Most people would agree that radiation is dangerous. However, there are many prejudices around this phenomenon. In fact, each of us is literally bathed in radiation, most of which is harmless to humans.
1. On board a nuclear submarine, background radiation is less than on land.
2. There is a possibility of destruction of the sarcophagus that covers the reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. This can cause radiation leakage.
3. Large quantities of granite were used in the construction of New York Grand Station. For this reason, the level of radiation there is very high and even exceeds the norms permissible at nuclear power plants.
4. In the Chernobyl zone there are mushrooms called Cryptococcus neoformans, which thrive under the influence of radiation.
5. The average smoker receives about 300 X-ray procedures during the year. This is due to the presence of radioactive isotopes in the smoke.
6. On December 24, 2004, the Earth was hit by the strongest radiation release in history. This ejection came from a neutron star located 50 thousand light years from our planet.
7. Bananas have a fairly high level of radioactivity.
Promotional video:
8. Closing their eyes, astronauts sometimes see bright flashes. They are caused by cosmic radiation hitting the retina.
9. Pilots and flight attendants receive a higher dose of radiation per year than workers at nuclear power plants. Therefore, they are officially classified as "working under radiation conditions."
10. A handful of uranium is almost as radioactive as 10 bananas. We said bananas were radioactive!
11. The US nuclear weapons program has been called the Manhattan Project. Within the framework of this program, rather cruel experiments were carried out on the effects of radiation on humans. For example, babies were fed radioactive oatmeal.
12. As part of the same Manhattan Project, Albert Stevens received an injection of plutonium. He died only 20 years later and became the person who lived the longest after such a dose of radiation.
13. Vladimir Pravik was one of the first firefighters to extinguish the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. It is said that under the influence of radiation, his eyes changed color from brown to blue.
14. The United States has tried to deny that the area is exposed to radioactive contamination after the atomic bombing. They even declared it Japanese propaganda.
15. Radium, discovered by Marie Curie, was first used in everything from toothpaste to candy. Naturally, this led to health problems.
People living near coal-fired power plants receive a higher dose of radiation than 16. those who live near nuclear power plants.
17. In the middle of the 20th century, a game called "Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Laboratory" was being sold in America. Her kit included samples of real uranium 238.
18. In the next few thousand years, the system of the binary star WR 104 should go supernova. This release of radiation could cause a mass extinction on Earth.
19. American flags on the moon have completely faded due to solar radiation.
20. Approximately one percent of the static electricity on an untuned television comes from cosmic background radiation left over from the Big Bang.
21. Soybeans planted in the Chernobyl zone have developed anti-radiation protection. This discovery can be useful to people.
22. After studying life around Chernobyl and other nuclear disaster zones, it was found that some species survived due to genetic mutations that occurred under the influence of radiation.
23. It turned out that in fact a person emits more radiation than his cell phone.
24. Industrial waste containing arsenic is more harmful to people than similar amounts of nuclear waste.
25. We are constantly exposed to radiation, most of which is harmless. Only ionizing radiation in sufficiently high doses is dangerous (X-rays, gamma rays, etc.).