The Safety Of Airport Security Scanners Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Safety Of Airport Security Scanners - Essay Example According to the article, there are currently two types of scanners used in airports to screen various travelers. The first type is the scanner that â€Å"employs millimeter wave technology, which delivers no ionizing radiation†Ã‚   The other type is the scanner that â€Å"uses backscatter X-rays that expose the individual being screened to very low levels of ionizing radiation† (Radiological Society of North America par. 1). To determine the effect of low levels of ionizing radiation, one decided to confirm other studies on the subject and the article published in the ScienceDaily on low levels of ionizing radiation indicate that a report from the National Academies' National Research Council have indicated that â€Å"the committee's thorough review of available biological and biophysical data supports a "linear, no-threshold" (LNT) risk model, which says that the smallest dose of low-level ionizing radiation has the potential to cause an increase in health risks to h umans†. This article confirmed the risks involved in low levels of ionizing radiation, however, since it was published in 2005, the reliability and applicability could be diminished.According to the article, there are currently two types of scanners used in airports to screen various travelers. The first type is the scanner that â€Å"employs millimeter wave technology, which delivers no ionizing radiation†Ã‚   The other type is the scanner that â€Å"uses backscatter X-rays that expose the individual being screened to very low levels of ionizing radiation† (Radiological Society of North America par. 1). To determine the effect of low levels of ionizing radiation, one decided to confirm other studies on the subject and the article published in the ScienceDaily on low levels of ionizing radiation indicate that a report from the National Academies' National Research Council have indicated that â€Å"the committee's thorough review of available biological and bioph ysical data supports a "linear, no-threshold" (LNT) risk model, which says that the smallest dose of low-level ionizing radiation has the potential to cause an increase in health risks to humans†. This article confirmed the risks involved in low levels of ionizing radiation, however, since it was published in 2005, the reliability and applicability could be diminished. The article being reviewed was actually effective in providing a balanced discourse by first presenting the arguments of Brenner, to wit: â€Å"given that up to one billion such scans per year are now possible in the U.S, we should have concerns about the long-term consequences of an extremely large number of people being exposed to a potential radiation-induced cancer risk, no matter how slight†.