Antonios Theodosis | Research Project: Public perception of Radium in California during the Radium Age of the 1920's
In my research project I want to study the radium craze of the 1920's in America, specifically within the LA region. I want to delve into the issues of the radium craze during the period such as how and what products radium was used in, the effects it had on human health, and how these factors changed public perception over time.
Overall, there was a huge enthusiasm for radium and radioactivity in general in the 1920's which undoubtedly led its way into poisoning people and becoming a public health concern. Radium lasts for a very long time and it was used in everyday materials from watches and clocks to even makeup and butter! Along with this it was also used in military equipment well into the 1970's. I want to detail some of the products that contained radium in everyday households, the public understanding or perception of radium at the time, and what effect it had on human health and safety during the time period.
This extremely deadly and long lasting element had disastrous effects on the humans who ingested it or came into frequent contact with it. I want to see how public perception of radium led to the issue of it being used in items such as food, and how it ultimately led to people becoming sick during the time with issues such as radium jaw and radium poisoning in general. These days we use radioactive material such as radium to treat certain medical conditions and ailments, but back during the 1920's there was a completely different use for radium and it did more harm than it did good.
I have looked into different sources ranging in length on the general background knowledge and information of radium such as: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2018-12/documents/significant_discoveries_history_radiation_protection-worksheet_rp_1.pdf to other scholarly research such as "Removing and Disposing of Radium from Well Water" by Kenneth Mangelson and Richard Lauch which highlights the science behind the radioactive element's effects on water in a naturally occurring situation and which practices can be used to remove the toxic element from water supply. I have also looked into a read a journal entry on the scientific and public infatuation with radium during this period by Luis Campos. (The Birth of Living Radium” Luis Campos. Jstor.org.) Another source I used explains the health affects that radium paint had on watch factory workers, it provides some details into the effects radium has on the body and is quite useful. (“Studies of US Radium Dial Workers: An Epidemiological Classic” Shirley A. Fry. Jstor.org.)
For other evidence and sources besides Jstor, I have looked into the Los Angeles Times archive of newspapers during the period and have found a host of archived newspapers related to radium during this period as well. I would like to sift through all of the available newspapers during the time period available in order to provide a strong basis of understanding from primary sources. (https://www.newspapers.com/search/#query=radium&t=431)
Along with this here are some maps:
This first map is a map of the street called "radium drive" in Los Angeles. I want to dig a little bit deeper and see what connection this street may have with the radium craze of the 1920's and if it was a result of the popular craze of the time, or perhaps named this because it was an area that stored radium during that period.
This interactive map highlights and shows the areas within the country that are affected by radium in drinking water. Southern California is literally glowing!
The topic of Radium is quite interesting. Your argument about what radium was used in and its impact on people, and how these things affected how people saw radium is easy to follow. This argument is historical in its approach as you want to look at how public perception shifts as the dangerous effects of radium take effect. This approach will allow you to show causation rather easily.
ReplyDeleteYour sources seem very good at supplying you with the impact of radium on people. The Third source you mentioned in particular seems interesting and will help you show the impact radium had on people. however the sources you mentioned did not seem like they would help you identify the publics opinion on radium.
The environmental aspect of this project is clear in that humanities use of radium impacted the area around the LA region. Also that your project wants to look at how the radium in the area affected the people of LA.
In terms of further research it will definitely help to find more articles about the publics reaction in order to fully flush out your argument.
I think this will be a great project, it is always interesting to see what was considered the “norm” in product manufacturing which are considered terrible by today's standards. It is crazy to me that people just used it in everything from clocks to butter. Your argument appears to focus on the craze itself and its effects on those who were in contact with it for prolonged periods of time. I think this is very clearly a historical issue, with people instigating the crazy and direct effects on human health. I would be super interested to find out how exactly the public became aware that radium was bad for them and what their reaction was to it. I would also be interested to see how it got into the marketplace to begin with and why there was such a craze surrounding the radioactive element. Overall I think your sources are great, although if you can find sources on why Radium was so commonly used and how it entered the public consciousness in the 1920s I think that would be helpful. I found this article:
ReplyDeletehttps://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=KNghAQAAMAAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP11&dq=radium+health+effects&ots=5E7r5i6GeF&sig=NwCKCjs_EX0TkACgeljghlodlMw#v=onepage&q=radium%20health%20effects&f=false
Discussing how Radium affects humans from a health standpoint if you needed more information regarding that. I am honestly kind of struggling to see how this issue is an environmental one, perhaps it would also be a good idea to look into human use of radium as an effect on the community or environment at large. Was it found readily in nature? Were there any major spills or waste dumps in the time? How were plants and animals affected? Otherwise I think this will be a project worth reading and I look forward to doing so. Lastly I think you should also use images of what radium looks like in its most common form as it will give a bit more of a visual cue to the reader.
The focus of this paper is clear, as it wants to examine the effects of radium on the health of the region, in this case the Los Angeles area. This fits in well with the historical context of the paper which is the radiation craze of the 1920s. There is a clear cause and effect here as well; the radiation craze caused in uptick in radium use and its accompanying health consequences. This will help clearly make a clear argument for the paper.
ReplyDeleteAll the sources seem to connect with the paper, though it would help if there were more related to the specific locale of Los Angeles other than archived newspaper articles.
The weakest aspect of this proposal is the environmental aspect. There is a valid argument that the connection here lies in radium’s effect on the human environment, the city. Perhaps to further connect the radium craze with the environment, you could look into the effects that radium had on the environment when disposed of. Perhaps there is a specific recorded incidence of it seeping into a water source or local biome?
I think your research focus and argument about the public health impacts of radium usage and products is very clear and easy to understand. This historical significance of social trends for products and evident, which ties in well with the environmental problems that this trend caused in the future. I like that you broke down different aspects of your argument into specific focus areas, i.e., physical product usage/ food, then shifting to public health issues, then on to environmental impacts overall. One thing you could add here is how the radium went from being a public health problem to an environmental one, i.e., how the radium leaked out into things like the water supply in the first place.
ReplyDeleteYour sources were quite nice, and examine the background and impacts of radium itself in relation to Los Angeles generally. I really thoroughly enjoyed the interactive map you included, it added another level of depth and engagement of the reader to the research that I know projects like mine certainly don’t have. If I could add one thing, it’s the recommendation to expand just slightly and maybe have some information as to the start of the radium craze and why it was used in the first place, as so we can have more context as to why this is such a large issue today. Really nice work!