Coursey Bert M
Standards Coordination Office, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD 20899, USA.
J Res Natl Inst Stand Technol. 2022 Feb 14;126:126051. doi: 10.6028/jres.126.051. eCollection 2021.
The tragedy of the radium poisoning of young women dial painters in the 1920s has been the subject of best-selling books, plays, and motion pictures. With knowledge about radium and its accurate measurements in the hands of a very few scientists, what responsibilities did they have to sound the alarm and mitigate the hazards to workers and the general public? This two-part analysis looks at the role of the staff of the U.S. Bureau of Standards (the National Bureau of Standards [NBS] after 1934) in developing measurements and standards for accurate determinations of radium-226 and radon-222 that ultimately led to national standards for exposure to radioactive substances. Part I looks at the efforts of Elizabeth Hughes, with guidance from her senior colleague at the NBS, to assist dial painters with obtaining redress for their injuries. Part II examines the role of NBS in establishing the national radiation protection standards that were promulgated by the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) and the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP).
20世纪20年代年轻女性表盘绘制工镭中毒的悲剧一直是畅销书、戏剧和电影的主题。在极少数科学家掌握了有关镭的知识及其精确测量方法的情况下，他们有哪些责任敲响警钟并减轻对工人和公众的危害呢？这一分为两部分的分析探讨了美国标准局（1934年后为国家标准局[NBS]）的工作人员在制定用于精确测定镭-226和氡-222的测量方法和标准方面所起的作用，这些标准最终促成了放射性物质暴露的国家标准。第一部分讲述了伊丽莎白·休斯在国家标准局资深同事的指导下，为帮助表盘绘制工获得伤害赔偿所做的努力。第二部分考察了国家标准局在制定由美国商务部（DOC）和国家辐射防护与测量委员会（NCRP）颁布的国家辐射防护标准中所起的作用。
