Background radiation and contamination Flashcards
What is background radiation
It’s the …-level … that’s … us all the time, from … occurring … isotopes
It’s the low-level radiation that’s around us all the time, from naturally occurring unstable isotopes
What kind of error occurs when you don’t subtract the background radiation from your results
Systematic error
Where does background radiation come from
-r…
-f…
-a…
-s…, known as … rays
-h… a…
-rocks
-food
-air
-space, known as cosmic rays
-human activity
What dose radiation dose tell you
Tells us the … of … to body … due to … to radiation
Tells us the risk of harm to body tissues due to exposure to radiation
What is radiation measured in
m… (mSv)
millisieverts (mSv)
Risks to using radiation
-… can enter … cells and … atoms and m… within them, leading to … damage
-can cause … in … which … uncontrollably, this is …
-can … cells … causing … sickness
-radiation can enter living cells and ionise atoms and molecules within them, leading to tissue damage
-can cause mutations in cells which divide uncontrollably, this is cancer
-can kill cells completely causing radiation sickness
Uses of radiation in medicine
-certain … isotopes can be … into … and their … around the body can be … using an external …
-… usually taken into the body are … (NEVER …) because they can … out of the …
-certain radioactive isotopes can be injected into people and their progress around the body can be tracked using an external detector
-isotopes usually taken into the body are gamma (NEVER alpha) because they can pass out of the body
What do u treat cancer with
Radiotherapy
How does radiotherapy work
-gamma rays are directed carefully and have the right dosage to kill the cancer cells without damaging to many normal cells
-radiation-emitting implants can also be put next to or inside tumours
-inevitably tho damage is done to normal cells making patients feel very ill
