Gamma Rays
Starting with nuclear fission is important because, nuclear energy is being looked at as one of the next main power sources of the future, and this energy is made through the process of nuclear fission. Nuclear Fission is the main way of producing nuclear energy, it occurs when a free neutron with a heavy element is split into two smaller nuclei. Fission reactions release neutrons, gamma rays, beta rays, and a extremely large amount of heat. Any combination of lighter nuclei may be produced as long as the total number of protons and neutrons equal those in the original fissioning neuclous. (http://hyperion.advanced-org/3471/noNetscape/fission.html) with the energy that we get from nuclear fission, we also get large amounts of nuclear waste. The main three types of nuclear waste that we get are alpha radiation, beta radiation, and gamma radiation. In this paper I will discuss gamma radiation, also known as gamma decay and how I believe that this form of waste should be used because of all the possible ways it could benefit us. It also would help in the removal of some of our nuclear waste because it would be putting a waste, that once did nothing, to practical use.
Photons/gamma rays can have very bad effects on the human body. Although a dose of just 25 rems(roenget equivalent in man) causes some detectable changes in blood(such as the breakdown of the hemoglobin and cell membrane), doses near to 100 rems usually have no immediate harmful effects. Doses above 100 rems cause the first signs of radiation sickness including nausea, vomiting, headache and the loss of white blood cells. (http://Iibrary.advanced.org/3471/noNetscape/radiation-effects-body.html). Doses of 300 rems or more cause temporary hair loss, but also more significant internal harm, including damage to nerve cells and the cells that line the digestive tract. Severe loss of white blood cells, which are the body's main defense against infection, makes radiation victims highly vulnerable to disease. Radiation also reduces production of blood platelets, which aid blood clotting, so victims of radiation sickness are also vulnerable to hemorrhaging. Half of all people exposed to 450 rems die, and doses of 800 rems or more are always fatal. Besides the symptoms mentioned above, these people also suffer from fever and diarrhea. As of yet, there is no effective treatment--so death occurs within two to fourteen days. The most frequent kind of radiation damage that is done leads to localized tissue damage. Damage to the blood vessels in exposed areas causes disturbed organ function and, at higher doses, necrosis (localized tissue death) and gangrene (Radiation Effects, Biological, Encarta 99) Current evidence suggests that any exposure to radiation poses some risk, which means there is no level below which we can say an exposure poses no risk. For the entire dose of radiation we accumulate over a lifetime from natural background radiation, the risk of developing cancer is estimated to be about one in one hundred. Based on this estimate, several percent of all fatal cancers in the United States are caused by background radiation. So in conclusion, even though photon/gamma rays that are made through nuclear fission can be dangerous to humans accidentally exposed to them, they can still be put to practical use to help us. They can help us by their use in photoelectron spectroscopy, and how they have provided the medical field with a new way of removing tumors without damaging healthy tissue, which in turn could save many lives. I also think that in the future other things that humans at one t
Some common words found in the essay are:
Spectroscopy Photon, Gamma Decay, Radiosurgery Source, Nuclear Fission, Biological Encarta, America PRS, Przeglad Lekarski, Fission Starting, Photon Radiosurgey, Radiosurgery System, nuclear fission, medical field, healthy tissue, nuclear waste, gamma rays, photon radiosurgery, gamma decay, bad effects, photons/gamma rays, photoelectron spectroscopy, help collection analysis, photon radiosurgery system, white blood cells, collection analysis spectrum, found help collection,
Approximate Word count = 1621
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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