Many people who follow my page don’t realize that I also spent time staking uranium mining claims. It’s something I’m genuinely proud of, I consider myself a uranium prospector in addition to being an amateur nuclear physicist. I began selling uranium ore as a way to fund my growing collection of radioactive antiques and to support my ongoing outreach and education efforts online. There’s a deep well of radiological history and lore behind what I share here. Thank you for being so kind and supportive of meeeee, it truly means a lot. ☢️💕

I found this article from 1915 talking about “Radium G” which is actually what we now call lead-206. It explains how lead formed from uranium’s decay chain can have a different atomic weight than just ordinary lead. So, they’re still chemically the same element because they both have 82 protons BUT the difference in their number of neutrons changes their atomic mass. Lead-206 has 124 neutrons, while lead-208 has 126. Despite this discovery being over a century old, it’s still pretty useful information. Knowing the differences between lead-206 and other lead isotopes can help determine the age of rocks and minerals based on their composition. ☢️

Me first, though. ☢️

Just a quick demonstration of gamma radiation passing through my hand, with my 44-9 probe picking it up on the other side. The cardboard box and my hand stop alpha particles and can absorb or reduce beta particles, but gamma rays are much more penetrating and can pass through both. ☢️

Me too, I have a huge collection. They aren’t all necessarily mourning jewelry, but rather just sentimental or memorial pieces. It’s not always death related, sometimes it’s just a memory keepsake. I’ve found locks of hair tucked inside old wallets and Bibles, as well as hidden behind the cases of antique daguerreotypes. I even came across baby teeth inside a picture frame once! It kept rattling whenever I shook it, so I finally took it apart to see what was inside and discovered human teeth were responsible for making the noise. You should look into hidden mother photographs, they’re kinda cool like this stuff too.