Re: [tlug] How much of radiations measured in Central Tokyo?

[Josh Glover <jmglov@example.com>]

On 15 March 2011 14:46, Raymond Wan <rwan.kyoto@example.com> wrote:

> On Tue, Mar 15, 2011 at 10:25 PM, Michael Bitker <mbitker@example.com> wrote:
>> Let me edit that last one.
>> On international flights you'll typically experience 3 to 4 microSv/hour
>
> As an unrelated comment, I've always wondered about pilots and flight
> attendants.  Surely, this is a health hazard at work but maybe it it
> is considered similar to working on a construction site and something
> falling on you?  Still, if they get helmets and dental assistants step
> away when they take the X-ray, flight attendants ought to wear some
> kind of lead vest...

Interesting point. While the radiation per hour is too low to worry
about, at least one study has shown that pilots who rack up lots of
flight hours do have a greater chance of developing certain cancers:

http://cdnedge.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/557340.stm

An excerpt:

"The study, published in the Lancet, examined Danish male jet cockpit
crew flying more than 5,000 hours. The researchers estimated that such
crew members receive up to nine mSv a year. Out of 3,877 crew, 169
developed cancer, compared to 153 in a similar-sized sample of
non-pilots."

I'm no statistician, but I wonder if the sample size if large enough
for the result to be significant.

As for lead vests, since the radiation absorbed at high altitudes will
be absorbed into every part of your body more or less equally, you'd
probably need a tinfoil helmet as well. ;)

-- 
Cheers,
Josh