Radiation dangers

Radioactivity is dangerous. It may cause skin burns and it may destroy good tissues, as it destroys the diseased ones. It may cause illness that could be passed to our children and grandchildren. It cases of severe exposure it may even cause death.

It the early days of radioactivity scientists were not aware of those dangers. Marie and, Pierre Curie, after having, worked for a while with radioactive materials, noticed that their fingers were reddened and swollen, and that the skin was peeling off. Becquerel carried a small tube with radium in it his waistcoat pocket and was surprised to find a burn on his chest. Other early workers also reported burns and injuries of various kinds.

The strange fact about radiation is that it can harm without causing pain, which is the warning signal we expect from injuries. Pain makes us pull back our hands from flame or a very hot object but a person handling radioactive materials has no way of telling whether he is touching something too «hot» for safety. Besides, the burns or other injuries that radioactivity produces may not appear for weeks.

Today scientists are aware of these dangers. There are steadily finding now means of protecting themselves and other from radioactivity. It may well be that in the race between production of radioactivity and production of means of protection, the second will be the winner.

Our modern atomic laboratories are built for safety. Their walls are very thick. The rooms in which radioactivity is handled are separated from others by heavy lead doors. Large sings reading. «Danger - Radiation» indicate the unsafe parts of the buildings. Counters and other instruments are continuously measuring the radiation, and give off special signals when it becomes too strong. Each worker carries a special badge that shows the amount of radiation he has been exposed to.

In the room in which radioisotopes are separated and handled, workers may wear plastic clothes that look like divers suits. They may handle the material under water with long tools; water is known to stop the radiation and protect the workers.

All radioisotopes are prepared by some method of remote control. They are placed inside heavy lead containers through which the radiation cannot pass, and shipped to where they are to be used.

Анотація

В даній статті розглядається радіаційна небезпека. Викладені загальні поняття про радіацію, небезпека радіації для людей; засоби захисту від радіації в сучасних атомних лабораторіях; умови праці з радіоізотопами та їх перевезення.