X-Trade wrote:People are paranoid about radiation because they can not see, feel, or smell it. Seriously, there is radiation around us every day. Computers, microwaves, mobile phones, etc emit EM radiation. Light is a form of EM radiation. Cathode ray tube televisions and screens use effectively beta radiation (I think). Medical equipment is another.
Yes, CRTs are a fantastic source of radiation. They have electron guns in the back of the tube that generate up to 50,000 volts. Such a high energy level is necessary to shoot a beam of electrons at the screen and cause the phosphors to glow, making cute images. Of course, electron rays are what are commonly referred to as "beta radiation," and some of this leaks out to spray the room the CRT is in. They've made shielding better over the years, but if you've studied quantum mechanics at all, or even a smattering of physics, you've learned that there is no perfect radiation shield. Atoms are mostly empty space, so even dense elements like lead are simply better screens, not shields.
The result of that is you're constantly being exposed to beta radiation.
The environment is full of radioactives. There's uranium in the soil. Where do you think radioactive radon gas in basements comes from? As other brave souls have tried to say, everything around you is radioactive, even the food and water we swallow. The clothes you wear. Of course, if you become a nudist, then you lose a shield from a lot of radiation, because every layer of atoms stops some of it. Remember me talking about the sun being a huge fusion reactor? Well, a sunburn is a radiation burn, from the sun's radiation. This is why avid tanners end up with skin cancer more than other folk.
Face it people, the world is deadly through and through, and we're all gonna die from it. So have fun with it while you can and quit worrying about it.
