• Question: Are any of the machines you work with dangerous?

    Asked by 13579qwerty to Mark, Matthew, Mike, Paul, Sabina on 10 Mar 2014.
    • Photo: Paul Coxon

      Paul Coxon answered on 10 Mar 2014:

      Yes.
      I do a lot of experiments using radiation produced by synchrotron facilities. Briefly, these are extremely bright sources of light that scientists can use to study the structural, electronic and chemical properties of materials at the atomic level.

      Synchrotrons produce light by accelerating electrons to nearly the speed of light around a circular path using very powerful bending magnets. Energy is added to the electrons as they accelerate so that when the magnets alter their course, they naturally emit a highly focused beam of light which is then sent down a beamline. At the end of this beamline is the experimental setup – known as an endstation. The wavelength of this light can be tuned from infrared, UV and X-rays. It is the interaction of this light with the sample that forms the basis of all synchrotron experiments.

      Because of the intensity of the radiation produced, special measures have to be taken while working at synchrotrons to ensure everyone is safe. Radiation sources are tightly shielded behind concrete and lead walls, endstation viewports are made from beryllium glass. When working with hard X-rays, users usually have to leave the experimental area (a metal box called a ‘hutch’) when the beam shutter is open, and control the experiment remotely, normally this is a good time to visit the canteen and have a coffee.

    • Photo: Matthew Malek

      Matthew Malek answered on 10 Mar 2014:

      Depends what you mean by “dangeous”, doesn’t it? When you think about it, pretty much everything has some danger — even clean air (can cause fires) and water (can cause drowning).

      Speaking of clean water, the water in the Super-Kamiokande neutrino detector is some of the purest water on Earth. So pure, in fact, that its dangerous! It is so clean that it will suck nutrients out of your body by osmosis! I had this happen to me once when I was working in the detector and my hair (tied back in a ponytail) dipped into the water for awhile without me knowing. That night, I woke up with the itchiest scalp ever and couldn’t fall back to sleep until I had taken a good long shower and conditioned my scalp extensively. Turns out that the ultra-pure water had used my hair as “straws” to suck nutrients out of my scalp!

    • Photo: Mark Jackson

      Mark Jackson answered on 11 Mar 2014:

      My computer keep distracting me with Facebook. And I once dropped my mobile on my foot.

Comments

  • Photo: lumiereclair

    lumiereclair commented on :

    That’s some extreme osmosis! So if you went swimming in pure water, you could potentially die?

  • Photo: Matthew

    Matthew commented on :

    That’s right! Pretty bizarre, isn’t it?

    I did go scuba diving in the detector once, to run some tests on understanding our backgrounds. Usually when I go scuba diving (in the ocean!), I wear a wetsuit. This time, I had to wear a drysuit to keep the water away from me. I pollute the ultra-pure water (not good for the detector) and the water drains nutrients from my body (not good for me!).