Our 5th year of Science on Tap continues!

Thanks to the continued support of UNM, Explora and the National Museum of Nuclear Science and History

 

 A time to eat, drink & talk about science!

on Central is our new home 

Join us Thursday, February 2 at 5:30!

Radioactivity

“Nothing to be worried, it is to be understood”

 ~Madam Marie Curie

 

Veena Tikare

Sandia National Laboratories

Manager, Multiscale Science

 

Virtually all experiences we have with the physical world around us are through electrons.  What we see, feel, taste, smell and hear is mostly due to electrons in materials and their interactions with the environment.  However, radioactivity, defined as the emission of ionizing radiation or particles caused by the spontaneous disintegration of atomic nuclei, is, fundamentally, a nuclear property.  This will be a talk on radioactivity: what is it, how does it originate, how can we detect and measure it, how can we use it, and what are its effects on materials and people.  It will be structured informally to encourage audience questions and participation.  If you would like to bring fiesta ware or other belongings that you suspect are mildly radioactive, please do.  We will have Geiger counters to measure their radioactivity.