Fred H. writes: My father recently gave me a 1953 Roosevelt Dime encapsulated in a metal (I think aluminum) with a plastic cover. Around the inside of the capsule are the words:
ORNL-CCCC-OAK RIDGE
NEUTRON IRRADIATED
My question is simple: Is it dangerous and what does it mean?
Back in the days of atomic ignorance, radiation and atomic energy were portrayed as harmless and fun. Those were the days when shoe stores had an x-ray machine called a Fluoroscope equipped with viewers so that you could see how the shoes fit your feet. Those were gone when it was discovered that these devices, cute as they were, were toasting little kids.
The encased irradiated dimes were another example of “radiation fun”, though these are not dangerous to people, they are collectors items and are mildly dangerous to your wallet if you decide you want to collect them.
