Uh. Oh. It turns out that neodymium, used in the Prius is radioactive.

[NNadir]

Apparently this has been some part of a huge coverup by magnet companies, but it turns out that 5.64% of Neodymium is (DUCK! There goes a beta ray), radioactive.

Nd-150, present in all natural neodymium is radioactive and will remain radioactive for as long as the earth exists. There is no way to prevent it from leaching into our groundwater supplies. It has a half-life (gulp) of 110,000,000,000,000,000,000 years.

Why is this simple fact being covered up?

I say we need a permananent repository for Prius magnet waste!!!!! NOW!!!!!!!!

[ChairmanAgnostic]

1. hell, you are radioactive. Should we put you in a waste container, too?

LD50 is what is important.

[NNadir]

8. You're kidding? Really? LD50 you say... What's the LD 50 of benzene?

It's in the gasoline used to fuel Priuses.

:scared:

http://guided-wave.com/_img/userfiles/file/appnotes/BenzeneG.pdf

[stray cat]

2. I think that has been common knowledge for awhile - I heard about it over two years ago

from family members who said we have some problems with electric cars and this was an important hurdle we had to figure out.

[orwell]

3. So what about...

...the neodymium magnets found in some microphones and headphones?

I guess singers are ground zero...

[HysteryDiagnosis]

4. I keep mine wrapped in aluminum foil. Does that count?? n/t

[Truth2Tell]

5. Your battery or your head? nt

[HysteryDiagnosis]

7. Meh.... byeah. n/t

[MineralMan]

6. Yah, and so were the tritium dials on all those old watches.

Hell, I have one still with a radium dial. It's in a drawer.

Low-level emitters are not that big a deal. They're everywhere. The whole earth is radioactive.

[Davis_X_Machina]

9. Mantles for Coleman-style gas and propane lanterns, too. n/t

[Dogmudgeon]

10. Pepto-Bismol is radioactive

http://www.cnrs.fr/cw/en/pres/compress/bismuth.htm">Bismuth-209 -- it's one of the LEAST radioactive substances in existence that, nevertheless, is still radioactive. Its half-life is around 2 x 10^19 years. There are also at least three other radioactive isotopes, according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bismuth">Wikipedia.

When you consider that many anti-nuclearists believe that one single particle decay event can and will cause fatal cancer, morbid fear of Pepto isn't so hard to imagine.

The practical questions are: when do CSPI and Public Citizen start pushing for a ban? And if I say that the radioactivity is too insignificant to matter, will I be denounced as a Paid Shill, in bed with Big Bismuth, the GOP, and Dick Cheney?

--d!

[Dead_Parrot]

11. Thank god beer isn't radioactive

wait, what?

[Dogmudgeon]

12. God is radioactive, too.

Just check out the http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topics&forum=214">DU Atheism and Religion Forum.

:evilgrin:

--d!