Our schools have failed yet again.

[kickaha]

Phosphorescent seafood freaking out folks

"It was like a bright eerie light was shining on it," said Peters, who works for a natural food store.

"I thought that maybe it had been overirradiated, you know, too much radiation. Now, whenever I buy seafood, I take it home and turn out the lights."

----

...

Radiation does not make ordinary crap glow except in very rare cases, you dipshits! If you see the glow, you're dead, unless it's Cherenkov radiation in a suitably deep pool. Got it? Good. Gawd.

What do you want to bet he protests against food irradiation from this position of complete ignorance?

(BTW, it was naturally phosphorescent bacteria found in ordinary seawater.)

Comments

[ssandv.livejournal.com]

I dunno about *your* middle school science, but I'm pretty sure most people's doesn't really explain fluorescence. I think your position is pretty weak here. You...must...chill... ;-)

Besides, having fluorescent material around isn't a special case anymore, it's called a energy-efficient light bulb. I'd even go so far as to call them "ordinary".

And if the radiation low in neutrons or photons, you're probably not toast because it doesn't penetrate well--your clothes will protect you from betas, and your dead skin will protect you from external alpha radiation--but either one could still make a fluorescent surface glow. Radon kills because your lungs don't have a dead skin layer to protect them once you get the gas in there.

But it's a funny story nevertheless.