Understanding Radiation

What is Radiation?

Radiation is energy in the form of moving waves or streams of particles. This energy can be high-frequency, like X-rays or cosmic rays from outer space, or low-frequency, like microwaves and radio waves. This range of energy makes up the electromagnetic spectrum and is divided into two main types of radiation: ionizing and non-ionizing.

Non-ionizing radiation does not possess enough energy to create charged atoms or molecules, called ions. Ionizing radiation, on the other hand, does possess sufficient energy to create ions. Ions can be harmful to your body, but they can also be used for many beneficial purposes.

Quick Facts

Ionizing radiation is higher-energy radiation that is capable of removing electrons from atoms as it passes through matter (such as air, water, or living tissue). Examples include alpha particles, gamma rays, X-rays, and neutrons.

Non-ionizing radiation is radiation of lower energy than ionizing radiation; it does not possess enough energy to produce ions. Examples include visible light, infrared, and radio waves.

Sources of radiation

We live on a planet where we are exposed to natural background radiation. Radioactive materials are present in the soil, rocks, the air we breathe, the water we drink, and even in our bodies. These sources of natural radiation make up the bulk of the total radiation we are exposed to every day. We are also exposed to artificial radiation from various sources, such as nuclear medicine – which uses radioactive material to diag- nose and treat cancer, the nuclear fuel cycle, as well as commercial products like smoke detectors.

Putting radiation doses into perspective

The health effects of radiation are well understood. Since the early 20th century, radiation’s effects have been studied in depth, in both the laboratory and among human populations. Because of the known health risks of radiation, it must be carefully used and strictly controlled. A balance must be struck between radiation’s societal benefits and the risks that radiation poses to people and the environment. Generally speaking, a dose is a quantity we use when we talk about the potential health effects of radiation. An effective dose takes into account the type of radiation you’ve been exposed to and the organs in your body which have been exposed. It is expressed using the unit “sievert” or more commonly “millisievert” (mSv), which is 1,000 times smaller.

EPA partners with IAEA to ensure Guyana has regulations on radiation safety and protection.

SEE PAGE XXXIII

Protecting the archives

TWO Saturdays ago, I sat in the Castellani House, in Georgetown, listening to Professor Clem Seecharran speak about his book: “Joe Solomon and the Spirit of Port Mourant.” While that discussion on cricket gripped me, it also got me thinking about the need to protect our archives.

For some context, there were about 20 of us gathered on the second floor of the Castellani House listening to Professor Clem Seecharran and other winners read excerpts of their submissions to the Guyana Prize for Literature.

The night before, Professor Seecharran was awarded the top prize in the non-fiction category. He was the first ever person to win in this newly--introduced category, but he is no stranger to writing- especially about West Indies cricket. As an avid cricket fan, I sat and happily listened to Professor Seecharran read/ talk about the old, seemingly indomitable West Indies team. But what was, perhaps, the most surprising part of his engagement was his revelation that he spent countless hours in the United Kingdom (UK)’s archives researching Joe Solomon and the formidable West Indies cricket team during that era. It was striking for two reasons: the availability of those records in the UK and the difference between that country’s archives (based on what he described) and ours.

It is not surprising that the writer immersed himself in historical records and other crucial material in the archives. While I can’t personally compare the UK and local archives, I can bemoan the condition of our archives and the slow loss of much-needed historical records and other documents.

In 2020, I was working on a special project commemorating our 50th anniversary as a Cooperative Republic. Because of that, I visited the National Archives and the Guyana Chronicle’s archives. At the time, the folks at the National Archives were focused on preserving the archives they had left. I was allowed to peruse two stacks that were not yet in a poor state; the others (especially those with the records I wanted to read) were too brittle to examine. If I perused the brittle stacks, the papers might have crumbled at my fingertips and would have been lost forever.

Then, at the Guyana Chronicle, there was a strange revelation. I usually visit here because the newspaper records are well-kept (save for the older editions that are becoming very brittle and should be digitised soonest). Somehow, though, the newspaper’s front page and several other pages for February 24, 1970 (the edition which would have featured the Republic Day events) were missing. They appeared as though they were torn out of their binder as jagged paper edges were left behind.

No one has any idea why, when, or how that happened. But what that means, however, is that records of a significant part of Guyana’s history were simply gone. At least, gone from the Guyana Chronicle’s archives.

This might not seem like the most important consideration or such a grave concern that it warrants immediate attention. I believe, however, that these first-hand information sources are of immense value to us- whether for research purposes, people hoping to determine their family tree (and I’ve seen this done already), or our edification.

When I listened to Professor Seecharran talk about practically becoming a resident of the UK archives due to the sheer volume of research he engaged in, it made me think about our archives and just how much valuable information we could be losing. I know there have long been talks about digitising records at both places, but the reality is those efforts were needed years ago. Now, attempts to digitise those documents might see pages destroyed and lost.

Still, if we value our records and documents (which we should), we should focus on preserving them.

If you would like to discuss this column or any of my previous writings, please feel free to contact me via email: vish14ragobeer@gmail.com