[ RadSafe ] Purdue working on cell phones with radiation detection

[Louie Cueva]

The title of the article seems misleading to me since the "technology" of
putting a radiation detector into a cell phone sized device is not "new".
What's "new" is using a distributed computing system to organize survey data
in conjunction with geographical location using a dynamic array of
detectors. The original article from January 22 mentions the radiation
sensors utilized are commercially available so there's not much to get
excited about there. Being somewhat if a computer geek, it is refreshing to
see distributed computing being applied to the health physics industry. The
article doesn't specify if the software being developed is for reading
radiation measurements on the phone device or for the telemetry of the data
to an administrating program. 
	I think the primary issue with putting radiation detection equipment
out in the public is the lack of qualified individuals reading them.
Spending several hundred to several thousands of dollars on equipment only
to have the failure point be the person holding it can amount to a colossal
waste of resources. Using distributed computing and an array of detection
devices would be a novel way to put a "qualified individual" behind numerous
radiation detection devices simultaneously. The system Purdue is working on
would probably be that much better if the cell phones could not display the
survey data. That alone would probably reduce a great amount of anxiety in
cases where someone panics because their phone chirped at a banana in their
lunch sack. It will be interesting to see what becomes of this project.

 
-Louie Cueva

-----Original Message-----
From: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl] On Behalf
Of Brian Rees
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 6:47 AM
To: Steven Dapra; Susan Gawarecki; RADSAFE
Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Purdue working on cell phones with radiation
detection

Well, not really folks.
There isn't enough volume in cell phones to offer enough detection
capability to be useful unless it's a huge (unshielded) source or you're
right on top of it.
People are either ignoring physics, OR just trying to obtain funding...
They could offer bigger cell phones, THAT would be popular!
Of course there are other people who believe they can reshape physics by
inventing new magic detector materials... and they're getting funding too!
Your tax dollars at work!

(Obviously) my own personal opinions.
Brian Rees


At 08:33 AM 2/16/2008, Steven Dapra wrote:
>Feb. 16
>
>         Yes --- "especially happy."  These personal rad detectors will 
> be causing so many false alarms . . . .  How about all the alarms from 
> people walking by the stacks of fertilizer at the home and garden 
> store?  I remember a posting here two or three years ago about all the 
> rad from --- what was it --- the potassium?  There won't be enough 
> jails to hold all the nuclear medicine patients who get smashed around 
> and dragged off as suspected dirty bomb terrorists.  Federal 
> prosecutors will have a heyday.
>
>Steven Dapra
>
>
>At 06:06 PM 2/15/08 -0500, Susan Gawarecki wrote:
>>I'm sure HPs everywhere will be *overjoyed* when every person has 
>>their own personal radiation detector.  And local police departments 
>>will be especially happy.
>>
>>The system proposed below may well be automated.  No truckload of 
>>bananas will be safe.  Nor would any patient who had recently 
>>undergone a medical procedure involving a radioactive isotope.
>>
>>Susan Gawarecki
>>
>>Purdue working on cell phones with radiation detection
>>http://nationalcongress.org/showarticle.php?articleID=6971
>
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