The half-life period of a radioactive substance spans 8-days. What duration is required for its quantity to diminish from 10 mg to 5 mg?
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Answer: D. 8 days
Explanation
The half life of a radioactive substance is defined as the time required for half its nuclei to decay. Since the initial quantity is 10 mg, reducing it to 5 mg requires exactly one half life period. The given problem states that the half life duration for this specific substance spans eight days. Radioactive decay is a random process at the atomic level governed by statistically predictable half life durations. After one half life fifty percent remains, after two half lives twenty five percent remains, and so forth. Radioactive dating techniques rely on knowing the exact half life of isotopes like carbon or uranium.
Four days would only represent a fraction of the decay period and leave more than 5 mg remaining. Twelve days exceeds the required single half life calculation needed to reduce 10 mg to 5 mg. Sixteen days represents two full half life periods which would reduce the 10 mg quantity down to 2.5 mg.
- Subject
- Everyday Science
- Category
- Everyday Science
- Topic
- —
- Difficulty
- medium
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