Math In The Real World - Radioactive Decay

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Math in the Real World- Radioactive Decay Hayley Mills Radioactive decay is a spontaneous process which involves the impulsive transformation of one element into another. The sole way that this can occur is by altering the number of protons in the nucleus. There are numerous ways that this can come about and when it does, the atom is forever irreversible. This process is similar to popping popcorn. When one pours their popcorn kernels into a popcorn popper, there is absolutely no way to know which will pop first. Once the first kernel pops, it will never be a kernel again. Radioactive elements can be utilized to comprehend the numerical age of geological materials on time scales as large as the age of the Earth. In order to establish the age of a geologic material, one must comprehend the concept of half-life (this can be determined using mathematics). Radioactive materials and some other substances decompose according to a formula for exponential decay. That is, the amount of radioactive material A present at time t is given by the formula A=A0ekt where k<0. A radioactive substance is often described in terms of its half-life, which is the time required for half other material to decompose. For a further understanding, the half-life of the radioisotope plutonium-239, for example, is about 24,000 years. Starting with a pound of plutonium-239, in 24,000 years there will be one-half pound of plutonium-239, in another 23,000 years there will be one-fourth pound, and so on. (A pound of material remains, but it gradually becomes a stable element). Exponential functions are utilized to indicate the half-life of the radioactive isotopes. Particular radioactive elements in “spent” fuel will remain perilous to human beings and to other creatures for hundreds of thousands of years, where other radioisotopes remain hazardous for millions of years. Therefore, it is

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