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reddave

Life Member
Mar 15, 2006
337
48
stalybridge
Just to investigate what exactly various ore samples I have collected over the years are giving off in term of radiation. Have a google, it’s quite fascinating and you can identify individual isotopes and decay daughters with a gammaspec setup

But to get good clear spectroscopy you need to isolate out background and cosmos radiation and run it for a long time. And that will take several dozen kg of lead cast into bricks to surround the setup! That was I can detect emissions that are lower than naturally occurring background (or that are masked by background radiation)

Geek on!
Ah. The garden shed version of discovering dark matter, perhaps ?

I believe nullified by the mathematical realisation that the inverse square law was calculated taking into account that there was no external input formulated into the equation.
When used in the real world, the maths results didn't tally with the actual results. The discrepancy became 'dark matter'. When the discovering scientists realised this, one became a staunch anti dark matter-ist. The others kept sctum and kept applying for funding.
It's no longer a science thing, it's a political and economic thing.
It was in really great depth in a Suspicious Observers episode.
#Absolutely fascinating
 
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Nice65

Brilliant!
Apr 16, 2009
6,504
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W.Sussex
Arguably, gold has created more problems for this world than any other metal :)
The conversion of the heavy and difficult to transport gold, for trade, into paper promises caused the problems. The gold is actually worth money, as is copper and silver.
 
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TeeDee

Full Member
Nov 6, 2008
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The conversion of the heavy and difficult to transport gold, for trade, into paper promises caused the problems. The gold is actually worth money, as is copper and silver.

Agree.
More so that Gold ( and silver, copper ) actually IS Money.

FIAT ( A relatively modern western creation ) is paperwork currency.
Paperwork based upon an exchange of belief and confidence in the issuer and counter bearer.
 

TeeDee

Full Member
Nov 6, 2008
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Just a pedantic engineer. :D

But not a native English speaker.
Hence your misunderstanding.


 

Tengu

Full Member
Jan 10, 2006
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Wiltshire
<Sigh> MrEd, I dont have several dozen Kg lead but I probably can muster half a dozen...We would have to discuss transport if you wanted it.
 

MrEd

Life Member
Feb 18, 2010
2,148
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Surrey/Sussex
www.thetimechamber.co.uk
Y'what ??
Natural background radiation ?? Where do you live and what's the supposed milliSV load ??
No point in stressing your foundations with useless lead or tungsten when you could stack useful water bottles against the walls. Same load and better absorption, unless Radiation is Cobalt. Dirty dirty source.
Even out the lopsided load by harvesting rainwater stacked against the external skin.
Go and chat with NDT companies, they've probably got a barrow full of lead collimaters in the back since we all moved to tungsten ones

Water is actually a really good idea and imminently easier to do.

Background radiation averages about 0.10uSv/hr round my way, so very minimal

I mean natural, as in just the background. I have some samples that measure barely above background - naturally occurring uranium-vanadium nodules I pulled out of some mud cliffs in Dorset. Would like to gamma spec them without interference if that makes sense?
322299EA-FB48-46DF-B8B4-33AC29F44F7D.jpeg421E42FE-AAFD-4791-8B3E-A8D2DBB92532.jpeg
 
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Broch

Life Member
Jan 18, 2009
8,094
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Mid Wales
www.mont-hmg.co.uk
On that note; myHermes will deliver up to 15kg for under nine quid, and for a little over, they'll come and pick the parcel up from you too.


If you're lucky; around here they throw it in the hedge :(

Sorry, a constant battle with this dreadful company at the moment!
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,989
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S. Lanarkshire
I'm sorry to hear that; we must be awfully lucky with our delivery driver, because he's been a rock right through this blasted disease. When he was on holiday the fellow who filled in for him was every bit as timely and helpful.
 

reddave

Life Member
Mar 15, 2006
337
48
stalybridge
Go into attic (at night so no solar input, preferably when raining to dampen 4/5G EM radiation), take readings at 16 cardinal points around a fixed point.
Calculate an average reading. Take 4 readings from samples. Average out.
Average minus attic equals total.
Bearing in mind cardinal readings not taken next to electrical conduits or bag of soil from Windscale, Chernobyl or 3 mile island.
Attic siting due to Inverse Square Law negates negligible ground radiation output by a considerable %. too drunk to calculate it just now
Et voila. You've just successfully destroyed your presumption of dying from background radiation poisoning
Good innit
 
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