About Electromagnetic Radiation
Electromagnetic radiation encompasses all of the major types of radiation that are used scientifically in society and that occur in nature. Electromagnetic radiation gets its name from the fact that it is comprised of both magnetic and electric field components. These two parts work together to create many different types of electromagnetic radiation.
Type
There are many different types of electromagnetic radiation. In fact, the visible light spectrum that you are using to read this sentence is a form of electromagnetic radiation. Such visible light, however, only makes up a very small percentage of the entire range of electromagnetic radiation frequencies. Other forms include x-rays, gamma rays, ultraviolet light, microwaves, radio waves, terahertz radiation and infrared light.
Identification
The identification of one form of electromagnetic radiation from the next is made depending on the frequency of the radiation's waves. All forms of electromagnetic radiation have different wave lengths and thus are distinguishable from one another. The longest wave length is the radio wave, with gamma rays constituting the shortest wave length. Everything else falls somewhere between those two extremes.
History of
James Clerk Maxwell first theorized that electromagnetic radiation existed back in the mid-1800's. It wasn't until well later, however, that their existence was finally proven and systematically supported by the work of Heinrich Hertz. Hertz's experiments and inventions during the 1880's all centered around the previous theories of Maxwell and established electromagnetic radiation as something real and finitely defined.
Function
The functional qualities of electromagnetic radiation are far too numerous to be listed entirely. Electromagnetic radiation is what human beings use to guide themselves using their sense of sight. It is what plants use to grow and electromagnetic radiation from the Sun is what warms the Earth. Society has used electromagnetic radiation to make microwaves, radio, satellites, and almost all of modern communication technology possible. In other words, the world as we know it and our very existence would not be possible without electromagnetic radiation.
Risk Factors
Something as ubiquitous as electromagnetic radiation generally comes with drawbacks. Many forms of electromagnetic radiation are dangerous to humans and can cause illness and death. Gamma rays and other types of short-wave electromagnetic radiation and the dangerous product that we refer to collectively as "radiation." Radioactivity on this scale is extremely damaging to the cells that make life possible and can cause cancer, radiation poisoning, and death in extreme doses. Even the electromagnetic radiation from the sun can cause skin cancer and sunburn in large enough doses.
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