Earth, Air, Radon and Home

APR 01, 1989

These four elements of our environment interact to deliver the largest radiation dose we receive—equivalent to what the world’s population would get from several Chernobyls per year.

DOI: 10.1063/1.881213

Anthony Nero

Our use of nuclear technology for medicine, energy and weapons during this century has led to growing awareness of the potentially harmful effects of radiation. Many people are even aware that exposures from weapons testing and from normally operating nuclear power plants have been far below those from the Earth’s natural radioactivity and cosmic rays. The only human activities that routinely cause doses approaching those from natural radiation are medical uses of radiation for diagnosis or therapy.

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References

1. For a review, see W. W. Nazaroff, A. V. Nero, eds., Radon and Its Decay Products in Indoor Air, Wiley, New York (1988).
See also Lynn M. Hubbard’s review of this book, in this issue of PHYSICS TODAY, p. 72
2. A. V. Nero, in Radon and Its Decay Products in Indoor Air, W. W. Nazaroff, A. V. Nero, eds., Wiley, New York (1988), p. 1.
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More about the authors

Anthony Nero, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory.