ABSTRACT
The fictional character of Agent 007 of the British Secret Service was originally conceived as a Cold War spy operative by the British novelist Ian Fleming who himself served in the British Naval Intelligence Division. To search for hidden items and spaces the Stasi used radioactive sources and X-rays to carry out radiological inspection of apartments and houses. X- and gamma radiography was used to detect equipment hidden in walls. Polonium-210 is considered to be one of the most toxic naturally occurring radionuclides found on earth and has the potential to affect human health, due to its wide environmental distribution. The fact that the nature of polonium poisoning was discovered and the detailed information obtained is a credit to the detectives and scientists involved. In many countries the police, security services and environmental health professionals have been visiting industrial, academic and hospital premises to assess the security of radioactive materials.
