Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Radiation Detection Wrist Watch

Posted by michael on from the steal-one-from-homesec-employees dept.

luigi writes "I4U has this story: vigiWATCH is a newly created swiss company that offers the smallest, most precise radiation detector worldwide in a normal size wrist watch. The watch displays current radioactivity rates from 0.00001mSv/h to 4.00000 mSv/h and cumulative radioactive dose from 0.001mSv/h to 9999 mSv/h. The precision is +/- 25% over total range. Besides the radioactivity detection, its also showing the time in a digital and analog display. The watch looks like a normal casual wrist watch. Hope this watch never becomes standard equipment for survival on this planet. The watch is sold on the site for $1100."

4 of 219 comments (clear)

  1. useless by s0rbix · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Is it just be, but if you are wearing a radiation detector on your WRIST, and it detects radiation, won't it be too late?

  2. No. by rebelcool · · Score: 3, Insightful
    radiation is all around you and emitted by everything from your smoke detector (contains americium souce which emits alpha particles), to rock (especially granite).

    However, most of these don't emit enough to be harmful. Working in an area with radioactive materials tends to have higher background radiation, as does going on frequent flights or other high altitude operations.

    Radiation is only dangerous in large, very easily detectable doses. And unless its an extreme amount, you can even take short term exposure to a relatively large amount and suffer few ill effects. You wouldnt want to stay long in such a hot environment though.

    --

    -

  3. you fail... by rebelcool · · Score: 3, Insightful
    to realize just how many fields use radioactivity. This would be useful for lab workers, oil field techs (plenty or radioactive sources are sent down holes for various reasons), geology... the list goes on and on.

    Just because you don't have a thorough, or even cursory, knowledge about everything in the world doesnt mean something is useless.

    --

    -

  4. Re:Workers in related fields by 0x0d0a · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I can see plenty of people who work around radiation buying one of these. Light, convenient, and unobtrusive... what's not to like.

    People that work around radiation (at least in the US) are generally already required to carry radiation-warning equipment. The watch would be redundant.

    I expect that this might become a standard addition to high-end (in the functional, not a "the brand name is Rolex" sense) watches, like altimeters.

    --
    May we never see th