In article , John A. Lind <jlind@xxxxxxxxxxxx> writes
At 03:04 AM 8/7/03, you wrote:
In article , John A. Lind <jlind@xxxxxxxxxxxx> writes
I'm not that concerned about very low level Alpha-emitters provided
they're not emitting anything else (Beta in particular). Alpha particles
don't get much farther than the very outer surface of the skin which is
already dead anyway.
You need to revise your radioactive hazard assessment John. Once ingested
it is the short penetration length of alpha which makes then so
dangerous. You don't have dead skin cells lining your lungs, for example.
You are quite correct . . . I mixed an example of ingesting a Beta emitter
with non-ingestion of Alpha emitters.
One of the other hazards is isotopes (especially ones with long half-life)
that readily mix into the food chain (e.g., Strontium-90) and then are
ingested as part of food in which it has embedded itself . . . both Alpha
and Beta. Look at a Mendeleevian Table and find what's below the common
elements found in the human body (and other organic material consumed by
humans) that has the same valence. Isotopes of them will generally be used
readily by the body in lieu of what would normally be found.
Yes, a lot of the really nasty stuff are Lanthanides and Actinides,
including thorium and uranium itself and are readily absorbed as, for
example, iron and calcium substitutes. In addition to the radioactive
dangers though many of these heavy metals are also toxic in their own
right. The toxicity of plutonium, for example, exceeds its radioactive
hazard by many orders of magnitude. Thorium is the same, but bound in
glass fragments I would guess that it is the radioactive hazard that is
most significant.
So, getting back to the original issue - please do not pulverise your
old yellowed Zuiko lenses, folks. Its dangerous for you, your family
and any animals that use the area where the glass dust ends up. If you
must dispose of these lenses, do so responsibly, just as you would with
other toxic waste like the mercury batteries from old OM-1s.
--
Kennedy
Yes, Socrates himself is particularly missed;
A lovely little thinker, but a bugger when he's pissed.
Python Philosophers
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