NAME ____________________________________________________ DATE ________________ Radio Active Decay Webquest Radioactive Decay http://science.howstuffworks.com/nuclear2.htm (be sure to click through all the pages!) 1. What are the four kinds of radioactive decay? Alpha decay, beta decay and spontaneous fission 2. Describe what happens in alpha decay. An element spontaneously throws off an alpha particle at 10,000 miles per second 3. Name two elements that go through alpha decay Americium and Neptunium 4. What happens during beta decay? A neutron in the nucleus spontaneously forms into a proton, neutron and an antineutrino. The nucleus gets rid of the neutron and antineutrino, keeping the proton. 5. Name an element that goes through this kind of decay. Hydrogen 6. Explain how gamma rays are produced. When a nucleus undergoes radioactive decay it eliminates extra energy and an electromagnetic pulse, AKA gamma rays 7. What is ionizing radiation and why is it dangerous? Ionizing radiation is the combining of several different radioactive particles. It is dangerous as when these particles knock off an electron, it can cause cell death and cancer. 8. Which form of radiation penetrates the farthest? Why? Beta particles as they are smaller than the other forms of radiation, so less can stop them. Nuclear Medicine http://science.howstuffworks.com/nuclear-medicine.htm (be sure to click through all the pages !) 1. What is nuclear medicine? A form of medicine which uses nuclear radiaton to treat or identify illnesses or diseases in patients 2. List and two types of imaging techniques and describe how they work. PET scans and bone scanning. PET scans find radiation emitted from the body and bone scanning detects radiation in the bone tissue. 3. Why are quickly multiplying cells such as cancer cells affected more by nuclear radiation? They have little time to repair and treat diseased cells, therefore the radiation will spread faster. 4. Name two things in the body that radioactive tracers can be used to locate. Tumors and certain organs Nuclear Reactors http://science.howstuffworks.com/nuclear-power.htm (be sure to click through to the next pages!) 1. Why does nuclear energy make people both hopeful and fearful? It can help reduce fossil fuel usage and is renewable but too much nuclear energy can be dangerous as accidents may occur 2. Why did the partial nuclear meltdown in Japan occur? A tsunami disabled the power supply and cooling of 3 reactors, leading to overheating and the meltdown 3. Discuss the importance and function of control rods. Used by nuclear reactors to control fission rates 4. List some of the extra precautions taken on the outside of nuclear reactors. A concrete liner, a steel barrier and an outer concrete building designed to withstand natural disasters. This ensures safety of power supplies, as to not damage the cooling systems. 5. Identify one PRO and one CON of nuclear power. Which side do you agree with? One pro is that it reduces our fossil fuel dependence. One con is that in its short history, nuclear disaster has turned a worrying percentage of land uninhabitable. I personally am slightly in favor as new innovations in safety show renewable promise in nuclear energy 6. Why can’t radioactivity be turned off with the flip of a switch? Because nuclear waste continues to emit radiation years after it was first released. The radiation is released at the rate of decay, which a lot of time is very slow, leading to a long period where the materials release radioactivity. https://science.howstuffworks.com/inside-nuclear-power-plant-pictures.htm#page=0 1. What is the function of the containment vessel? Why is it important? It is made to protect against radiation leakage. It is important as leakage could decimate ecosystems in the surrounding areas. 2. True or False? The vapor that rises from a coolant tower is radioactivity being released into the environment. False, it is water https://science.howstuffworks.com/nuclear-power.htm 1. Discuss the release of energy by fission. Nuclear fission is when one atom splits into two and releases energy 2. What is meant by uranium enrichment? Uranium is enriched by separating isotopes of it with specialized lasers 3. Explain the role of control rods in fission reaction. They ensure that the reaction remains stable and doesn’t get out of control 5. What is critical mass? Critical mass is the lowest amount of fissile material needed to keep a nuclear reaction up. https://science.howstuffworks.com/nuclear-bomb.htm 1. Describe how an atom bomb works. They work by combining chemical explosives, nuclear fission and nuclear fusion 2. Describe how radioactive fallout is produced by the explosion of a bomb. Nuclear fission creates unstable atoms that release radioactivity constantly, which remains in the area for many years after. 3. What are the health consequences of radioactive fallout particles? It can harm a persons bone marrow and increase their risk of leukaemia, A highly fatal disease. https://science.howstuffworks.com/manhattan-project.htm 1. What was the Manhattan Project? It was a codename for a secret project involving America working to developing a functional atomic bomb. This was due to fear of attack during war. 2. What prompted President Franklin D Roosevelt to begin researching atomic energy? He believed that Hitler would utilize that weaponry if he got it before them, so they needed to get it first to ensure he didn’t use atomic bombs first. 3. Who was the primary scientist that led the Manhattan Project? J. Robert Oppenheimer http://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/safety-and-security/safety-ofplants/chernobyl-accident.aspx Read about the Chernobyl disaster and briefly describe what happened. The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear disaster which occurred in 1986 in Ukraine. It was caused by a mistake in the design of the reactor as well as the maintenance of it. Another main reason was unexperienced personnel, due to the relatively new tech being used on the reactor. The reactor leaked radiation in the surrounding area, an area which is and will be a wasteland for years to come. https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/3mile-isle.html Read about the Three Mile Island disaster and briefly describe what happened. The Three Mile Island disaster was a nuclear disaster that happened in 1999 in Pennsylvania. It was caused by both the failure of some equipment as well as the crew taking too long to discover the issue. It melted down part of the island, and now the island is uninhabitable due to the radiation content in the area. http://www.atomicarchive.com/Effects/radeffects.shtml What are seven ways radiation affects the human body. (write the organ and how it is affected) 1. Radiation can affect the brain by stopping cell reproduction. Radiation kills nerve cells, which supply stimulus to the brain 2. Radiation can affect the heart by destroying blood vessels, leading to heart failure 3. Radiation destroys parts of the thyroid gland 4. Radiation can affect keloids by causing abnormal growth of tissue. 5. Radiation can affect your blood system via radiation sickness, where your blood cell count is lowered 6. Radiation can affect the reproductive tract by reducing rem levels 7. Radiation can affect the gastrointestinal tract because it can damage cells and the lining of the organ https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/reaction/interact/facts.html 1. Which activity on the page exposes you to the most radiation? The one that exposes you to more radiation than the others is smoking which gives you 16,000mrems of radiation.
