Radiation is everywhere. It's emitted by our sun, by cat litter, by bananas, and occasionally by nuclear bombs. It's even emitted by you and by me and by every living (and dead) person in the world. So why are we so scared of something so prevalent in our everyday lives?

While certain types of radiation can be very harmful in high doses, our fears may have more to do with how radiation is portrayed than it does with the actual danger of exposure. This hour, we talk with experts about the benefits, risks, and oftentimes misguided fears of radiation.

GUESTS:

Francis Cucinotta - Professor for the department of health physics and diagnostic sciences at the University of Nevada
Tim J. Jorgenson - Author of Strange Glow: The Story of Radiation
David Ropeik - Author of How Risky Is It, Really? Why Our Fears Don't Match The Facts

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Colin McEnroe, Jonathan McNicol, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, which originally aired November 21, 2017.

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Radiation: Maybe Not As Bad As You Think