Life Atomic

Life Atomic
Author: Angela N. H. Creager
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 506
Release: 2013-10-02
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 022601794X

After World War II, the US Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) began mass-producing radioisotopes, sending out nearly 64,000 shipments of radioactive materials to scientists and physicians by 1955. Even as the atomic bomb became the focus of Cold War anxiety, radioisotopes represented the government’s efforts to harness the power of the atom for peace—advancing medicine, domestic energy, and foreign relations. In Life Atomic, Angela N. H. Creager tells the story of how these radioisotopes, which were simultaneously scientific tools and political icons, transformed biomedicine and ecology. Government-produced radioisotopes provided physicians with new tools for diagnosis and therapy, specifically cancer therapy, and enabled biologists to trace molecular transformations. Yet the government’s attempt to present radioisotopes as marvelous dividends of the atomic age was undercut in the 1950s by the fallout debates, as scientists and citizens recognized the hazards of low-level radiation. Creager reveals that growing consciousness of the danger of radioactivity did not reduce the demand for radioisotopes at hospitals and laboratories, but it did change their popular representation from a therapeutic agent to an environmental poison. She then demonstrates how, by the late twentieth century, public fear of radioactivity overshadowed any appreciation of the positive consequences of the AEC’s provision of radioisotopes for research and medicine.

Radioisotopes and the Age of the Earth

Radioisotopes and the Age of the Earth
Author: Larry Vardiman
Publisher:
Total Pages: 856
Release: 2000
Genre: Science
ISBN:

This book presents part two of the research results of an eight-year project titled Radioisotopes and the Age of the Earth (RATE). A previous volume presenting part one of the research was published in 2000, titled Radioisotopes and the age of the Earth : a young-earth creationist research initiative. RATE Project sponsors included Institute for Creation Research and Creation Research Society, with start-up support from Answers in Genesis Ministries. Researchers included seven scientists and one biblical Hebrew scholar: Dr. Steven A. Austin, Dr. Andrew Snelling, Dr. John Baumgardner, Dr. Eugene F. Chaffin, Dr. Donald B. DeYoung, Dr. Russell Humphreys, Dr. Larry Vardiman and Dr. Steven W. Boyd.

Radioisotopes in the Human Body

Radioisotopes in the Human Body
Author: F. W. Spiers
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2013-10-22
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1483258556

Radioisotopes in the Human Body: Physical and Biological Aspects provides a unified presentation of the manner in which radioisotopes are deposited in the human body. This book focuses on bone structure and the irradiation of bone because so many of the available radioisotopes are deposited in bone. Organized into nine chapters, this book begins with an overview of the physical considerations that are significant to the dosimetry of internally deposited radioisotopes. This text then examines the structure and formation of bone in some detail. Other chapters consider the importance of bone in relation to potential radiation damage. This book discusses as well the relationship between radiation dose and radiobiological effects. The final chapter deals with the case of internal irradiation by radioisotopes. This book is a valuable resource for biologists, health physicists, scientists, and students. Radiation protection officers and individuals who have responsibilities for the safe use of radioactive substances will also find this book useful.

Nuclear Batteries and Radioisotopes

Nuclear Batteries and Radioisotopes
Author: Mark Prelas
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 363
Release: 2016-08-04
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 331941724X

This book explains the physics of nuclear battery operation. It provides a comprehensive background that allows readers to understand all past and future developments in the field. The supply and cost of radioisotopes for use in applications (focused on nuclear batteries) are covered in the initial sections of the text. The interaction of ionizing radiation with matter is discussed as applied to nuclear batteries. The physics of interfacing the radioisotopes to the transducers which represent the energy conversion mechanism for nuclear batteries are described for possible nuclear battery configurations. Last but not least the efficiencies of nuclear battery configurations are discussed combined with a review of the literature on nuclear battery research.

Radioisotope and Radiation Physics

Radioisotope and Radiation Physics
Author: M Miladjenovic
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 255
Release: 2012-12-02
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0323158919

Radioisotope and Radiation Physics: An Introduction is based on lectures delivered on a course in the use of radioactive isotopes. The course is organized by the B. Kidric Institute of Nuclear Sciences in Belgrade. The book presents the fundamental concepts on the use of radioisotopes. It aims to help the reader handle the quantitative data given in specialized handbooks and promote further reading. The subjects covered in the text include the Feynman diagrams and virtual particles; the phenomena of collisions between particles and atomic systems; and the penetration of alpha, beta, and gamma radiation. The text is intended to professionals in other fields who are interested in the study of radioisotopes and radiation who only has a very rudimentary background in physics.

Radioisotope Gauges for Industrial Process Measurements

Radioisotope Gauges for Industrial Process Measurements
Author: Geir Anton Johansen
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 334
Release: 2004-10-22
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 047002108X

In order to fully utilise nucleonic measurement principles and their applications, it is important to have an understanding of the underlying physics. Radioisotope Gauges for Industrial Process Measurements combines theoretical background with practical experience in order to present an accessible overview of the use of radioisotopes in industry. This unique book explains the modes of operation of installed gauges and presents nucleonic methods relevant to measurement problems. The first part of the book deals with radiation sources, the interaction of radiation with matter and radiation detectors. The second part explains the different measurement principles used for industrial gauges and the last part of the book covers industrial applications. This book also: Features a concise introduction to atomic and nuclear physics. Presents a range of nucleonic measurement methods and highlights their application to a variety of problems. Contains an overview of electronics, measurement accuracy, safety and standards. Considers processes and demands, design strategies and practical realisation of measurement systems. Provides many practical engineering examples. Offering a comprehensive coverage of engineering applications, this book is an essential tool for electrical, electronic and instrument engineers in the oil and chemicals processing sectors. It is also a valuable reference to graduate students and physicists involved in nuclear radiation measurement, medical applications, radiochemical research, environmental monitoring and chemical engineering.

The Supply of Medical Isotopes

The Supply of Medical Isotopes
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 122
Release: 2019
Genre:
ISBN: 9789264625099

This report explores the main reasons behind the unreliable supply of Technetium-99m (Tc-99m) in health-care systems and policy options to address the issue. Tc-99m is used in 85% of nuclear medicine diagnostic scans performed worldwide – around 30 million patient examinations every year. These scans allow diagnoses of diseases in many parts of the human body, including the skeleton, heart and circulatory system, and the brain. Medical isotopes are subject to radioactive decay and have to be delivered just-in-time through a complex supply chain. However, ageing production facilities and a lack of investment have made the supply of Tc-99m unreliable. This report analyses the use and substitutability of Tc-99m in health care, health-care provider payment mechanisms for scans, and the structure of the supply chain. It concludes that the main reasons for unreliable supply are that production is not economically viable and that the structure of the supply chain prevents producers from charging prices that reflect the full costs of production and supply.

Isotopes for Medicine and the Life Sciences

Isotopes for Medicine and the Life Sciences
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 144
Release: 1995-01-27
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309176697

Radioactive isotopes and enriched stable isotopes are used widely in medicine, agriculture, industry, and science, where their application allows us to perform many tasks more accurately, more simply, less expensively, and more quickly than would otherwise be possible. Indeed, in many casesâ€"for example, biological tracersâ€"there is no alternative. In a stellar example of "technology transfer" that began before the term was popular, the Department of Energy (DOE) and its predecessors has supported the development and application of isotopes and their transfer to the private sector. The DOE is now at an important crossroads: Isotope production has suffered as support for DOE's laboratories has declined. In response to a DOE request, this book is an intensive examination of isotope production and availability, including the education and training of those who will be needed to sustain the flow of radioactive and stable materials from their sources to the laboratories and medical care facilities in which they are used. Chapters include an examination of enriched stable isotopes; reactor and accelerator-produced radionuclides; partnerships among industries, national laboratories, and universities; and national isotope policy.

Radiotherapy in Practice - Radioisotope Therapy

Radiotherapy in Practice - Radioisotope Therapy
Author: Peter J Hoskin
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 200
Release: 2007-02-08
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0198568428

Radioisotope therapy is an internal form of radiation, administered through liquid or injection, that treats cancer with minimal damage to the normal surrounding tissue. This book is a practical guide to radioisotope therapy, taking the reader through the basic principles, and then developing this by application to specific sites and diseases.