Part 8

coffin A thick metal box which is used to hold very radioactive material.

contaminated Anything that has accidentally become radioactive.

cool off To stop being radioactive. Some materials have to cool off before they can be handled safely.

critical size The smallest amount of atomic fuel that will allow a chain reaction to take place.

curie The unit used to measure radiation. It is equal to the amount of radiation given off by one gram of radium in one second.

Einstein, (1879-1955), born in Germany, fled under Albert Hitler, and became an American citizen in 1940. In 1955 he published a brilliant theory which became the basis for the discovery of atomic energy. The theory stated that neither matter nor energy can ever be destroyed, but that matter can be changed into energy. Einstein expressed this in the equation E = mc^2. It means that energy (E) is equal to mass (m) multiplied by the speed of light (c), multiplied by itself. Mass is the amount of material or matter in anything. The speed of light is 186,000 miles a second.

emit To give off. Radioactive substances emit rays.

enriched Ordinary uranium which has fissionable uranium uranium added to it.

fissionable Usable as an atomic fuel. A material whose atoms will split.

fusion A source of atomic energy which is the opposite of fission. Instead of nuclei being split, they are forced together. The energy of the sun is released by fusion.

hot Radioactive.

moderator A material which is used in an atomic reactor to slow down the speed of the neutrons. Graphite and water are common moderators.

nuclear The correct name for energy produced by energy changes in atomic nuclei. Atomic energy is the common name for nuclear energy.

pig Heavy metal container for radioactive material. Similar to coffin.

pitchblende The ore richest in uranium.

remote A device that can handle radioactive materials manipulator mechanically while the operator remains safe behind a shield. (Also called a master slave manipulator.)

scram To stop an atomic reactor. An emergency stop is called a fast scram.

transmute To change one kind of atom into another kind.

INDEX

alpha particle, 30 atomic energy, 8 atomic number, 27 atomic pile, 36 atomic power, 42 atomic theory, 15

Becquerel, Antoine Henri, 20 beta particles, 30 boiling water reactor, 44 breeder reactor, 46

cadmium, 38 carbon-14, 56 chain reaction, 35, 36, 44 chemical compound, 15 Compton. Arthur H., 40 Conant, James B., 40 control rod, 38 Curie, Marie, 22 Curie, Pierre, 22

Dalton, John, 15 Dead Sea Scrolls, 57 decay, 30 Democritus, 13

electron, 26, 29 element, 15 energy, 32

Fermi, Enrico, 36 fission, 34 fossil fuels, 9, 46

gamma rays, 30 Geiger counter, 53 graphite, 36, 44

half-life, 32 helium, 28

Iodine-131, 57 ionization, 60 irradiation, 60 isotopes, 28