Question Video: Understanding How a Person’s Life Can Be Threatened by Absorbing Nuclear Radiation Science

Video Transcript

Which of the following statements correctly describes how a person’s life can be threatened by damage to cells of their body from absorbing nuclear radiation? (A) If enough cells are damaged or killed in even one part of the body that is essential for life, a person can die. (B) Cells must be damaged or killed throughout the entire body for a person to die.

This question is asking us if nuclear radiation damage to one part of the body can cause death or whether cells must be damaged in all parts of the body for death to occur.

The human body is made of billions of cells. Every part of the body, including organs, are made of many cells. Energy is transferred to cells when they absorb nuclear radiation. If enough energy is transferred to a cell, it may die. When a cell dies, it can no longer perform its function. If enough cells in one part of the body die, the major organs or other important systems in that area can shut down as they can no longer perform their function.

These are parts of the human body that must function normally for a person to live. If one major organ does not perform its function, the person may die. For example, a kidney is a major organ. If nuclear radiation is absorbed by cells only in the part of the body where the kidneys are, the cells in that area will start to die. If enough cells in the kidney die, the kidney will shut down. When this happens, the body can no longer filter blood and process waste produced by the body. The failure of one organ, like the kidney, can cause death.

Hence, it is not necessary for nuclear radiation to damage all of a person’s body for that person to die from the nuclear radiation damage. This means the correct answer is option (A). If enough cells are damaged or killed in even one part of the body that is essential for life, a person can die.