ChatterBank0 min ago
why are radiactive elements given half -lifes?
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For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.the time to get to 50% in an exponential function is a constant, wherever you start on the curve - obviously if you start at 80 then you measure to 40 and if you start at 250 you measure to 125
and it's the same ! (ha! if it isnt, then it isnt exponential) - for that element or process....
getting to 100% if you're going by halves will take a long and less useful/illuniating time
Correction to the first post. The radiation will not always be there, it just decays away very slowly.....The half life measure the time for half the radioactive atome to decay....at some point then there will be only one left, at this point the consept of a half life is meaningless and once this atom has decayed there will be no more radiation (in. v simple terms).
This can be compicated by the fact that may readio actibe elements decay into other radio active elements...
238g of U238 contains 6.022e23 radio acitve atoms, the half life is thousands of years I think, do the maths - OK it is essencially for ever. But technecium 99 Tc99 has a half life of just a few days so not quite so long I think.
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