Monthly Archives: May 2012

Update on Radon Levels – Post Mitigation System Install

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A month ago I wrote about the installation of a radon mitigation system in my home.  Before the install, the level in the basement measured 12.1 pCi/L , while the level on the first floor measured 6.0 pCi/L.

After the installation of the active mitigation system, the level on the first floor of the house was reduced to 2.6 pCi/L, as measured with a charcoal detector made by Air Chek.  I haven’t rechecked the basement yet.

In addition to the lower radon reading, I’ve noticed that the basement humidity averages about 65%, and doesn’t rise much even after a good rain.  That might make for the most useful result: no more soggy cardboard storage boxes.

New Study Published on Prolonged Low Dose-Rate Radiation Exposure and Cell Repair

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Researchers at MIT recently published a study on the effects of low dose-rate radiation on cell repair mechanisms.

One of the more interesting quotes in the story, suggesting that the human body already possesses substantial radiation repair capability: “DNA damage occurs spontaneously even at background radiation levels, conservatively at a rate of about 10,000 changes per cell per day.”

New Addition to Cardiac Stress Test – Police Interrogation

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As part of the Secure the Cities campaign initiated after 9/11, many police departments and state agencies received grants from the federal government to purchase sensitive radiation monitoring devices for use by on-duty police officers, firefighters, and emergency responders.  This article in Police Chief Magazine explains the history and intent of the program.  In many cases, police were issued the Thermo Scientific RadEye PRD.

In Connecticut last Wednesday, a man returning from a nuclear stress test was stopped by a state trooper with a RadEye personal radiation detector.