Pakistani ad about "misplaced" radioactive materials

From Boing Boing by David Pescovitz: This advertisement appeared last week in Urdu-language newspapers in Pakistan. It apparently urges anyone to report any unregulated or uncontrolled nuclear isotopes, known as "orphan sources." According to Pakistani officials, no radioactive sources have been lost or stolen, and the ad is just meant to raise public awareness.

Pakistan's Nuclear Regulatory Authority played down the significance of the ads. "No radioactive source has been stolen, lost or missed," spokesman Zaheer Ayub Baig told news@nature.com via e-mail. Baig says that the newspaper ads were simply meant to warn citizens about old medical and industrial sources that may have been lost before the founding of the nation a half-century ago. He adds that in coming weeks, advertisements will also appear in regional and English-language papers.