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Have you ever had an X-ray taken? X-rays are used to analyze problems with bones, teeth and organs in the human body; to detect cracks in metal in industry; and even at airports for luggage inspection. Yet, despite their versatility, the invention of the X-ray wasn’t intentional. The scientific and medical community will forever be indebted to an accidental discovery made by German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen in 1895.
While experimenting with electrical currents through glass cathode-ray tubes, Röntgen discovered that a piece of barium platinocyanide glowed even though the tube was encased in thick black cardboard and was across the room [source: Britannica]. He theorized that some kind of radiation must be traveling in the space. Röntgen didn’t fully understand his discovery so he dubbed it X-radiation for its unexplained nature.
To test his newfound theory, Röntgen enlisted the help of his wife for his first X-ray photos and captured images of the bones in her hand and her wedding ring in what would become known as the first röntgenogram [source: Nobel Prize]. He discovered that when emitted in complete darkness, X-rays passed through objects of varying density, rendering the flesh and muscle of his wife’s hand mostly transparent. The denser bones and the ring left behind a shadow on a special photographic plate covered in barium platinocyanide. The term X-radiation or X-ray stuck although it is still sometimes referred to as the Röntgen ray in German-speaking countries
Röntgen’s discovery garnered much attention in the scientific community and with the public. He gave his first public lecture on X-rays in January 1896 and showed the rays’ ability to photograph the bones within living flesh. A few weeks later in Canada, an X-ray was used to find a bullet in a patient’s leg
Honorary degrees, medals, streets named in his honor and memberships to academic societies all followed. The recognition peaked with the awarding of the first Nobel Prize for physics in 1901. Röntgen deliberately didn’t patent his discovery, feeling that scientific advances belonged to the world and should not be for profit.
X-rays are a form of radiation like light or radio waves. X-rays pass through most objects, including the body. The technologist carefully aims the x-ray beam at the area of interest. The machine produces a small burst of radiation that passes through your body.
The radiation records an image on photographic film or a special detector.
Different parts of the body absorb the x-rays in varying degrees. Dense bone absorbs much of the radiation while soft tissue (muscle, fat, and organs) allow more of the x-rays to pass through them. As a result, bones appear white on the x-ray, soft tissue shows up in shades of gray, and air appears black.
We now have a far better understanding of the risks associated with X-ray radiation and have developed protocols to greatly minimize unnecessary exposure. And while X-rays remain a cornerstone of modern medicine, their discovery paved the way for the development of today’s broad spectrum of imaging techniques, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), ultrasound, echocardiography, and many others -- some of which avoid the use of radiation altogether. Not a bad legacy for an accidental discovery.
science.howstuffworks