The depleted uranium thing is just not legitimate. Scientists work with hotter stuff all the time. Radiologists work with hotter stuff all the time.
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Hmmm.
This seems too dismissive.
The following, from a government source, states that DU is "safe" if "not taken into the body" because alpha particles are not terribly penetrative.
Fully informed activists who're trying to bring attention to DU as a hazard are talking about the dust that remains after a shell, for example, with a DU coated warhead is destroyed on impact with a target leaving radioactive dust, which can enter the body quite easily, strewn about. Dust in the air, dust settling on food and in water and other ingested liguids.
So, read carefully, even the statements of a goverment body confirm the assertions of the most informed DU activitists.
DRM
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URL - http://web.ead.anl.gov/uranium/guide/depletedu/health/index.cfm
Depleted Uranium Health Effects
Discussion of health effects of external exposure, ingestion, and inhalation of depleted uranium.
Depleted uranium is not a significant health hazard unless it is taken into the body. External exposure to radiation from depleted uranium is generally not a major concern because the alpha particles emitted by its isotopes travel only a few centimeters in air or can be stopped by a sheet of paper. Also, the uranium-235 that remains in depleted uranium emits only a small amount of low-energy gamma radiation. However, if allowed to enter the body, depleted uranium, like natural uranium, has the potential for both chemical and radiological toxicity with the two important target organs being the kidneys and the lungs. The most likely pathways by which uranium could enter the body are ingestion and inhalation. The relative contribution of each pathway to the total uptake into the body depends on the physical and chemical nature of the uranium, as well as the level and duration of exposure.
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