Remember the x-ray vision of a superman? His eyes directed a beam of X-rays at the door: the rays passed through the door and the Superman could see what his enemies were going to do behind this closed door. The last statement is absolutely true. Lead is an excellent protection against x-rays. That is why doctors use lead aprons when working with X-ray equipment.

The X-ray eyes of the superman are born of the imagination of its creator. The eyes not only cannot emit x-rays, they do not emit anything at all. Our eyes are able to see, that is, in a special way to perceive the light of other sources, reflected from objects that we observe.

X-rays

However, x-rays are really a kind of light, but light invisible to us. There are several types of light that we don’t see — gamma rays, radio waves, and ultraviolet radiation. X-rays have more energy than rays of visible light. That is why they can penetrate through wooden doors and with equal success through the skin and muscles of a person.

How is x-ray done?

Like weakly thrown balls, visible light photons bounce off the skin. And high-energy X-rays pass unhindered through it. For X-rays, skin cells in all are simply large, watery, crystal clear bags.Bone tissue is much denser than the skin. Therefore, X-rays cannot penetrate the bones: most photons of the cathode rays are absorbed by the bone structures. As a result, we can photograph the bones through the skin in X-rays, just like we photograph fish through a layer of water in an aquarium with a conventional camera in visible light. Skin is transparent to x-rays.

How bone integrity is determined by x-ray

X-rays are invisible to humans and animals. True, many species of animals are able to perceive radiation inaccessible to the human senses. For example, a rattlesnake sees infrared light, and a spider sees ultraviolet light. Here's how to do it. Suppose a doctor wants to take an X-ray of the bones of the forearm to make sure that they are not broken. A hand is placed between the x-ray machine and the non-exposed film. The bell of the apparatus is directed to the hand, and a beam of X-ray photons rushes to the studied limb.

Most photons pass through the soft tissues of the hand and reach a photosensitive film. The same quanta that encounter a bone in its path “get stuck” in it. When the film develops, a light bone contour forms on it. If the bone is broken, then the x-ray radiation will pass freely through the fracture site, and the fracture area will appear black on the developed film. Thus, the x-ray shows whether there is a fracture or not.

Interesting fact: most X-ray photons are absorbed by bone tissue.

X-ray hazard

The passage of x-rays through the skin can cause damage to its cells. Therefore, doctors strive to take as few x-rays as possible: just enough to detect the disease, but nothing more. The medical personnel working in the X-ray rooms wear, as already noted, lead aprons or take X-rays with the remote control while in the next room, the walls of which are laid with lead plates.