In his Aug. 4 letter, Scott Hards wrote that "we simply don't have any hard evidence as to the health effects of small doses of radiation over the long term. All the 'experts' claiming that cancer risk goes up by a certain percentage if you absorb so much radiation are basing their conclusions on statistical models."

Hards and a good portion of the people living in Japan have now become the statistical model, enabling the accumulation of hard evidence on the health effects of small doses of radiation. We on the outside will watch and wait, and study the results of the radioactive emissions in the northeastern part of Japan.

The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.

t. mamoru hanami