Intel Corp (INTC)

[spokeshave]

Sorry, Professor, but how does one process things like polonium and strontium?

Polonium is not a fission product. It does not occur in power reactors unless you intend to produce it commercially (it has significant commercial value). Furthermore, it is a natural decay product of radon and is ubiquitous.

There are a number of techniques for dealing with the other fission products, and as someone else pointed out, there are numerous sources available for more information.

...I'm a bit skeptical that nuclear power will ever be without toxic materials that need to be "dealt with" after the reaction.

Here's what's odd. Nuclear power is often criticized because it creates wastes that are hazardous for many years. Those same critics seem to forget that the toxic effluents from coal-fired plants, such as lead, arsenic, cadmium, etc., remain toxic forever. Furthermore, the volumes of waste from nuclear power, even without reprocessing, is tiny compared to coal.

I'd prefer truly renewable sources of energy...

Nuclear power is truly a renewable energy source. With reprocessing, a reactor fuel cycle results in more fuel than the cycle began with.