Originally Posted by Chimbu Chuckles
No it doesn't cover it at all, Chimbu.
That chart shows the dose of ionising radiation from exposure to radiation generally in the form of electromagnetic waves.
This is
not the same thing as consuming a spec of Caesium-137 dust. Get a spec of Caesium-137 (fission byproduct with half-life of 30 years) or Plutonium-239 (reactor fuel with half-life 24,000 years) on your skin - no problems. Just wash it off. Minimal if any damage done.
Get a spec of the above in your lungs - big problems. Best of luck to you.
Analysing radiation dosage generically in micro-sieverts is a very broad-brush way of determining the likelihood of becoming ill with certain levels of exposure. When you start consuming particles which are radioactive, you are in altogether different territory.
But surprisingly Banana farmers will receive the most radiation of anyone.
Now the banana argument is complete, utter, nonsense.
Bananas contain the radioactive isotope Potassium-40. But the physical characteristics of radioactive substances are not the same, and to compare them all on an equal footing is just ridiculous. What is the half-life? How much is absorbed? In what body tissues? What type of radiation is it? Gamma? Beta? Neutron? Alpha?
If you want to understand why you can eat "radioactive" bananas and not get sick, you need to understand what is meant by the term
"homeostasis"and
how potassium-40 levels are regulated in the body.
And who in the MSM should be most guilty of dumbing-down this radioactivity argument to the point where it bears almost no resemblance to reality? Well none other than the notorious loon and anti-science wingnut,
Andrew Bolt.