Via xkcd
this post was submitted on 23 Feb 2024
182 points (98.4% liked)
Cool Guides
4492 readers
4 users here now
Rules for Posting Guides on Our Community
1. Defining a Guide Guides are comprehensive reference materials, how-tos, or comparison tables. A guide must be well-organized both in content and layout. Information should be easily accessible without unnecessary navigation. Guides can include flowcharts, step-by-step instructions, or visual references that compare different elements side by side.
2. Infographic Guidelines Infographics are permitted if they are educational and informative. They should aim to convey complex information visually and clearly. However, infographics that primarily serve as visual essays without structured guidance will be subject to removal.
3. Grey Area Moderators may use discretion when deciding to remove posts. If in doubt, message us or use downvotes for content you find inappropriate.
4. Source Attribution If you know the original source of a guide, share it in the comments to credit the creators.
5. Diverse Content To keep our community engaging, avoid saturating the feed with similar topics. Excessive posts on a single topic may be moderated to maintain diversity.
6. Verify in Comments Always check the comments for additional insights or corrections. Moderators rely on community expertise for accuracy.
Community Guidelines
-
Direct Image Links Only Only direct links to .png, .jpg, and .jpeg image formats are permitted.
-
Educational Infographics Only Infographics must aim to educate and inform with structured content. Purely narrative or non-informative infographics may be removed.
-
Serious Guides Only Nonserious or comedy-based guides will be removed.
-
No Harmful Content Guides promoting dangerous or harmful activities/materials will be removed. This includes content intended to cause harm to others.
By following these rules, we can maintain a diverse and informative community. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reach out to the moderators. Thank you for contributing responsibly!
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
I'd like to see the dose from smoking cigarettes everyday. Maybe I'll get a scare!
Unlikely. If you're not scared of all the non-radioactive poisons in cigarettes, you're not gonna be scared from the radiation. According to this, about 360 µSv each year for a pack a day smoking. Comparative things are in the green section, e.g. yearly dose from potassium in body.
I found this: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2672370/#:~:text=In%20estimating%20the%20radiation%20dose,is%20252%20%CE%BCSv%20in%20total.
It gives an effective dose of 252 μSv per year, which according to the chart puts it in the green section. Right around the EPA’s yearly release limit from nuclear power plants, but below what you’d get from your bodies own natural potassium or even getting apparently a single mammogram. Not good, but I guess not horrible, though I imagine it adds up over time and the harm from cigarettes may be more chemical than radioactive. Smoking isn’t worth it.
There's also this: https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJM198202113060613?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%20%200pubmed
"In a person smoking 1 1/2 packs of cigarettes per day, the radiation dose to the bronchial epithelium in areas of bifurcation is 8000 mrem per year -- the equivalent of the dose to the skin from 300 x-ray films of the chest per year. This figure is comparable to total-body exposure to natural background radiation containing 80 mrem per year in someone living in the Boston area."
8000 mrem is about 80 mSv. A lifetime of background radiation in a year, so quite high.
How can a mammogram be 20 times more than a chest x-ray?
Even the most basic mammogram includes about 4 exposures to the radiation source. It's not as many pictures as a CT scan, but it's still comprehensive and some of them act like pseudo-CT scans.