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TSA To Retest Full Body Scanners For Radiation
cultiv8 writes with this excerpt from USA Today:
"The Transportation Security Administration announced Friday that it would retest every full-body X-ray scanner that emits ionizing radiation — 247 machines at 38 airports — after maintenance records on some of the devices showed radiation levels 10 times higher than expected. The TSA says that the records reflect math mistakes and that all the machines are safe. Indeed, even the highest readings listed on some of the records — the numbers that the TSA says were mistakes — appear to be many times less than what the agency says a person absorbs through one day of natural background radiation.
Even so, the TSA has ordered the new tests out of 'an abundance of caution to reassure the public,' spokesman Nicholas Kimball says. The tests will be finished by the end of the month, and the results will be released 'as they are completed,' the agency said on its website."
Did you not read the blurb? Let alone the article?
These machines are on a maintenance plan. A few anomalies early on prompted the TSA to force retest all machines before their scheduled maintenance window.
They did exactly what you whined about them not doing.
-Malakai
A Dragon Lives in my Garage
Indeed, even the highest readings listed on some of the records — the numbers that the TSA says were mistakes — appear to be many times less than what the agency says a person absorbs through one day of natural background radiation.
That is irrelevant, and in my recommendation whoever came up with that formulation should be fired, or at least reassigned to duties far from any actual responsibilities.
I have been unable to find any actual numbers for dosage recorded in this case, so let's look at the National Council on Radiation Protection Commentary No. 16 - Screening of Humans for Security Purposes Using Ionizing Radiation Scanning Systems, which I believe governs this.
The Commentary states that general-use systems should adhere to an effective dose of 0.1 microsievert (Sv) (0.01 millirem) or less per scan, and can be used mostly without regard to the number of individuals scanned or the number of scans per individual in a year. An effective dose of 0.1 Sv (0.01 mrem) per scan would allow 2,500 scans of an individual annually [i.e., if each scan required 0.1 Sv (0.01 mrem)] without exceeding the administrative control of 0.25 mSv (25 mrem) to a member of the general public for a single source or set of sources under one control. Assuming 250 workdays per year, this would correspond to an average of 10 scans each day, a frequency that is unlikely to be encountered.
So, if the actual dose is 10 times that, or 1 micro Sv / scan, then the "administrative control" of 250 microSv / year would require only 250 scans, or one per workday, a frequency which would not be "unlikely to be encountered." In fact, both really frequent flyers and airline crew would be likely to match or exceed this. To be blunt about it, the TSA chose words intended to obscure the likelihood that their radiation guidelines are being violated, at least for some members of the public. This does not inspire confidence.
Remember, too, that this technology was pushed heavily by Michael Chertoff when he was in office, and now he is profiting from its deployment. That also does not inspire confidence.
I think that there should be an independent audit of the TSA's use of X-Ray backscatter and that until that is done members of the flying public should refuse to take those scans. It is better to get groped than to get cancer.
And to speed things up they've already started writing up the results.
Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
Wait wait wait, how the hell are you blaming this on republicans? The TSA chief (John Pistole) was nominated by a D president (Obama). The DHS secretary (Janet Nepolitano) is a democrat, also nominated by obama. The current head of the executive is a Democrat. And all of these machines came in under THEIR watch with THEIR approval.
Where do the republicans come into this again?
A medical facility that allowed an x-ray machine to expose patients to an order of magnitude more radiation than it was supposed to for any length of time would have hell to pay.
TFA does not say that TSA detected problems and so is re-testing everything. It says that AFTER they were forced by lawmakers and the press to release records AND it was determined that at least 33% of those inspections were rendered worthless by seriously sloppy procedure AND lawmakers rumbled about taking action, THEN and only THEN the TSA reluctantly offered to retest everything.
That's far from your characterization.
While "groped" would certainly be an exaggeration, I have absolutely had my balls touched by a TSA officer after refusing the scanner here in San Francisco. This has happened more than once.
I make radiology stations for a living. The 3 companies that make the "backscatter" x-ray machines aren't people like "GE' or "Siemens", they're defense contractors. There's many radiologiests who won't fly commercial because of these things. All it takes is ONE screw up in configuration and maintenance and you get Therac-25... except these things are everywhere now...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Therac-25
Imagination is the silver lining of Intelligence.
The President only signed the bill. It was Congress that passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
You make it sound like Congress spontaneously came up the idea instead of Obama fighting tooth and nail to get it passed before the November elections.
It's the same kind of healthcare reform the Republicans have been proposing for years
I knew it, it's those damn Republicans again.
Seriously, it's nothing like the healthcare reforms the Republicans were proposing.
Reagan ran up enormous deficits during his two terms in the Oval Office,
It's funny, you say Congress was responsible for passing national health care (Obama only signed it), but Reagan was responsible for the budget (I presume the Congress wasn't responsible because they only passed it).
Ditto Bush and his kid.
Okay, I'll give you that one. Nevertheless, Obama makes Bush Sr. and Jr. look like skinflints.
Uh, what higher taxes? Obama has signed into law the largest annual tax cuts in history, $282 billion over two years.
You mean Obama extended the Bush tax cuts, under protest. I'm not surprised he takes credit for them though.