Re: Security Screening Technique

[RuthWeiner@AOL.COM]

In a message dated 12/9/02 5:40:10 AM Mountain Standard Time, liptonw@dteenergy.com writes:


> I'm not sure what you're trying to prove - that someone can carry around Pu-239 without any risk to himself?  Thanx for the BGO ("blinding glimpse of the obvious").  I doubt that's the concern, however.  In addition to Pu-239 being a good candidate for a dispersion device, another BGO is that it can be used for weapons. 



I was not trying to "prove" anything -- actually I was asking a question.  So I'll ask another: why would Pu-239 be a good candidate for a dispersion device?  Pu-238 maybe (t 1/2 = 87 years) but not 239, even though there would be some inhalation dose.  If you are really looking at effect, the higher the specific activity, the greater the effect, so Co-60 or Cs-137 would be even more effective.  If you are just looking at the putative, highly touted psychological effect, I don't see that yelling "Pu-239" would be more terrifying than yelling "plutonium" or for that matter. yelling "radioactivity."


Ruth

Ruth Weiner, Ph. D.

ruthweiner@aol.com