

        Re: With apologies to HG-

        I still think Jeff Wayne put it better.

        Oooh LA!

  5. PhilipN Silver badge

    “Re-wilding”

    I do not know who invents these new words but this one is particularly horrible.

    Apart from anything else as far as Mother Nature is concerned the dehumanised area is perfectly orderly. Not wild at all.

    1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

      Re: “Re-wilding”

      Yeah, agreed. Like "wild" camping and "wild" swimming. Back in my day, it was just camping and swimming. Camp grounds were usually, at best, a farmers field which might or might not have a shower/toilet block. Swimming pools have been around for a long time, but swimming in the sea, lakes and rivers was fairly normal too. Maybe it's because I grew up in an age where every school child was taught to swim and there were lots of awareness campaigns about swimming safely in the outdoors.

      I think it's a sad reflection on society that we have to call everything outside the managed and risk-averse city as "wild something" to make sure people see it as a risk instead of them actually having a life-time learned sense of risk.

      The Japanese, for obvious reasons, have an aversion to non-natural levels of radiation, but from what I gather, the levels have been safe for a long time now.

      1. Citizen of Nowhere

        Re: “Re-wilding”

        >I think it's a sad reflection on society that we have to call everything outside the managed and risk-averse city as "wild something"

        Perhaps it is because far more than the city is managed and risk-averse, coralled and commercialised. Places we visited and activities we enjoyed spontaneously must now make money for someone. The fences and gates have been put up, the ticket sheds built and the "fun" organised.

        1. mdubash

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          It started with the Enclosures Act...

          1. Citizen of Nowhere

            Re: “Re-wilding”

            That's when they took it away from us for their own enrichment. Now, they are selling us back access to it, for their own enrichment.

            1. Michael Habel

              Re: “Re-wilding”

              I hear that theres is still plenty of untapped potental up ther in them there hills of Ruskiland, and Canukistan. With virtualy nobody 'round for hundreds of miles in any direction.

        2. skeptical i
          Meh

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          Not just profiteers, mind, but lawyers and liability suits. Once upon a time, tromping through the woods or fields was just what kids did (or, at least what THIS kid did). Certainly someone owned that land, but I don't recall anyone giving that a second thought. Now everyone's got fences and 'no trespassing' signs, probably on lawyers' advice lest someone get sued to hell and back if some kid does something stupid, gets hurt, and property owner is deemed to not have done "enough" to prevent said mishap.

        3. Michael Habel

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          And, above all else...

          Litagation free....

      2. Colin 22

        Re: “Re-wilding”

        Japan's tolerance for radiation level is so low, that is applied in the UK, large areas would be off-limits due to the natural radiation from the granite - Dartmoor, Bodmin moor and the Highlands for starters

        1. Pascal Monett Silver badge

          They don't have granite in Japan ?

          1. Dave314159ggggdffsdds Silver badge

            Granite varies in radioactivity depending on local geology - it isn't the granite itself that is radioactive, but inclusions of radioactive elements. I have no idea what the geology of Japan is like, or whether they have radioactive granite.

            1. Jellied Eel Silver badge

              I have no idea what the geology of Japan is like, or whether they have radioactive granite.

              Curiously, Fukushima used to bottle and sell it's radioactive water as a health tonic. AFAIK the mineral spring is still there, and still producing radioactive water for local wildlife to drink. A minor detail that gets glossed over when rad-fudders hype up the 'deadly' radiation from the nuclear plants, and ignore the natural background stuff.

              1. Michael Habel

                But, the natual "background" stuff hardly ever goes into meltdown.

                https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_nuclear_fission_reactor

        2. tiggity Silver badge

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          All the places I have lived in the last 20 odd years have had high radon levels - just a fact of life due to the geology of many parts of the UK (some of which were mentioned above).

          Sadly lacking in any superpowers / glowing in the dark / advantageous mutations from it all.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: “Re-wilding”

            "Sadly lacking in any superpowers / glowing in the dark / advantageous mutations from it all."

            Radon is a radioactive gas that can accumulate inside buildings in some UK areas. Higher statistics for lung cancer correlate with those areas - usually in combination with other carcinogenic stimuli.

        3. JohnGrantNineTiles

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          Also Aberdeen railway station (built of granite): I've heard it exceeds the radiation limits for a nuclear power station.

        4. Man inna barrel

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          This actually looks fairly prudent. The regions you mention are known for savage mutant beasts. And that includes the Scots. So it were the granite wot dun it.

      3. Cynic_999

        Re: “Re-wilding”

        Any aspect of our lives that is not under the control of our government is obviously highly dangerous and best avoided at all costs.

        1. A.P. Veening Silver badge

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          Frankly, I consider government highly dangerous and best avoided at all costs.

      4. Edward Ashford

        Re: “Re-wilding”

        In Northern Ireland we had problems with Caesium-137 for a long time after Chernobyl (I think it was also a problem in Wales) as sheep graze on uplands where the soil is shallow and the grass roots kept recycling the Caesium. In lowland pastures where the soil is deeper it gets washed down out of the way of the roots. The solution was to graze for less time on the uplands and bring the sheep down to graze lower down so that when they went to market the Bequerels per kilo were low enough. Try not to think too hard about it when eating your lamb chop.

        It's possible that around Fukushima trees are recycling it and the pigs are snuffing up Caesium-137 loaded acorns.

        https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27131868/

        1. mrjohn

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          I always wondered about the proximity of Wales and Windscale.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: “Re-wilding”

            Ready-Brek adverts became an obvious source for UK nuclear facility leak parodies. Not hard to see why.

    2. Moggz

      Re: “Re-wilding”

      But wild is from Old English "wilde" meaning "in a natural state". So I'm not sure what you mean. The word "dehumanise" that you used usually refers to a human, as in to remove a humans positive human qualities. So to allow a landscape to return to nature is to return it to the wild (to make natural) rather than to dehumanise.

      1. Lars Silver badge
        Happy

        Re: “Re-wilding”

        Don't be so shy wild is just a Germanic word.

    3. Moggz

      Re: “Re-wilding”

      yeah actually... "re-" from latin "again" or "back/backward" and "wild/wilde" meaning "in it's natural state" would seem to mean "rewild" is a pretty legit word to mean "again in it's natural state"

      1. Frumious Bandersnatch

        Re: “Re-wilding”

        As opposed to the Spanish, where it means "very"/"well", as in frijoles refritos...

        (I am the very model of a boring etymologist)

    4. Irony Deficient

      Re: “Re-wilding”

      I do not know who invents these new words but this one is particularly horrible.

      The OED notes that the verb “wild”, although rare, goes back nearly eight centuries:

      1225 Ancr. R. 136 Vet kelf & to wilde is þet fleschs þet awiligeð [MS. T. wildes] so sone hit euer etteð.

      Since “re-” is one of the most productive verbal prefixes in modern English, “re-wild” isn’t an unreasonable combination.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: “Re-wilding”

        I couldn't make out what

        Vet kelf & to wilde is þet fleschs þet awiligeð [MS. T. wildes] so sone hit euer etteð.

        meant so for fun I put it into Google translate.

        Google translated said "ICELANDIC - DETECTED" and translated it to "ENGLISH" for me. I couldn't see any difference in the English version.

        1. Richard 12 Silver badge

          Re: “Re-wilding”

          It's already in English.

          Albeit somewhat archaic.

          1. Man inna barrel

            Re: “Re-wilding”

            Who are you calling archaic? I come from Birmingham, and as far as I know, our Bill Shakespeare, champion of the English language, probably spoke in something close to a Brummie accent. Well more accurately, Black Country, but let's not go there, because it really is a foreign country. On the other hand, the northeast of England is infested with Vikings, which explains the speech mannerisms of Ant and Dec.

    5. Fr. Ted Crilly Silver badge

      Re: “Re-wilding”

      Wild? I was absolutely livid... (Gerald)

  6. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

    Last sentence ...

    ... ouch!

    We now have two major instances of wild-life successfully moving into areas which have been evacuated. It raises questions of how they are able to do this given that the radioactivity levels are reckoned to be lethal. Is this selection of species and maybe even individuals of species which are more tolerant? Are the estimates of lethal levels too low?

    Probably the former, I suspect. There are parallels in that a few select plant species are capable of living on soil conaminated by lead mining, for example.

    1. NickHolland

      Re: Last sentence ...

      valid question. Would be nice to know the answer(s).

      But a few other /possible/ answers:

      1) radiation may not be the greatest risk animals face. Dying of old age in the animal kingdom is not overly common, I suspect.

      2) the expected time for exposure to cause a significant increase in obvious mortality may not have elapsed yet (i.e., maybe it takes 15 years to see a lot of impact, but only 11 years have gone by)

      3) the animals may not live long enough for the radiation to have a significant impact.

      4) we aren't giving these pigs colonoscopies and MRIs to determine what is actually happening inside them -- they may be quite sick, we just can't tell. Or there may be multi-generational problems.

      Got to remember, radiation poisoning is not like on Star Trek where after X hours, everyone dies (and a magic fix happens thirty seconds before and everyone is just fine). It's a game of chance, increases in exposure levels or duration just changes the chance. Humans are much more obsessed about increases in the chance of dying than the animal kingdom is (not saying that's a bad thing).

      1. Potemkine! Silver badge

        Re: Last sentence ...

        radiation poisoning is not like on Star Trek where after X hours, everyone dies

        It depends of the radiation level. Death can happen quickly

      2. Jet Set Willy

        Re: Last sentence ...

        "4) we aren't giving these pigs colonoscopies and MRIs to determine what is actually happening inside them -- they may be quite sick, we just can't tell. Or there may be multi-generational problems."

        No, they won't receive any preventative medical care but I suspect they are getting some very detailed autopsies. The conclusion of which will almost always be "bullet trauma".

        1. award

          Re: Last sentence ...

          > The conclusion of which will almost always be "bullet trauma".

          Otherwise known as high-velocity lead poisoning.

      3. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Last sentence ...

        Radiation effects on germ-line cells can produce mutations in any species' offspring. If they survive to breeding age then the mutations may be passed to the next generation. Genomes have sufficient redundancy to allow them to be resilient to non-lethal mutations. Natural selection then throws the dice.

      4. Man inna barrel

        Re: Last sentence ...

        I think Chernobyl and Fukushima demonstrate that humans are much more poisonous than radiation. Another thought: where do all the mutant wolves come from? We call them dogs.

      5. Michael Habel

        Re: Last sentence ...

        Ok have we forgotten the other _accedents_, namely Chernobyl thats been like what 35 years ago now as the Crow flys?

    2. This post has been deleted by its author

      1. Irony Deficient

        “maths” instead of “math”

        Those who prefer “maths” over “math” would likely refer to “mathematics” having a plural form (it was originally a plurale tantum), and “maths” preserves that plural form. The displaced Old English word had a singular form — rímcræft (“number art/science”).

        1. Dave559 Silver badge

          Re: “maths” instead of “math”

          Oooh, rímcræft is definitely a good word, though!

          (Never having seen an "i" with an acute accent before, I'm going to guess that it's pronounced something like rhyme-craft rather than rim-craft?)

          1. tonique

            Re: “maths” instead of “math”

            I think it implies it's a long vowel, more like modern "ee" pronounced really long. Lines over vowels, called macrons, are also used to indicate long vowels: rīmcræft.

          2. Irony Deficient

            Re: “maths” instead of “math”

            Old English rímcræft was pronounced like modern English “reamcraft”. (Pronouncing a “long i” like modern “eye” is a consequence of the Great Vowel Shift during the Middle English period.)

      2. mdubash

        Re: Please, Dr. Syntax

        We talk of stats as a short form of statistics. So maths as a short form of mathematics makes sense.

        1. Martin
          Happy

          Re: Please, Dr. Syntax

          Exactly. At uni, I did a course in statistics and we referred to it as "stats" - therefore proving that "maths" is correct and "math" is wrong. Q E fucking D.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Please, Dr. Syntax

            I wasn't aware there was a carnal component to proof. This may explain a few things, thanks.

            :)

            1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

              Re: Please, Dr. Syntax

              Once you've got over the hump, it's easy. Just watch out for the spitting.

              1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

                Re: Please, Dr. Syntax

                Oops. My eyes! I read caRNal as caMel :-)

        2. Shooter

          Serious question

          Why do Brits sometimes drop the definite article "the"?

          I've heard them say "I went to hospital"; and the same person will say "I went to the library".

          Why "the library" and not "the hospital" (as we left-pondians say)?

          Thanks in advance...

          1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

            Re: Serious question

            I'm sorry, I haven't a clue but my best guess is it's the Yorkshire influence. eg I went t'ospital.

          2. Lars Silver badge
            Happy

            Re: Serious question

            @Shooter

            While I am not British I would claim - "I went to hospital" is like I went to sea.

            There is a difference and mostly it's the foreigners like I who forget the "the".

            1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

              Re: Serious question

              Another option is that most places have more than one hospital, so saying "I went to the hospital" leaves the listener wondering which hospital, ie an open ended statement while "I went to hospital" sounds more like a final, all encompassing comment.

          3. Ken Moorhouse Silver badge

            Re: Why do Brits sometimes drop the definite article "the"?

            Would you worry about this if your definite article had been chopped off? Mind you, you'd probably utter "get me to the f*ing hospital" rather than "get me to hospital".

            Roads are another case where the definite article is often deployed, whereas you won't see it on Street. King's Road in Chelsea is often referred to as The King's Road, because I suppose it was at one time. But you won't get The King Street. I was going to say this is peculiar to roads, but there's The Bishops Avenue which is perhaps used to signify the one everyone knows. This raises an anomaly, there's no apostrophe in Bishops. Maybe because nobody knows if it is referring to one bishop or many.

            1. Old Used Programmer

              Re: Why do Brits sometimes drop the definite article "the"?

              Southern California (e.g. Los Angeles) inserts a definite article before Interstate Highway numbers, such as "the I-10" where in northern California (e.g. SF Bay Area) doesn't, such as "I-80".

              No idea why (or why not), but you can tell a transplanted newscaster by which way they do it.

              1. Irony Deficient

                (the) I-10

                Perhaps the “the” is used with interstate freeways with one-syllable numbers; as it happens, parts of both the I-5 and the I-10 are found in southern California. Do native newscasters also say “the I-15”, “the I-210”, and “the I-405”? Do they say “the 101” (“the one-oh-one”) in reference to US routes?

            2. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              Re: Why do Brits sometimes drop the definite article "the"?

              "This raises an anomaly, there's no apostrophe in Bishops"

              IIRC many UK councils have a policy of omitting apostrophes in street names - even when replacing old signs that included them. A friend lives in a street named after a farmer's meadow on which the houses were built. The street sign omits the possessive apostrophe - so just "Farmers Meadow".

              1. Irony Deficient

                Re: Why do Brits sometimes drop the definite article “the”?

                Similarly, the US Board on Geographic Names almost entirely excludes possessive apostrophes from the names of geographic features. The only exceptions to date are:

                • Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts;
                • Ike’s Point, New Jersey;
                • John E’s Pond, Rhode Island;
                • Carlos Elmer’s Joshua Pond, Arizona; and
                • Clark’s Mountain, Oregon.

          4. Man inna barrel

            Re: Serious question

            We are practicing to be Russian, in preparation for invasion from East. As everybody knows, the Russian language does not require definite or indefinite articles, which are inefficient and just useless noises, like 'um' and 'err'. Get with training program, folks.

      3. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

        Re: Please, Dr. Syntax

        Dr. syntax, please explain why Brits use the term "maths" instead of "math". Is this in the same vein as "statistic" to "statistics"?

        Because we've always used "maths". Why do you use something different?

        1. Irony Deficient

          Re: Please, Dr. Syntax

          The first reference for “math” in the OED suggests that “math” came from the abbreviation “math.” — it dates back to 1890. In contrast, the earliest reference for “maths” is from 1911. Similarly, “economics” and “statistics” in the US were called “ec” and “stat” by students (presumably in reference to courses of study), from their abbreviations “ec.” and “stat.”. I’d imagine that “home ec” is still used here in the States more often than “home economics”. There isn’t an entry for “ecs” being used anywhere for “economics”, though.

    3. Persona Silver badge

      Re: Last sentence ...

      It raises questions of how they are able to do this given that the radioactivity levels are reckoned to be lethal.

      The report referenced has a map showing the background radiation level. It is interesting to note that the highest radiation level is in quite a small area. Even more interesting is that the radiation level there is roughly a third of what can be found on a naturally radioactive beach in Brazil where people are happy to relax and enjoy themselves.

      A high dose of radiation in a short time will kill you. That same dose spread over a long time is perfectly natural and will have no consequence. It's a non linear relationship. Unfortunately people like straight line relationships so maximum safe human dose is derived as a (linear) fraction of a lethal high dose.

      1. Cynic_999

        Re: Last sentence ...

        "

        A high dose of radiation in a short time will kill you. That same dose spread over a long time is perfectly natural and will have no consequence.

        "

        Yup. Just like eating a large amount of salt at one time will kill you very quickly, but the same amount spead over a long period is not only harmless, but very necessary. Same is true of a great many substances (including water).

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Last sentence ...

          Depends which type of water. There are plenty of warning on the Net about dihydrogen monoxide..

          :)

          1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

            Re: Last sentence ...

            Oxygen dihydride is much safer.

          2. HorseflySteve

            Re: Last sentence ...

            Water.. Consider this:

            Number of deaths directly attributed to the disaster at Fukashima Power Station: 1

            Number of deaths directly attributed to the tsunami that caused it : 18000

            Sometimes people worry about the wrong things.

            1. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              Re: Last sentence ...

              You're casually skipping over the "time" part. The tsunami killed people in an instant, the escaped radiation will kill people slowly and/or considerably shorten lifespans.

              1. HorseflySteve

                Re: Last sentence ...

                The radiation from Fukashima is detectable & will reduce in time. We know it's there and can avoid the area until it's decayed. It is highly unlikely that it will cause 18000 deaths before humanity self-destructs or the sun runs out of hydrogen. The only way to avoid tsunamis is to not live near the sea as the are unpredictable and non-preventable. Remember the Boxing Day tsunami? That killed 225000 people.

                1. HorseflySteve

                  Re: Last sentence ...

                  I would also suggest that tsunamis do not kill people in an instant. Those that get tangled up in debris during the flood stage may die fairly quickly but the rest get swept out to sea where they drown; that does not happen instantaneously and they will suffer badly before they die :-(

                2. Michael Habel

                  Re: Last sentence ...

                  It would probably be also advisable not to build Nuclear Power Stations in areas known to be hit with Tsunamis.

              2. Persona Silver badge

                Re: Last sentence ...

                escaped radiation will kill people slowly and/or considerably shorten lifespans

                The point is it wont. The "Linear No-Threshold model" you are using to make that prediction says that, but common sense and real world experience (e.g. people on beaches in Brazil) shows that model to be hopelessly wrong for low level radiation.

          3. Michael Habel

            Re: Last sentence ...

            Yes Dihydogenmonoxide (H2O), known by the State of Cancer, to cause California.

      2. cyberdemon Silver badge
        Devil

        "given that the radioactivity levels are reckoned to be lethal."

        No, Cs-137 is reckoned to be lethal, but the levels really are not so lethal.

        The stupidity lies in " Indeed, surveys of the local boar population found they are contaminated by up to 300 times the safe human dosage of the lethal isotope caesium-137 [PDF]. "

        The "safe limit" according to the PDF is set at 4 millirem/year. The pigs were exposed to 300 times that, which is 1200 millirem / year.

        1200 millirem is pitifully non-lethal. It is equivalent to 12 millisieverts, where 4-5 Sieverts is actually the LD50/30 value for acute radiation exposure in humans.

        And we're talking per year, so we'd probably assume the LD50 to be even higher for a dose spread over a whole year.

        So while Cs-137 itself certainly is lethal, the "safe limit" is set so low, that even "300 times the safe limit" while sounding really scary, it is still 400 times lower than the dose that might kill you.

        The disconnect between these "safe limits" and what is actually an "unsafe level" is IMO one of the main things that has killed the nuclear industry. Radiation is so easily "detectable" but impossible to see and therefore impossible for the public to quantify what the detector reading means.

        So we set the limits based on a model that basically says "there is no safe limit", so we will set it at background. And because Cs-137 is a short-lived isotope, background for that isotope is basically zero.

    4. Cynic_999

      Re: Last sentence ...

      Radiation levels were never deemed to be lethal, just above what is deemed by Japan to be an acceptably safe level. "Safe" is based on a level that is below that which could have any detrimental effect rather than being deadly. e.g. increased probability of getting cancer over a lifetime.

      1. the Jim bloke
        Headmaster

        Re: Last sentence ...

        Ideally, Governments introduce regulations to avoid negative results.

        By restricting exposure to even relatively low radiation levels, they reduce the burden on their health care system.

        This imposes hopefully minor constraints on behaviour for a net benefit to the nation.

        Problems arise where people disagree as to the hardship of the constraints or the value of the benefit e.g. losing the family home to avoid cancer in 20 years time, or having to wear a facemask and get a vaccination versus uncontrolled proliferation and mutation of a global pandemic...

    5. Dave314159ggggdffsdds Silver badge

      Re: Last sentence ...

      Caesium 137 isn't actually 'highly radioactive', as the article claims. It has a halflife of about 30 years, which means it's mildly radioactive - the longer the halflife, the slower something decays, so the less radiation it gives off per unit of time.

      The levels of caesium in the pigs would give a human cancer in the longer term, but probably isn't a problem in the natural lifespan of the animals.

    6. Trollslayer
      Flame

      Re: Last sentence ...

      Simple.

      When it comes to humans dying there is an uproar.

      When it comes to hybrid pigs dying there is a barbecue.

      1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

        Re: Last sentence ...

        Although the barbecue attendees will then consume the caesium in some quantity or other.

        Now there's a thought - the caesium which might harm thehumans who consume it won't be the same as the caesium which killed the pig.

    7. Lars Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: Last sentence ...

      It's like with smoking one a day might not kill you before you die.

      Also people decided to stay in the Chernobyl area.

    8. Michael Habel

      Re: Last sentence ...

      No its just that their life-cycles are way shorter, than your average non-owning, but reasonbly happy human.

  7. The commentard formerly known as Mister_C Silver badge

    If Marvel taught us anything

    It would be that these mutants will evolve wings.

    Yup, we'll have flying pigs before flying cars.

    1. slimshady76
      Alert

      Re: If Marvel taught us anything

      Should that happen, here I predict Roger Waters will re-join Pink Floyd for a final Animals concert nearby the Fukushima nuclear plant.

      1. Dr Kerfuffle

        Re: If Marvel taught us anything

        Not only will Roger Waters re-join Pink Floyd, but he'll find some way of blaming Israel for the boars/pigs!

    2. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge

      Re: If Marvel taught us anything

      So we can order a bucket of BBQed piglet wings shortly?

    3. Champ

      Re: If Marvel taught us anything

      > Yup, we'll have flying pigs before flying cars.

      Pigs on the Wing?

    4. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge
      Happy

      Re: If Marvel taught us anything

      Those magnificent boars

      With their flying new genes

      They go up tiddly-up-up

      They go down tiddly-down-down

      They enchant all the boffins

      And steal all the scenes

      With their up tiddly-up-up

      And their down tiddly-down-down

      Up, down, flying around

      Looping the loop and defying the ground

      They're all frightfully keen

      Those magnificent boars with their mutated genes

      They can fly upside down with their feet in the air

      They don't sweat radiation, they really don't care

      Newton would think he had made a mistake

      To see those young boars and the chances they take

      Those magnificent boars

      With their mutated genes

      They go up-tiddly-up-up

      They go down-tiddly-down-down

      They enchant all the boffins

      And steal all the scenes

      With their up-tiddly-up-up

      And their down-tiddly-down-down

      Up, down,…

      1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

        Re: If Marvel taught us anything

        Encore! Encore!

      2. Old Used Programmer

        Re: If Marvel taught us anything

        That really was an excellent movie.

      3. Anonymous South African Coward Bronze badge
        Thumb Up

        Re: If Marvel taught us anything

        Bravo!

        Bravissimo!!!

        *thunderous applause*

      4. Anonymous South African Coward Bronze badge

        Re: If Marvel taught us anything

        Who was the ne'er-do-well who downvoted that magnificient porkine poetry?

    5. Arthur the cat Silver badge

      Re: If Marvel taught us anything

      Yup, we'll have flying pigs before flying cars.

      You may laugh, but a couple of generations on they'll be wearing capes and saving us from supervillains.

  8. Chewi

    The great Okkoto rises again!

    I look forward to hearing about the hybrid deer with a human face.

    1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

      Re: The great Okkoto rises again!

      Is that the new documentary that Netflix have been advertising recently?

    2. Michael Hoffmann Silver badge
      Thumb Up

      Re: The great Okkoto rises again!

      A Ghibli fan as well, I see!

  9. John Brown (no body) Silver badge
    Mushroom

    Duke Nukem

    Or was I the only one to get those flashbacks?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Duke Nukem

      Your face

      Your ass

      What’s the difference?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Duke Nukem

        Usability?

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Duke Nukem

        "What’s the difference?"

        None if it is a political cartoon of the current British PM.

    2. Anonymous South African Coward Bronze badge

      Re: Duke Nukem

      Gotta love them pig-cops!

      Now I want to play Duke Nukem 3D again. Luckily I snaffled a free copy on GOG.com when it was free.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Duke Nukem

        The facility to create your own scenario was quite powerful - although the comprehensive tutorial book wasn't cheap. People constructed replicas of their town's locations. IIRC there was also a pr0n version doing the rounds of school playgrounds back in the 1990s.

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

    Cross breeding with domestic pigs means litter sizes increase. It's one of the reasons for the boar population explosion in France. Along with hunters illicitly feeding them too.

    1. Potemkine! Silver badge

      Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

      Cross breeding with domestic pigs means litter sizes increase.

      Cross breeding with domestic pigs is an epiphenomenon.

      It's one of the reasons for the boar population explosion in France. Along with hunters illicitly feeding them too.

      If hunters had a role to explain the boar population explosion 30 years ago, they cannot be blamed for the situation occurring since 20 years. Boar population explosion isn't a French phenomenon, it happens in other countries in Europe, and elsewhere.

      Why do boars proliferate? There are several reasons:

      "- The wild boar itself: the most prolific ungulate in Europe, virtually predator-free, with tremendous adaptability both in terms of food and habitat.

      - Climate change, operating on two levels: it promotes the demographic vitality of wild boars via the abundance of the acorn, which has a direct impact on reproduction; it reduces winter and spring mortality.

      - The evolution of territories, again at two levels: the extension of certain crops, foremost among which is corn; the multiplication of non-huntable or non-huntable refuge areas, linked to official nature reserves, animal "sanctuaries", road and rail rights-of-way, rural wastelands due to agricultural abandonment and wastelands and other non-huntable peri-urban areas. "

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

        Well French "Big Hunting" would say that.

        Google: "chasseur condamné pour nourrire sanglier" and see how many hits there are.

        1. Potemkine! Silver badge

          Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

          You didn't read my post nor the links I provided, did you?

          Google: "chasseur condamné pour nourrire sanglier" and see how many hits there are.

          When I do the search ""chasseur condamné" "nourrir" "sanglier", I get 102 results. One fifth are from anti-hunting sites.

          Explain me how French hunters are responsible for boars proliferation in Spain, Italy, Poland, Germany or the Czech Republic?

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

            @Potemkine!

            Also try Googling "élevage clandestin sangliers" and select "news" search results to filter out any "anti-hunting sites"

      2. Jellied Eel Silver badge

        Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

        - Climate change, operating on two levels: it promotes the demographic vitality of wild boars via the abundance of the acorn, which has a direct impact on reproduction; it reduces winter and spring mortality.

        Bah humbug. Sure, CO2 fertilisation is beneficial to wildlife given it increases crop yields. But boars are far less sensitive to the teeny amounts of global warming than the average Bbc or Grauniad writer/reader. But by the same reckoning, it also reduces winter & spring mortality amongst humans, because cold tends to lead to more excess deaths than warmth.

        Biggest impact is lack of predation and anti-hunters. But boars are a pest in Europe and the US, causing much damage to crops, wildlife, and the occasional human who discovers that boar tusks vs femoral arteries is bad.

        1. the Jim bloke

          Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

          Heat waves are supposedly higher cause of death than cold.

          first result from google search

          "According to the World Health Organization, heat waves are considered among the most dangerous of natural hazards but rarely receive adequate attention because their death tolls and destruction are not always immediately obvious. From 1998 to 2017, more than 166,000 people around the world died because of heat waves"

          1. Jellied Eel Silver badge

            Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

            Heat waves are supposedly higher cause of death than cold.

            first result from google search

            How.. reliable. Alternatively-

            https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/cold-deemed-deadlier-than-heat-when-it-comes-to-weather-deaths-1.3081053

            Cold temperatures kill about 20 times as many people worldwide as hot temperatures do, say Canadian and international researchers who challenge conventional wisdom that extreme weather events cause the most deaths.

            In a study published Wednesday in the medical journal The Lancet, researchers analyzed data on 74 million deaths across countries with climates ranging from cold to subtropical between 1985 and 2012.

            But such is politics. Simple enough theory to test. Stand outside in -40C and +40C, see which makes you die first. But like the article says, there can be a problem with bias. So because global warming, the warming tends to get exagerated. This is also why we're being told to super-insulate our homes. Which is also a bit of an issue with Canada, give although it's heatwave isn't 'unprecedented', it's more adapted to cold weather than hot.

            1. the Jim bloke

              Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

              Stand outside in -40C and +40C, see which makes you die first

              how about, see how long you survive in temperatures 10 degrees above human core temperature, versus 10 degrees below... which puts the range at about 48 to 28..

              Which environment you live in is a matter of personal circumstances... I work in >40 C half the year, and am actually fairly comfortable there.

              The proportion of humanity, possibly not including Canadians and Russians, that are exposed to -40 is probably much lower than those that see >40, and this disparity will get worse as climate change progresses.

              Worst case, direct temperature related deaths will be trivial anyway, compared to famine and dislocation brought about by droughts and cascading agricultural failures...

              1. Jellied Eel Silver badge

                Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

                Worst case, direct temperature related deaths will be trivial anyway, compared to famine and dislocation brought about by droughts and cascading agricultural failures...

                Ah, the sky is still gonna fall. But nope. Much like radiation, the more you learn about it, the less terrifying it seems. Unless you're 'learning' from Minitruth. See for example-

                https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-57697875

                BBC Bitesize has removed references to the "benefits" of climate change on its website, following complaints online.

                ...Climate expert and writer George Monbiot called the list, which has now been removed, "an absolute disgrace".

                "This is what BBC Bitesize is teaching our children about climate breakdown," the Guardian journalist tweeted.

                "I'm sorry, but it's an absolute disgrace. You could come away thinking: 'On balance, it sounds pretty good'."

                Monbiot isn't a 'climate expert', he's an alarmist Grauniad hack. But a neat example of Minitruth both ignoring the science, and being literally revisionist. Can't have kids going off-message after all the hours spent by the likes of Harrabin & Monbiot convincing them there's not only global warming, but a climate 'breakdown'.

                Which is about as unscientific as it gets, but ooh.. scarey. And the actual IPCC reports support the original Bbc version. There will be benefits from global warming and elevated CO2. We're seeing that already in the 'greening of the Earth'.

          2. KSM-AZ
            FAIL

            Heat Waves

            So where are the cold numbers from 1998 to 2017. I've got a Ben Franklin they are higher. Don't you find this interesting? "All of a suddenly" heat wave death tolls and destruction are "not immediately obvious". Because we want to scare everyone into thinking they are going to melt, we are going to scoop up a bunch of deaths distantly 'related' to a heat wave, and add them in. Gawd people are so easily manipulated.

    2. Disgusted Of Tunbridge Wells Silver badge
      Holmes

      Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

      > Along with hunters illicitly feeding them too.

      i know that France is a backward place with strange people, but I think they might be doing hunting wrong.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

        More cochons means that there is more hunting. Where town & village mayors then pay the hunters to perform culls. Even on land that is normally <<chasse interdite>>.

        The gun-happy hunters love shooting where they normally are not allowed.

        Maybe because there's more chance of killing cyclists, people passing in cars or old ladies sat in their own gardens reading books.

        1. ICL1900-G3

          Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

          Killing things for the joy of it...weird.

          1. Cliffwilliams44 Silver badge

            Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

            Re: Hunting wild pigs/boars it is not killing for the fun of it. They are a serious pest! They have no real predictors especially in places where the natural predictors are gone, i.e. wolves. They are very destructive, they breed like rats and they destroy habitat for other wild animals. Like stated in the article when bread with domestic pigs they have larger litters. (In the US most wild pigs are feral domestic pigs).

            The problem at least here in the US is the meat from these pigs is not very useful, even dogs find it rather unpalatable.

            I am not a hunter but it annoys me when people who are clueless talk about hunting being cruel! We have driven natural predators out of many areas and then the natural fauna like deer can overpopulate their now limited habitat causing starvation in the winter. Hunting is the only answer to keep the herds healthy.

            1. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

              Here in France hunting is a pastime where drunk people brandish weapons and try to intimidate people. Personally I think the US has the right idea. If hikers and mountain bikers etc were allowed to carry sidearms the drunk thugs might think twice. The prospect of a nice, tight 3 round grouping would calm them down.

            2. Shooter
              Joke

              >>when bread with domestic pigs

              I call that a ham sammidge!

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

      Wild pigs, i.e. boars are a huge nuisance all over the southern US. They take over habitat reducing food for natural fauna, they are a pest to farmers and ranchers, they are a serious problem in the Florida everglades. Hunting is encouraged, the problem the wild boar/pig meat is not of much use. It tastes terrible! They are extremity dangerous as well, dogs used to hunt them need to wear Kevlar vests to protect them from the tusks.

      Most of the wild pigs/boars in the US are the result of escaped domestic pigs. Amazing how that change one left go feral.

      (Swine are not native to the western hemisphere)

      1. Shooter

        Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

        I spent the early '80s in the army, stationed in SE Georgia (the state, not the country).

        Feral pigs were quite a problem, enough that we would sometimes stop patrolling and circle up when the pigs were checking us out at night. Got bad enough that some of us would carry a magazine of live rounds (as opposed to blanks, and carefully segregated from them), or personal sidearms. It was a well-known secret, and officers/NCOs never made an issue of it. The pigs did not seem particularly impressed when we shot blanks, but artillery simulators made them scatter!

        I suspect things might be different these days.

      2. itzman
        Happy

        Re: Domestic cross breeding is the real problem

        I have had wild boar in Sardina. Finest pork I ever tasted!

  11. FozzyBear

    I'm not sure I'm ready for glow in the dark bacon

    1. Winkypop Silver badge

      Brilliant

      Self-cooking bacon!

    2. Michael Habel

      RIP Dr. Suess

      Well it was only a matter of time till they came after Gree Eggs, and Ham.

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Trollface

    Just the start

    As Al Gore warned us on South Park - ManBearPig

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    The Tower of London collection has just the thing...

    > In some cases the aggressive porkers have refused to give ground and have attacked returning humans,

    The Tower of London Royal Armouries Collection has just the thing - a boar sword

    Note the description "...boar-swords could also be equipped with a bar or 'stop' below the edged part of the blade. This prevents the wounded animal from 'running up' the blade and savaging the hunter at close quarter."

    Icon: the most appropriate one for a sword that dates from 1530-1570

    1. Jim Mitchell

      Re: The Tower of London collection has just the thing...

      If King Robert Baratheon had had a boar sword (or spear), perhaps Game of Thrones would have gone quite differently. Or maybe his wife would have found some other way to get rid of him.

      1. Allan George Dyer
        Pirate

        Re: The Tower of London collection has just the thing...

        I'd expect him to be properly equipped with his choice of weapon, but success depends on:

        • sticking the pointy end in the boar
        • hanging onto the blunt end until said boar stops moving

        any error in either step can have serious consequences. That's the fun of the sport, right?

        1. Shooter

          Re: The Tower of London collection has just the thing...

          Wimps!

          My understanding is that Hawaiians will hunt wild pigs with just a knife.

          They call it "poke da pig".

  14. Gene Cash Silver badge

    I have nothing to add...

    I just like saying "indestructible radioactive hybrid terror pigs"

    "contaminated by up to 300 times the safe human dosage" and still apparently fine - so does that mean our "safe human dosage" is horribly low and bogus?

    Are there any plans to capture a few and see how long they live, and if they do show any radiation effects?

    1. Filippo Silver badge

      Re: I have nothing to add...

      "does that mean our "safe human dosage" is horribly low and bogus?"

      Yes and no. The reason is that what we call "safe" is extremely different from what a boar would call "safe". We want to save everyone, while nature only cares about overall death rates. A 200% increase in cancer rates would be utterly intolerable for humans, but it's negligible for boars.

      1. Richard 12 Silver badge

        Re: I have nothing to add...

        A given dose increases your chance of cancer or other serious malady per year by X%, so the probability of it actually occurring depends of your lifespan.

        A boar lives around 15-20 years, so the lifetime risk is far lower than a human with their ridiculous 80-100 year lifespans.

      2. Michael Habel

        Re: I have nothing to add...

        Perhaps what with all this overpoulation guff you read, a 200% spike in cancer deaths should be welcomed?

    2. oldstevo

      Re: I have nothing to add...

      If "radioactive hybrid terror pigs" is not a punk band, it totally should be

      1. Ken Moorhouse Silver badge

        Re: If "radioactive hybrid terror pigs" is not a punk band, it totally should be

        Sounds more like Heavy Metal to me.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Joke

          Re: If "radioactive hybrid terror pigs" is not a punk band, it totally should be

          Surely Fukushima's latest problem is heavy water not heavy metal?

        2. keith_w

          Re: If "radioactive hybrid terror pigs" is not a punk band, it totally should be

          I think it's a 'hair' band. No, I suppose that should probably be a 'bristle' band

        3. John Brown (no body) Silver badge
          Thumb Up

          Re: If "radioactive hybrid terror pigs" is not a punk band, it totally should be

          Black Sabbeth - War Pigs

        4. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

          Re: If "radioactive hybrid terror pigs" is not a punk band, it totally should be

          Circus metal perhaps but probably not "serious" metal.

          (But don't ask me to define serious metal!)

      2. Aussie Doc
        Pirate

        Re: I have nothing to add...

        "Rhyt pigs" has a ring to it. Logo with boar swords ----------------------->

      3. Anonymous South African Coward Bronze badge
        Trollface

        Re: I have nothing to add...

        Classical music orchestra?

    3. BOFH in Training
      Facepalm

      Re: I have nothing to add...

      Nah, it just means we are extremely weak, compared to the pigs. So our safe human dosage is alot lower.

    4. Dave314159ggggdffsdds Silver badge

      Re: I have nothing to add...

      What's the life expectancy of a boar, leaving aside the effect of people with guns? 20 years? Wikipedia says 10-15 years. Humans, it's more like 80-90 years.

      The question we're asking here is 'what are the chances of this thing causing cancer before death occurs for other reasons'. Obviously, the chances of it happening in 10-15 years are much lower than of it happening in 80-90 years, assuming the carcinogenic effect is static over time.

      The other part is that we are quite conservative about what we consider the acceptable risk of cancer. It's not just 'won't happen in one lifetime, on average', because there are lots of people. We tend to prefer 'won't happen in a thousand lifetimes' as our standard.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: I have nothing to add...

        Think Darwin. Radiation can mutate the germ-line cells at any age without obvious symptoms. Reaching breeding age may then pass on the mutations to the next generation. What effect those mutations would have on the offsprings' viability and survival is a moot point.

        Some potentially life-shortening recessive gene variants may provide "carriers" with immunity against local diseases. eg Sickle Cell Anaemia protects against malaria; Cystic Fibrosis can protect against typhoid.

        Natural selection in those conditions ensures the variant is retained in the local germ line. In Italy there was an education programme to inform people about Sickle Cell Anaemia. The result was the locals started to avoid marrying SCA carriers. So the SCA carriers had to marry each other - raising the incidence of a child inheriting the full-blown condition. At the same time the general population lost their immunity to malaria - just as the malarial mosquito was resurgent.

  15. Charles Osborne

    Been there, seen that.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebirth_(sculpture)

  16. Ken Moorhouse Silver badge

    Wild Boar Terrain

    The local delicacy.

  17. xyz Silver badge

    Best story title of the year so far..

    Anyhoo... Having been on the receiving end of tusked obstinacy regarding who owns what patch of forest (i have the deeds) my preferred method of dealing with these trottered terrors is a machete and a short sword.... whilst snarling (in the manner of Crocodile Dundee) "call those tusks, these are tusks" and going at them. They leg it. Hopefully I'm moving into the Matrix for this autumn and it'll be "guns, I need lots of guns".

    Oh and a couple of freezers.

  18. entfe001
    Mushroom

    We are doomed

    Our only chance to face the threat of a wild boar army is to deploy an army of Gérard Depardieu clones who, thanks to his Obélix characterization, will be the only thing those boars will fear.

    The question is what do we prefer as our new overlords.

    Also, we must account for the cost of plastic bottles if we were to deploy the Depardieu army by air.

    1. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge
      Happy

      Re: We are doomed

      Surely all you need is 100,000 fried eggs, 100,000 fried slices, 100 vats of baked beans, and another 50 of ketchup...

  19. Fruit and Nutcase Silver badge
    Alert

    Pigsy

    "Pigsy (猪八戒, Cho Hakkai), a pig monster consumed with lust and gluttony, who was expelled from Heaven after harassing the Star Princess Vega—the Jade Emperor's mistress—for a kiss.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkey_(TV_series)

    If the pilgrims were to journey through and area of radioactive contamination, Pigsy will be on steriods...

  20. SecretSonOfHG

    Missing Lester

    We're missing your Playmobil reconstructions since you left. This one could be epic.

    1. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge

      Re: Missing Lester

      Not to mention the post pub deathmatch...

  21. blah@blag.com

    This is why I read The Reg ...

    ... "Radioactive hybrid terror pigs"

    Fantastic.

  22. wolfetone Silver badge
    Coat

    Spiderpig-san

    1. Anonymous South African Coward Bronze badge

      Blyatpig

  23. Roger Kynaston
    Coat

    So Hollywood got it wrong again

    The film should have been teenage mutant ninja pigs

    Great story and the best headline of the year!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: So Hollywood got it wrong again

      Lord of the Flies.

    2. Michael Habel

      Re: So Hollywood got it wrong again

      We already have a Teenage Mutant Hero Pig, his name was Bebop.

  24. Ken Moorhouse Silver badge

    How do you know whether one of these animals is radioactive?

    Simple.

    A gammon ray detector.

    1. batfink

      Re: How do you know whether one of these animals is radioactive?

      Excellent. There goes this week's keyboard...

  25. Ochib

    Wars fought between Humans and Animals 1

    Wars won by Animals 1 (Emus V the Oz army)

    1. YetAnotherLocksmith Silver badge

      Pretty sure the passenger pigeon would disagree. Except they're extinct.

      And there was that Chinese famine caused after they killed all the birds which brought down the food chain causing overabundance of insects and then famine. Though considering millions of humans also died, maybe that should go down as a draw?

  26. Forzamc

    Great article

    Great article love the writing

  27. Filippo Silver badge

    It's always sobering to realize that, for local ecology, a nuclear disaster is actually a massive improvement over human settlement.

  28. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Looking forward to the movie

    A "Princess Mononoke" / "Mad Max" mashup - that will be great!

  29. Lindsay T

    Have you ever face a wild boar/sow? Any of them will scare the sh1ts out of you. Aggressive doesn't begin to describe it and they're fast and agile. Given half a chance, the domestic pig isn't far behind either.

  30. Marc 13

    Quick, "Sounders" the alarm!

    (OK, ok, my coat if you please)

  31. Bartholomew
    Holmes

    Why is it always the pigs ?

    It has all kicked off people, just like George Orwell predicted in "Animal Farm". You got to watch out for the damn pigs (Old Major, Napoleon, and Snowball).

    But luckily we have guns and they have mud, I think we will be OK this time anyhow.

    But we really need to plan ahead for the next time, whatever happens we can never let the damn dirty apes get their stinking paws on guns.

  32. MacroRodent
    Thumb Up

    Waiting for the anime version...

    Sounds like a good premise for an Anime film.

    (A suitably kawai icon is needed ->)

    1. Dave559 Silver badge

      Re: Waiting for the anime version...

      While reading the article, I was thinking, "I'm sure there are some scenes in 'Spirited Away' that resemble this…"!

      1. A. Coatsworth Silver badge
        Go

        Re: Waiting for the anime version...

        More like Mononoke-Hime, with a giant, toxic demon-boar coming out of the forest to attack human settlements.

        (One of Miyazaki's best - highly recommended)

        1. Michael Wojcik Silver badge

          Re: Waiting for the anime version...

          Yeah. Shoot one of these and you're liable to find yourself cursed and caught in a battle between a feral girl and a noblewoman over a forest and its protector spirit.

          Of course, in Japan they call that "Tuesday". (Or rather "火曜日".)

    2. Michael Habel
      Big Brother

      Re: Waiting for the anime version...

      Here ya go... Enjoy!

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxfedMNOIS4

  33. disgruntled yank

    Briefly wanted one

    A radioactive terror pig sounded like just the think to patrol our yard and keep out cats, rabbits, and squirrels. But bringing in a pig to keep squirrels from digging holes in the lawn would be self-defeating.

  34. TheSirFin

    I welcome our new Pig Overlords,

    I welcome our new Pig Overlords, as I am 100% certain they would do a better job of running the country then the current spaffing lump of bacon!

  35. Fr. Ted Crilly Silver badge

    noes!

    have the radio-pigs mutated frikkin lasers to replace the tusks yet?

  36. Blackjack Silver badge

    While not radioactive, Argentina has a problem with boar pig hybrids too, only since again not radioactive, they are hunted down to eat.

  37. CAPS LOCK

    Well,[1] I'm rooting for the pigs. Go pigs!

    [1] When it's humans versus <something> I'm always on the side of <something>. I rooted for the xenomorph in Alien.

  38. Anonymous South African Coward Bronze badge
    Coat

    New Asterix and Obelix adventure to come soon

    Obelix and the Mutant Oinkers of Japan

    /exits stage left to the bar

  39. Grinning Bandicoot

    ?FERAL?

    What ever happened to the word feral? Re-wilding appears to be neologism for the sake of making a neologism.

    Based on conversations the bulk of the knowledge about 'RADIATION, RADIOACTIVITY and NUUUCLEAR' appear to have learned from old 1950 films where a bomb blast is shown with a voice over speaking of the dangers of the unknown (Them comes to the top along with TV's Outer Limits). Where these people that in the vicinity of a granite dike that indicates a higher read than that taken near the nuclear plant that they're complaining about. Ah the difference between 'natural' and 'artificial'.

    Any word if the feral swine is GMO free?

  40. Michael Wojcik Silver badge

    interview with a Fukushima-area resident

    (Don't know if anyone will see this, given the volume of comments, but...)

    In Amazon's Our Man in Japan, James May spends a bit of time with a man who declined to move away from his home near Fukushima. It was quite moving – the city he lives in is nearly deserted.

    Of course, the same was true of the village May visits in Shikoku, the smallest of the major islands, which has seen a large population drain over the past several decades. It's lovely but much of it is deserted, and apparently largely free of radioactive terror-pigs.

  41. Michael Habel

    So do these Pigs fly, and spit nuclear hell-fire?

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