Tuesday, 15 March 2011

Of half-life and radioactivity

People of the press and of the left:

If an isotope has a long half-life it is NOT highly radioactive.

Exposure to an element with a long half-life does NOT mean instant death by radiation poisoning.

Give me a pocket full of Radium-226 (half-life 1621 years) any time over Radium-228 (half life 5.8 years).

Edited to add: .. and human flesh doesn't "glow in the dark" after heavy exposure to ionising radition - it dies.

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