Radiation Flashcards
“down winders”
from bomb testing sites
4 corners area
case studies of radiation
down winders
Fukushima
cheronoble
3 Mile Island
what is radiation
electrons moving
nrg traveling through space
radioactivity
spontaneous emmision of radiation from the nucleus of an unstable atom. remaining partcile may or may not become radioactive.
isotope
some element with a different number of nuetrons
nucleide
charged particle
radioisitopes
charged particles, used in medicine
measuring radation
there are many ways to express amount of radiation exposure
what is the amount of radiation you CAN be exposed to/
5 rems per year
what is the greatest personal exposure to radiation
solar radiation
medical radiation
Cheronoble defined
they screwed up, there was a melt down, didnt tell anyone
how much (%) of radiation is background radation
82% (360 mrems
breakdown of manmade radiation (18% of total)
58% medical 21% medicine 16% consumer products (microwaves, cell phones, etc) 2% occupational 2% fallout 1% nuclear fuel cycle
what kind of problem is Radiation??
physical agent
rather than bio or chem
non-ionizing radiation
electrical ions are accelerated, but not enough to change atom structure
less bad for you
sources of non-ionizing radiation
microwaves
tanning beds
radio/TV (FM more than AM)
Power lines
ionizing radiation
release of particles from atoms
ionizing radiation sources
x-rays
gamma rays
particles released due to ionizing radiation
alpha
beta
gamma
alpha particles
nucleus emits an alpha partcile (2 protons, 2 neutrons)
pop out of atoms…BIG particle (no electrons lost)
dont go far
stopped by piece of paper
beta particles
an ELECTRON is thrown out of the atom…TINY
stopped by metal/plexiglass
CAN GET THROUGH SKIN
gamma particles
release of an alpha/beta particle AND energy
Can go through CONCRETE!
how are we commonly exposed to alpha particles
DIET
falls on crop, ends up in food chain
Radioactive half life
time it takes for half of radionucleide to decay
- How to protect from radation
SHIELDING (lead vest @ dentist)
DISTANCE (from source…need for ionizing only)
TIME (limit time you’re around the risk)
exposure to ionizing radiation
internal: eaten or inhaled
External: X-rays, cosmic rays, gamma rays
half life examples:
Uranium: 4.47 BILLION yrs Potassium: 1.27 million Carbon 14 years 6000 yrs Cs: 30 years I: 8 days... 3 months to clear from body used for dating 'n stuff
half life problems
its not safe there for nearly the half life…only 10,000 years.
there are still billions of years left for things like uranium
Cherenoble protection from radiation
time: rotated workers
Shielding: concrete
going home after surgery with radiation
in hospital: urine dealt with as radioactive
at home: still radioactive, but treated as normal waste
what do you NEED radiation protective measures for
IONIZING
dont HAVE to have for non-ionizing, its much less powerful
Electromagnetic Spectrum
LOOK AT THE CHART
ionizing: short wavelengths, MORE NRG
NON-ionizing: longer wavelength, less NRG
Ultraviolet Radiation
Sunlight
LASERS
non-ionizing
lasers
non-ionizing
tissue injury
focused form of energy, can cause DAMAGE, esp. to EYES
sunlight and limes
limes have a chemical than increase the effects of sunlight ionizing
bartenders most succeptible to this
LASER stands for
Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation
coherent light in a single, intense beam
can travel long Distances
wavelengths: X-rays, UV, visible, IR, microwave
non-ionizing radiation
not really a cause of health effects
other types of non-ionizing radiation
- radio-frequency electronmagnetic fields (AM, FM, cell phone…science says no bad health effects…yet)
- ELF (extremely low frequency and Magnetic Fields
Solar panels
you collect solar radiation and use it as nrg…they are making small fields of solar radiation
MAY be a problem when the fields get bigger…we dont know for sure yet… but it seems ok now
ionizing radation and heal effects flow chart
- Radiation dose (to treat cancer)
- Ionization
- Biochemical Change
- DNA damage–> CELL death (want to kill off tumor) OR Cell transformation (more cancer…)
radiation exposure pathways
- inhalation
- ingestion (food, water)
- dermal
air, water food
can get into rain particles, onto plates, into plants, into meat
REVIEW COMMUNITY STUDIES FROM SLIDES
REVIEW COMMUNITY STUDIES FROM SLIDES
radionuclide
atom that has an unstable nucleus
can emit X or gamma rays/sub atomic particles when it decays
radioisotope
natural or artificially produced isotope that is radioactive
Three Mile Island
mechanical failures–> accident
partial meltdown of core
amount of human exposure very low
Radon
gas that seeps into homes with basements or home built over uranium deposits
colorless odorless gas that is produced by decay of uranium, radium
20% all lung cancer
no immediate symptoms…long term
Stochastic effects
adverse health effects associated with low level exposure to radiation over a long period of time
dirty bomb
explosive+radiation
used in small areas
ELF
extremely low frequency radiation
power poles, building walls, electrical appliances
potentially low level exposure to people who live near power lines, but not really conclusive
