radium dial clocks, was: Microreactors

In <68701d73$0$17$882e4bbb@reader.netnews.com> Michael Trew <michael.trew@att.net> writes:

[snip]

I've read about the girls who painted the radioactive glow paint on
clocks, what a horrible way to go.  I had a 40's baby ben alarm clock
disassembled at the antique mall where I work, on a day when two Kent
State college girls were in.  They had with them a borrowed geiger
counter, and when I gave one of them the clock face to test, her eyes
got wide at the reading.  She told me "I wouldn't be touching that if I
were you".

I have a similar clock.  Here are the results from
a scan a decade ago:

"I checked your clock today.  The face surface reading
is 15,000 cpm (Background = 50 cpm), and 58 microroentgens/hour
(Background = 8 microroentgens/hour)...."


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