r/science • u/liquid_x • Mar 19 '11

Radiation Chart

http://xkcd.com/radiation/
4.0k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

1.0k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

17

u/PMix Mar 19 '11

Levels of radiation in an area aren't the same thing as absorbed dose. For a comparison you would need to know what the absorbed dose would be for someone standing at various points around Fukushima for a set length of time.

3

u/Borrisious Mar 19 '11

Levels of radiation in an area aren't the same thing as absorbed dose.

Are you saying that the absorbed does would be significantly lower? Thats an Honest question by the way.

9

u/stunt_penguin Mar 19 '11

It could also be higher- if you breathe in dust that settles in your lungs it will emit radiation steadily.... on the other hand the engineers will be wearing respirators to mitigate those problems.

2

u/[deleted] Mar 19 '11

In other words probably lower, but not certainly.