ABSTRACT
Quantification of radiation sources and their effects requires the use of units for activity and dose. The radiation dose which is equivalent for a given particle flux varies both with the particles and their energy. In radiation protection, to handle situations involving non-uniform irradiation of the whole body, weighting factors are assigned to the various individual organs, relative to the whole body as 1.0. For the purposes of radiation protection, radiodiagnosis and radiotherapy it is necessary to know in detail the consequences of the influence of particular levels of exposure upon living tissue. Radiation damage in materials can be traced to the generation of atomic defects resulting from the irradiation. Microscopic radiation damage in solids can in sufficient quantity lead to macroscopic alterations of mechanical, thermal and electrical properties. Transformations of organic materials under the influence of radiation is closely connected with radiative chemical processes.
