Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-01-24
Radium Compounds.

um are a thouSandfold greater than
those of thorium or uranium, already
described. Pitchblende, the mineral
which forms the principal source of
radium at the present time, has it
self more powerful radioactive prop
critics than pure uranium tabout three
times as powerfully
The most remarkable feature of
radium is the way its compounds emit
energy. The radiations are exceed
ingly penetrating, one or two MILL
grams of fairly pure radium enclosed
in "a leadcn tube whose walls are u
inch in thickness instantly discharg-
ing gold-leaf electroscope held any
where near it, Radum preparations
are also sclf-luminous. and possess
extraordinary power of bringing about
chemical action: thus. when dissolved
or suspended in water, they set free
oxygen and hydrogen; they cause ele-
lments to change into their allotropie
forms--e. &. ordinary to red -phoSpho-
rus: they make glass, and the halides
|of potassium and sodium, become col
ored: and SO on. They also affect
photogra phic plates in their neighbour
hood: and bring about lumincSccnsc
Of substance, such as barium platino-
|cyanide and zinc blende. Added to
this. their presence has marked ply
Biological effects: thus 1t destroys
the skin and other tissues. has cura-
tive effect in some skin diseases, and
a profound influence on the nervous
system. The radiations from uranium
are incapable of penetrating any con-
siderable thickness of lead. small
thickness of which acts as perfect
screen to such radiations, as also to
Roentgen rays. Rutherford has shown
that the radiations from radium are
of three kinds of rays. which we will
call Alpha Beta and Comma rays re-
spectfully. The Beta rays, which are
In many respects the simplest, are
rays similar to cathode rays of high
velocity and consist of negatively
charged particles Gons) whose mass
is about -thousandth that of an
atom of hydrogen. travelling with a We
locity about onc-third of that of light
i. G. about $4,000 miles per second.
They can be detected by magnetic
or an clectrostatic field in similar
manner to the rays of cathoderay
tube. Thu Gamma rays are much
more penetrating rays, and are not
detected by magnetic field, however
strong. They probably consist of
Roentgen rays, accompanying the
roentgen of the Beta rays. just as
Roentgen rays are formed in a vacu-
UNI tube due to the sudden stoppage
Iof cathode rays by a suitable object.
Another remarkable property of ra-
dunn compounds. discovered by Mad
anne Curie and NJ. Labord, is that they
are continuously emitting heat. suf-
ficent being, in fact. evolved to keep
the temperature of the radium per-
lmanently about 10 c. above that of
Surrounding bodies; or, expressed in
Ianother way, an amount of heat is
Ievolved which would raise an equal
weight of water from the freezing
point to the boiling point every hour
The energy thus converted into heat
| is doubtless furnished by the radium
atoms themselves in the process of
idiSintegration. The fact that the
tradiO-activity of either radium or its
lemanation. or of any other radio-ac-
| tive substance. is independent of the
l Temperature, at all events between the
Temperatures OF liquid air and that of
boiling mercury, lends additional
weight to the view that the energy
| electrical and therinaD involved In
radioactive processes is due to
changes going on in the atoms them
lselyes: for If they were caused by &C.
tons between different molecules.
they would almost certainly be affect
led by temperature changes. 1t has
been suggested by Sir Oliver Lodge
that the disintegration of the atoms
follows as necessary consequence of
the ionic theory of the structure of an
atom: for on this theory the atom is
continuously radiating energy. which
must be derived from the internal en-
Iergy of the atom itself.
rays.-Some experiments by
Biondlot led him to suspect that op-
ierations such as the bending of a
stick or the contraction of muscle
emitted rays that caused luminous
paint to shine more brightly. These
rays he called N rays. but their ex-
Il lstence has not vet been sufficiently