3.58. Dangers and Uses of Radiation http://www.ck12.org
Glucose containing radioactive elements can be given to patients. Cancer cells take up more of the glucose than
normal cells do and give off radiation. The radiation can be detected with special machines like the one in the
Figure3.108. The radiation may also kill cancer cells. You can learn more about medical uses of radiation at this
URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_8xM-mLxJ8
FIGURE 3.108
This machine scans a patient’s body and
detects radiation.Summary
- A low level of radiation occurs naturally in the environment. This background radiation is generally assumed
to be safe for living things. - Long-term or high-dose exposure to radiation can harm living things and damage nonliving materials such as
metals. - One reason radiation is dangerous is that it generally can’t be detected with the senses. It can be detected only
with devices such as Geiger counters. - Radiation has several important uses, including diagnosing and treating cancer.
Vocabulary
- radiation: Energy emitted by the nucleus of a radioisotope or an accelerating particle; transfer of energy by
electromagnetic waves that can travel across space as well as through matter.
Explore More
Watch the video about uses of radiation at the following URL, and then answer the questions below. http://www.y
outube.com/watch?v=TdbzShLU30w