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Fred McWilliams Vince Chase
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President Elect Mike Leal
John Salladay
David Meissner
Immediate Past President
Fred Straccia
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Finance Committee
Secretary Vince Chase
Karen Farris
History Committee
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Treasurer
Mike Whalen Publicity Public Relations
Terry LaFrance m.
Student Affairs
Dave Medich
Continue Education/Long Range
Haneef M.Sahabdeen
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Terry LaFrance
Radiation Safety Officer
Baystate Health
759 Chestnut Street
Springfield, MA 01199
Japan Carrier Unveils Smartphone Radiation Gauge Pillar of Physics Challenged
Japan’s top mobile phone operator NTT DoCoMo is to unveil a Smart A starling find at one of the world’s most famous labs
phone with changeable “jackets” that can measure bad breath, body that the subatomic particle seemed to move faster than
fat and even radiation levels. DoCoMo says it has bas developed the speed of light has scientists around the world doing
technology that allows users to measure their own bodies or a bit of rethinking Albert Einstein and one of the foundations
surroundings by slipping their Smartphones inside sensor-embedded of physics. Now they are planning to put the findings to
shells. The company will showcase the technology at the Combined further high-speed tests to see if the revolutionary shift in
Exhibition of Advanced Technologies, a fair featuring the latest in high explaining the workings of the universe is needed or if the
end gadgetry. “Many customers have been nervous about radiation European scientists made a mistake. Researchers at CERN,
since the Great East Japan Earthquake” a DoCoMo spokesman said the European Organization for Nuclear Research announced
referring to the 9.0 magnitude quake and tsunami In March that the discovery are still somewhat surprised themselves and
sparked a nuclear crisis at the Fukushima atomic plant. planned to detail their findings in a report. If the findings
are confirmed they won’t change at all the way we live or
X-rays Reveal Hidden Goya Masterpiece the way the universe behaves because these particles have
Beneath a Goya masterpiece, a second, hidden painting by the always been considered speed demons for billions of years,
painter has been discovered, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam has But, the findings will probably change the understanding
announced. New technology has brought the image to light for the of how the world works, physicists said.
first time since Goya painted over it, apparently for political reasons.
Curators were aware that something was beneath the surface of Bayer Drug Hailed as Prostate Cancer Game Changer
Goya’s 1823 portrait of Don Ramon Sature, a judge in the supreme An experimental drug from Germany’s Bayer and the Norse
court of Madrid, but it was so faint they could not decipher details. biotech firm Algenta extended the lives of advanced prostate
High intensity X-ray technology developed by Joris Kik of Delft cancer patients by zapping tumors that invade bone with
University and Koen Janssens of Antwerp University, means the small doses of radiation, according to data from a late-stage
painting can be seen for the first time in great detail. Study recently released. The drug known as Alpharadin was
hailed as a major advance in prostate cancer treatment by
NRC Receives Top-Notch Rankings from Annual Survey by experts at a European cancer research meeting in
For the second year in a row, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Sweden because the drug is the first to improve bone
Ranked no. 1 In all four categories of the Office of Personnel symptoms and prolong survival. Bayer plans to seek U.S.
Management’s Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey. The four approval of Alpharadin in the middle of 2012.
categories are leadership and knowledge management, results-
oriented performance culture, talent management and job
satisfaction.
Radiation Exposure During Videourodynamics Prostate Cancer Patients in Colorado Denied Treatment
Videourodynamics is useful in evaluating and treating neurological Prostate cancer patients in Colorado are being denied a
disorders in children. Traditional urodynamic parameters can be relatively new radiation treatment that promises faster
obtained while simultaneous visualization of the urinary system can results with fewer side effects because Medicare won’t pay
reveal anatomical anomalies. This additional information comes at for it, KUSA –TV reports. According to KUSA Colorado is one
cost of radiation exposure to the child. UroToday reported that of four states where Medicare won’t pay for the new Cyber-
their researchers characterized radiation exposure from such exams. Knife. CyberKnife was approved by the US Food and Drug
All recent videourodynamic studies were reviewed and patient demo- Administration about a decade ago and is now covered by
Graphics were recorded, urological diagnoses, physical attributes, total Medicare in 46 states. Only Medicare patients in Colorado,
Fluoroscopy time, total radiation exposure in mGy, bladder capacity Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico are not covered.
And the number of filling cycles performed. Multivariate linear Independent regional contractors make Medicare coverage
Regression was used to identify patient factors that independently decisions. Out of 15 regions in the United States, only one-
influenced total radiation exposure Trailblazer Health Enterprises, based in Dallas, Texas, has
not approved CyberKnife for prostate cancer. Trailblazer
Survival of Tumor Cells After Proton Irradiation With Ultra oversees four states including Colorado. According to KUSA
High Dose Rates Trailblazer representatives previously stated that the “long
Background and Purpose: Laser acceleration of protons and heavy term effects [of Cyberknife] are not well understood” and Ions may in the future be used in radiation therapy. Laser-driven that “early investigational studies are still going on, and the
Particle beams are pulsed and ultra high dose rates of >109 Gy s-1 conclusions from some of the studies are not known”.
may be achieved. Comparison of the radiobiological effects of The Sushi Platter that Tells You if Your Diinner’s
pulsed and continuous proton beams is made. The ion microbeam Radioactive
SNAKE at the Munich tandem accelerator was used to directly You’re eating a nice plate of sushi when the rings around
Compare A pulsed and a continuous 20 mEv proton beam, which the edge of the plate light up! Underneath the plate is a
delivered a dose Of 3 Gy to a HeLa cell monolayer within <1 ns or radiation meter that logs whether or not your dinner has
100 ms, respectively. Investigated endpoints were G2 phase cell cycle absorbed too much seaborne radiation from the Fukushima
arrest, apoptosis, and colony formation. Results: At 10 h after pulsed disaster. You set your own preferred levels of radioactivity,
radiation, the fraction of G2 was significantly lower than after then glowing rings around the outside of your plate light up
irradiation with the continuous beam, while all other endpoints to warn you if your fish is toxic. One ring is a small amount
including colony formation were not significantly different. of radiation, but if the red LED lights up, you should worry.
The plate works using a removable radiation meter in the
base and concentric OLED lights. If none of the LED circles
your sushi isn’t radioactive at all.
New Hampshire currently has an open Health Physicist position.
State of New Hampshire - Health Physicist Position # 19234
For information concerning this position and how to apply please go to
http://www.dhhs.nh.gov/hr/jobs/index.htm
Radiation Health Physicist II - III
Location: Concord NH
Description: Assists in evaluations, inspections and reviews of license
applications for the receipt, possession, use, transfer, ownership, or
disposal of radioactive materials and/or performs evaluations, inspections
and registration of radiation-generating equipment. Participates in
incident/accident response involving radioactive material or
radiation-generating equipment. Participates in emergency response
activities involving nuclear power plants.
For more information concerning this position and how to apply please go to
http://www.dhhs.nh.gov/hr/jobs/index.htm
New Hampshire Division of Public Health Services, Improving Health,
Preventing Disease, Decreasing Costs for All
Job Posting Health Physicist
There is an opening at QSA Global Inc. for a Health Physicist at our Burlington, MA Facility.
Required:
· In depth knowledge of radiation safety principles/instrumentation
· Working knowledge of applicable NRC/MRCP regulations
· Working knowledge of MS Word/Excel/PowerPoint
· Strong math/verbal/writing skills in English
· Upper level college level course work in Physics or Radiological Sciences
· Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
· Ability to work with minimum supervision
· Must pass drug screening/security check
Preferred:
· BS/MS Degree in Radiological Science
· Previous experience as a Health Physicist
· Familiarity with relevant health physics software
·
Areas of Responsibility:
The Health Physicist, reporting to the RSO, assures company compliance with federal, state, and local regulatory requirements. Responsibilities include technical and safety analysis of new products and processes, conducting radiological surveys, calibration and minor repair of radiological instrumentation, issuing and tracking dosimetry, responding to radiological emergencies, liaison with regulatory agencies, conducting audits and investigations, writing procedures, and assisting the RSO and RA/QA Director as necessary.
Anyone interested in this position should call Melissa Fortuna in Human Resources at (800) 815-1383 ext. 201 for more details. QSA Global, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer M/F/V/D.
The Fall meeting was held at the Public House on September 13, 2011. The Guest speaker, Dr. Armin Ansari from the Center for Disease Control, NCHE/EHHE/Radiation Studies Branch was the very informative. A good time was had by all attendees.
VENDORS FAIR
THE ANNUAL VENDORS FAIR WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE WESTFORD GRILL, 142 LITTLETON ROAD, WESTFORD, MA 01886
ON DECEMBER 1, 2011. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE GO TO http://westfordgrille.com.
CHECK THE NECHPS WEBSITE FOR DETAILS. THE THREE HOTELS AVAILABLE IN THE AREA ARE WESTFORD REGENCY, THE HAMPDEN INN AND THE RESIDENCE INN “MARRIOT”.