Radioactive animals don’t glow — but do show the power of radiation

Anthropocene: Term coined by scientists to describe the age in which humans have been the strongest force of change on the planet. It is generally believed to date from at least the dawn of the Nuclear Age (in the middle 1940s), and possibly even earlier — from the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the early 1800s.

atomic: Having to do with atoms, the smallest possible unit that makes up a chemical element.

biologist: A scientist involved in the study of living things.

boar: A term for the male of some mammals, including pigs and bears.

calcium: A chemical element and alkali metal common in minerals of the Earth’s crust and in sea salt. It is also found in bone mineral and teeth, and can play a role in the movement of certain substances into and out of cells.

cancer: Any of more than 100 different diseases, each characterized by the rapid, uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells. The development and growth of cancers, also known as malignancies, can lead to tumors, pain and death.

cell: (in biology) The smallest structural and functional unit of an organism. Typically too small to see with the unaided eye, it consists of a watery fluid surrounded by a membrane or wall. Depending on their size, animals are made of anywhere from thousands to trillions of cells. Most organisms, such as yeasts, molds, bacteria and some algae, are composed of only one cell.

coyote: This relatively long-legged member of the dog family (Canis latrans) is sometimes referred to as the prairie wolf. It is, however, notably smaller and its build more scrawny than a true wolf. Found from Alaska down into Central America, coyotes have lately expanded their range into all 50 U.S. states. Many now hang out in urban areas where they have no predators and can easily dine on rodents and scavenge trashed food.

dairy: Containing milk or having to do with milk. Or a building or company in which milk is prepared for distribution and sale.

debris: Scattered fragments, typically of trash or of something that has been destroyed. Space debris, for instance, includes the wreckage of defunct satellites and spacecraft.

decay: (for radioactive materials) The process whereby a radioactive isotope — which means a physically unstable form of some element — sheds energy and subatomic particles. In time, this shedding will transform the unstable element into a slightly different but stable element. For instance, uranium-238 (which is a radioactive, or unstable, isotope) decays to radium-222 (also a radioactive isotope), which decays to radon-222 (also radioactive), which decays to polonium-210 (also radioactive), which decays to lead-206 — which is stable. No further decay occurs. The rates of decay from one isotope to another can range from timeframes of less than a second to billions of years.

DNA: (short for deoxyribonucleic acid) A long, double-stranded and spiral-shaped molecule inside most living cells that carries genetic instructions. It is built on a backbone of phosphorus, oxygen, and carbon atoms. In all living things, from plants and animals to microbes, these instructions tell cells which molecules to make.

downwind: A designation for the location of something that is exactly opposite to where the wind is coming from.

earthquake: A sudden and sometimes violent shaking of the ground, sometimes causing great destruction, as a result of movements within Earth’s crust or of volcanic action.

egg: A reproductive cell that contains half of the genetic information necessary to form a complete organism. In humans and in many other animals, ovaries produce eggs. When an egg fuses with a sperm, they combine to produce a new cell, called a zygote. This is the first step in the development of a new organism.”

element: A building block of some larger structure. (in chemistry) Each of more than one hundred substances for which the smallest unit of each is a single atom. Examples include hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, lithium and uranium.

Food and Drug Administration: (or FDA) A part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, FDA is charged with overseeing the safety of many products. For instance, it is responsible for making sure drugs are properly labeled, safe and effective; that cosmetics and food supplements are safe and properly labeled; and that tobacco products are regulated.

forest: An area of land covered mostly with trees and other woody plants.

genetic: Having to do with chromosomes, DNA and the genes contained within DNA. The field of science dealing with these biological instructions is known as genetics. People who work in this field are geneticists.

geographer: A scientist who studies Earth’s features and how the living and nonliving parts of the planet affect one another.

half-life: The time it takes for half of some quantity of a radioactive isotope to decay (transform) into a new isotope

insect: A type of arthropod that as an adult will have six segmented legs and three body parts: a head, thorax and abdomen. There are hundreds of thousands of insects, which include bees, beetles, flies and moths.

lead:  A toxic heavy metal (abbreviated as Pb) that in the body moves to where calcium wants to go (such as bones and teeth). The metal is particularly toxic to the brain. In a child’s developing brain, it can permanently impair IQ, even at relatively low levels.

mammal: An animal distinguished by possessing hair or fur, the secretion of milk by females for the feeding of their young, and (typically) the bearing of live young. They also are warm-blooded (or endothermic).

media: A term for the ways information is delivered and shared within a society. It encompasses not only the traditional media — newspapers, magazines, radio and television — but also digital outlets, such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and WhatsApp. The newer, digital media are sometimes referred to as social media. The singular form of this term is medium.

molecule: A group of atoms that represents the smallest possible amount of a chemical compound. Molecules can be made of single types of atoms or of different types. For example, the oxygen in air is made of two bound oxygen atoms (O₂). Water is made of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom (H₂O).

monitor: To test, sample or watch something, especially on a regular or ongoing basis.

muscle: A type of tissue used to produce movement by contracting its cells, known as muscle fibers. Muscle is rich in protein, which is why predatory species seek prey containing lots of this tissue.

nuclear power: Energy derived from processes that produce heat by splitting apart the nuclei of atoms (fission) or forcing atomic nuclei to merge (fusion). A nuclear power plant uses that heat to drive turbines that create electricity.

nutrient: A vitamin, mineral, fat, carbohydrate or protein that a plant, animal or other organism requires as part of its food in order to survive.

Pacific: The largest of the world’s five oceans. It separates Asia and Australia to the west from North and South America to the east. The term can also refer to island nations that sit within the Pacific Ocean.

particle: A minute amount of something.

potassium: A chemical element that occurs as a soft, silver-colored metal. Highly reactive, it burns on contact with air or water with a violet flame. It is found not only in ocean water (including as part of sea salt) but also in many minerals.

power plant: An industrial facility for generating electricity.

radiation: (in physics) One of the three major ways that energy is transferred. (The other two are conduction and convection.) In radiation, electromagnetic waves carry energy from one place to another. Unlike conduction and convection, which need material to help transfer the energy, radiation can transfer energy across empty space.

radioactive: An adjective that describes unstable elements, such as certain forms (isotopes) of uranium and plutonium. Such elements are said to be unstable because their nucleus sheds energy that is carried away by photons and/or one or more subatomic particles. This emission of energy is by a process known as radioactive decay.

radioactive decay: A process by which an element is converted into a lighter element through the shedding of subatomic particles (and energy).

radioactivity: The release of energy by unstable elements through radioactive decay. The nuclei of these elements decay by emitting energetic particles such as photons (light), electrons, neutrinos, protons, neutrons, or alpha particles (two protons and two neutrons bound together). Some of these particles are known as ionizing because they release enough energy to knock electrons off atoms or molecules. How radioactive some material is will depend on the share of its nuclei that are unstable and how often they decay.

radon: A radioactive member of the noble gas family. It is naturally given off by some rocks in the soil. When it accumulates in homes or water supplies, it can pose a health hazard.

range: The full extent or distribution of something. For instance, a plant or animal’s range is the area over which it naturally exists. (in math or for measurements) The extent to which values can vary (such as the highest to lowest temperatures). Also, the distance within which something can be reached or perceived.

risk: The chance or mathematical likelihood that some bad thing might happen. For instance, exposure to radiation poses a risk of cancer. Or the hazard — or peril — itself. (For instance: Among cancer risks that the people faced were radiation and drinking water tainted with arsenic.)

sea: An ocean (or region that is part of an ocean). Unlike lakes and streams, seawater — or ocean water — is salty.

sentinel: A guard or something that watches over others, or that effectively offers some warning of a potential problem. (in ecology) Species that scientists monitor to get information about the environment in which those organisms live. These species might be more sensitive to some environmental hazards, and so can indicate to researchers when those hazards are reaching dangerous levels.

species: A group of similar organisms capable of producing offspring that can survive and reproduce.

sperm: A reproductive cell that contains half of the genetic information necessary to form a complete organism. In humans and in many other animals, testes produce sperm. When a sperm fuses with an egg, the two combine to produce a new cell, called a zygote. This is the first step in the development of a new organism.”

stressor: Something that induces stress in an individual or system.

subatomic: Anything smaller than an atom, which is the smallest bit of matter that has all the properties of whatever chemical element it is (like hydrogen, iron or calcium).

technology: The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, or the devices, processes and systems that result from those efforts.

thyroid: A gland in the neck that releases hormones, which play a pivotal role in directing development and metabolism (the use of food as fuel). The gland is relatively small, with two lobes separated by a bridge-like structure. Some therefore refer to its shape as resembling a butterfly.

tissue: Made of cells, it is any of the distinct types of materials that make up animals, plants or fungi. Cells within a tissue work as a unit to perform a particular function in living organisms. Different organs of the human body, for instance, often are made from many different types of tissues.

tortoise: Any of various turtles that live on land.

tsunami: One or many long, high sea waves caused by an earthquake, submarine landslide or other disturbance.

unique: Something that is unlike anything else; the only one of its kind.

uranium: The heaviest naturally occurring element known. It’s called element 92, which refers to the number of protons in its nucleus. Uranium atoms are radioactive, which means they decay into different atomic nuclei.

waste: Any materials that are left over from biological or other systems that have no value, so they can be disposed of as trash or recycled for some new use.

Western: (n. the West)  An adjectivedescribing nations in Western Europe and North America (from Mexico northward). These nations tend to be fairly industrialized and to share generally similar lifestyles; levels of economic development (incomes); and attitudes toward work, education, social issues and government.

X-ray: A type of radiation analogous to gamma rays, but having somewhat lower energy.