What is radioactivity and radiation?
Radioactivity is the term used to describe the natural process by which some atoms spontaneously disintegrate, emitting both particles and energy as they transform into different, more stable atoms. This process, also called radioactive decay, occurs because unstable isotopes tend to transform into a more stable state. Radioactivity is measured in terms of disintegrations, or decays, per unit time. Common units of radioactivity are the Becquerel, equal to 1 decay per second, and the Curie, equal to 37 billion decays per second. Radiation refers to the particles or energy released during radioactive decay. The radiation emitted may be in the form of particles, such as neutrons, alpha particles, and beta particles, or waves of pure energy, such as gamma and X-rays. Each radioactive element, or radionuclide, has a characteristic half-life. Half-life is a measure of the time it takes for one half of the atoms of a particular radionuclide to disintegrate (or decay) into another nuclear form
