Re: X rays & floppy disks... Ha!

[Douglas Simpkin <dsimpkin@execpc.com>]

Paul R. Steinmeyer wrote:
>I recently got a question from a software distributor regarding
>radiation effects on the software they distribute overseas (out of the
>US).  Their observation is that approximately 1 in 5 floppy diskettes
>are damaged while being shipped overseas; this problem does not occur in
>domestic shipments.  They assumed that the damage is caused by x rays
>used by customs inspection....

Before blaming ionizing radiation for this, read the wise words of Joel
Gray. Quoting from his posting on MedPhys listserver last year:

"If you are concerned about ionizing radiation I would recommend the
following paper--

Gray JE, Taubel JP.  Effects of ionizing radiation and magnetic fields on
digital data stored on floppy disks.  Radiology 1993; 189:583-585.

Bottom line-- the magnetic dipoles or domains of recording material, be it
floppy disks, credit cards, video tapes, etc., are not effected by ionizing
radiation.  Some reports in the literature indicate that the base material,
i.e., the polyester tape, is effected before the magnetic information is
destroyed."

'Nough said.
Doug

Douglas J. Simpkin, Ph.D., DABR
St. Luke's Medical Center
2900 West Oklahoma Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53215
phone: (414)649-6457
fax: (414)649-5118
email: dsimpkin@execpc.com
************************************************************************
The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and subscription
information can be accessed at http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html