The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1921-08-19

cessive fractional crystallizations OF
the radium chloride and, at later
stage, of the bromide, most of the
radium is obtained in a salt contain.
ing over % per cent of pure radium
bromide. BY still further chemical
treatment the bromide is converted
into the sulphate or the chloride, and
In the therapeutic use of radium these
two salts find the largest use."
Mime. Curie, several years ago by
general request, fixed an international
radlum standard This is deposited
in Paris and the leading cities of the
world have replicas of it. So now
radium preparations are measured by
comparing the electrical energy car
ried by their gamma rays with that
of the international standard. While
radium has still many mysteries, il
may be said for the benefit of the
general public that its energy appears
to be given off in three rays, which
are known as the Alpha, Beta and
Gamma rays. 1t is stated that the
Alpha and Beta rays are electrical
and that the Gamma ray is rather a
vibration than ray. The Alpha ray
is believed to comprise So per cent
of radium's activity; it travels with
about the speed of light and has no
penetrative power. The Beta ray is
about 10 per cent of the activity,
travels with about 1-15 the speed OF
light and can penetrate about an inch
and one-fifth of lead. The Gamma
ray can penetrate more than three
inches of lead; when it strikes hard
substance 1t breaks up into two rays
corresponding to the Alpha and Beta
rays.
1t is the Gamma ray that is used
in bloodless surgery. The Alpha ray
does not burn. The Beta ray is kept
from the patient by screen that abb
serbs it. The Gamma ray seems to
have the peculiar quality of picking
out useless or harmful tissues for its
first attack; it will harm useful it's
sues only after harmful tissues have
been burnt away or dissolved Radi.
um is handled in glass tubes incased
in lead containers. Those who handle
it constantly usually get pretty badly
burned sooner or later. Flesh burned
oy radlum cannot be healed; it simply
disappears and is gone. One of Nine.
Curie's' hands has been affected and
her general health has been under
mined by intensive wartime work with
radium.
A gram OF radium makes a small
thimbleful. Its current price is $120,
600. A gram is divided into thOus
and parts, each of which is called a
milligram and sells for $3.50. Physi-
clans who use it have from so to csc
mlligrams. The state Of New York
has recently purchased On grams for
use in the treatment of cancer.
With radium worth $4,000 a thin,
blefui. how is it that the dials of even
cheap watches can be made luminous
by its use? It's this way: The lum-
nous material on the dial is COM
bination of most minute portion of
real radium and q special zinc sui
phide. These atoms are so small that |
it would take hundreds of millions
of them TO cover an inch. AS each |
atom explodes, projectile too small |
TO be seen under a microscope flies off |
and strikes crystal of the zinc OK.
ide. The heat generated by the i'm.
pact makes flash visible to the eye.
AS these explosions occur at the rate |
of about 100000 a second on the watch
dial, their combined flashes make the
dial luminous.