completely stupid question...

[Dehavillandman]

not really medical related, but is there a cumulative buildup of radiation from the x ray machines that screen our bags? Do the machines still emit radiation ? Am i carrying around a flight bag that will be glowing in the dark after a few years? Will I still need to carry a flashlight then, or does the bag cover it? cheers B

[gingernut]

There is no such thing as a stupid question:)apart from the ones my wife asks.

Try running a search, I believe this was covered about a year ago, and the consensus was no, your bag won't "hold" the irradiation it was exposed to.

I'm not sure about the dosage of radiation used in airport x-ray machines, I guess it is miniscule compared to our everyday "background" exposure.

[Saab Dastard]

Might make you think twice about carrying it on your lap, though! ;)

SD

[JusAWeeDram]

Well as far as I know the radiation emitted from x ray machines have a reletivley short half life so even if a bag did manage to hold the radiation, it would be back to normal in days, even less than that.

[Capt Pit Bull]

x ray machines have a reletivley short half life

It doesn't have a half life at all.

Half life is the property of a radionucleide, i.e. an atom that is unstable, and going (at some point) to emit some radiation in the form of a particle or electromagnetic gamma wave with very high energy / short wavelength).

The radiation itself keeps on travelling until it gets absorbed by something.

If there are particles involved, they can knock into and then break up or stick to an atom they hit, resulting in the atom changing into a different element. This new atom may in itself be unstable and hence radioactive.

If there are gamma waves involved, they also can affect a nucleus because of their small wavelength (comparable to a necleus) and high energy.

Whereas, although an X-Ray is an electromagnetic wave, it is not produced by a nuclear process but rather by an electronic one. It has relatively low energy compared to a gamma and relatively large wavelength compared to a nucleus, so does not cause nuclear changes in things that are hit.

Their wavelength is more comparable to the size of an atom as a whole, and they do have enough energy to ionise an atom, (as in knock out an electron from it) thereby disrupting the chemistry. So they are harmful, which is why only the minimum possible exposure consistent with the required task is used. However they do not make things radioactive.

pb

[gingernut]

I'd be a bit reluctant to put me testicles where the security men sit though:)

[outofwhack]

Gingernut, a bit reluctant? I'd be totally reluctant! Why would you want to put your testicles somewhere where someone is about to sit down. They would get squashed and it would hurt a great deal. Are you a gay sado-masochist?

[gingernut]

Don't know much about that outofwhack, is that what they get up to?

[David Horn]

Spot on Capt Pit Bull. You're completely safe.