Many people only have a vague idea of ​​radioactivity. Radioactivity is initially something completely natural and occurs everywhere on earth. In the collective memory, all that remains of radioactivity is often the danger and negative effects of radiation. In addition to natural radioactivity, there are many applications in modern medicine, from diagnostics to cancer therapy, that make use of radioactivity or radiation. However, you should protect yourself from excessive radioactivity.

Most of the natural radiation that all people are exposed to comes from radon. Radon is a noble gas and is formed naturally from uranium. Since uranium is found in all rocks, radon can also be found in all soils. Radon gets into buildings from the ground, and its occurrence varies greatly regionally and locally depending on the respective geology and other influencing factors such as the building fabric. If you are exposed to radon activity that is significantly higher than natural levels, the risk of lung cancer increases. Approximately 3% of all residential buildings in Germany - the probability is higher or lower depending on the region - are above the legal reference value, so measures to reduce this are recommended. The Hessian Radon Center, the radon advice center for the state of Hesse, is located at the Technische Hochschule Mittelhessen .

Radon is a highly interdisciplinary topic; the sub-areas range from scientific principles to medical and structural aspects to science and risk communication. Accordingly, this offer is also flexible and modular. Depending on the target group and the wishes of the participants, we can either concentrate more on the scientific aspects and measure how much radon is in the air in the ground or in buildings and how it gets from the ground into the building. This is possible either directly at your school or with us at THM . To do this, a 1 meter deep, thin hole is first drilled and then measured in the ground using our measuring devices. We then evaluate the results together and classify them. Or we take a closer look at the communication side, especially the special features of sensitive topics such as radiation and health. We focus primarily on social media and create exemplary posts together (of course, this also includes at least some scientific basics). A combination of both is also possible - this can be tailored to the wishes of the respective group.

The main target group are complete courses/classes that deal with the topics of radioactivity, soil or communication (e.g. advanced or basic courses in physics, chemistry, geography, German, etc.). But other groups can also register. Depending on what exactly and how detailed we carry out it, the offer lasts half a day to a whole day.

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