Units And Effects:

There are numerous various units employed to define the overall radiation exposure. The standard unit of radiation in International System of units is the becquerel (Bq), denoting one nuclear transition per second (1 s^-1). The exposure to radiation is measured according to the quantity essential to generate a coulomb of electric charge, in the type of ions, in a kilogram of pure dry air. The SI unit for this quantity is coulomb per kilogram (C/kg). The older unit, termed as the roentgen (R), is equal to 2.58 x 10^-4 C/kg.

Whenever matter like human tissue is exposed to radiation, the standard unit of dose equal is the sievert (Sv), equal to 1 joule per kilogram (1 J/kg). At times you will hear about the rem (an acronym for roentgen equal man); 1 rem = 0.01 Sv.

All such units make it mystifying to talk about radiation quantity. To make things inferior, some of the older, theoretically outdated units like the roentgen and rem have stuck around, particularly in laypeople's conversations about radiation, while the standard units have been slow to gain approval. Have you read that "more than 100 roentgens of exposure to ionizing radiation in a few hours will make a person sick" or that "people are usually exposed to a few rems all through a lifetime"? Statements such as these were general in civil-defense documents in the year 1960s after the Cuban missile crisis, whenever fears of worldwide nuclear war led to the installation of air-raid sirens and fallout shelters all over the United States.

Whenever people are exposed to excessive quantities of radiation in a short time, physical symptoms like nausea, skin burns, fatigue, and dehydration generally take place. In extreme situations internal ulceration and bleeding lead to death. If people get too much radiation steadily over a period of years, cancer rates rise, and genetic mutations also take place, giving increase to raised incidence of birth defects.