The RadonEye is an active radon gas monitor that has become increasingly popular for some years. Among consumer grade active radon monitors it is the most sensitive one. It is sold for a fair price and it is easy to operate via a Smartphone app through Bluetooth connection. This makes it useful for individual radon monitoring and for research in the framework of Citizen Science, for example in the context identifying radon priority areas, recording radon time series or measuring radon exhalation. If limitations are considered, it can be used in scientific research. In this paper its benefits and problems are reviewed and examples of its usage given.

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Primrose, or Primula vulgaris, is a perennial herb that has long been prized for its therapeutic qualities. The entire plant is used for its expectorant, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antispasmodic, and healing-promoting properties. P. vulgaris is effective in treating rheumatic disorders, gout, insomnia, anxiety, respiratory tract infections, and bronchitis. This study examines the ecological variation of Primula vulgaris from two locations: Dajti Mountain, which is 1023 meters above sea level, and the Tirana Hills, 217 meters above sea level. These locations provide different environmental conditions, making it possible to investigate how these ecological variations might affect the traits of plants. Leaf dimensions (length and width), chlorophyll content were measured, and statistical analysis were performed using Mann-Whitney U test. The findings showed that there was a statistically significant variation in leaf size, with Dajti Mountain plants having shorter leaves. For this study, Raman spectroscopy measurements were performed using a B&W Tek i-Raman Ex Raman spectrometer. We have encountered the presence of Rutin and Tangerine essential oil, from the characteristic peaks present in the Raman spectra. These findings provide insights into how altitude and light exposure shape the morphological, physiological, and chemical traits of Primula vulgaris, revealing that plants in sunnier, low-altitude habitats develop broader leaves and higher concentrations of bioactive compounds, while those at higher elevations exhibit greater chlorophyll content and enhanced photosynthetic efficiency.

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Indoor radon concentration is investigated in the urban area of Tirana city, the capital of Albania. CR-39 Solid State Nuclear Track Detectors (SSNTDs) are used to survey 147 dwellings and 78 workplaces during 3-month measurements. In dwellings, the arithmetic mean and geometric mean value of radon concentration are found to be 97 and 71 Bq/m³, while in workplaces 131 and 98 Bq/m³, respectively. Radon concentration on the ground floor in dwellings is higher than that of other floors, while for workplaces no significant difference is found among floors. Radon concentrations in dwellings and workplaces are found to be higher than the reference level of 300 Bq/m³ for approximately 6% and 9% of cases, respectively. The results are spatially distributed using a grid of 1×1 km² realizing the indoor radon map showing the number of measurements and the arithmetic mean values. This information is used to assess the radiation health risk due to residential exposure to radon indoors.

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For reliable and comparable measurements of the dose quantity air kerma, dosimeter measurements must be traceable to a primary standard. Primary standard laboratories use free-air ionization chambers (FACs) for the primary realization of the unit of the air kerma free-in-air. Correction factors must be applied to convert measured charge to air kerma. One such correction factor is the correction factor for diaphragm effects (k_dia). This study investigated the impact of the geometry of the diaphragm on k_dia, as established FACs from different metrology institutes use different diaphragm geometries. The aim was to find the optimal diaphragm thickness and aperture shape to minimize the required diaphragm correction for the new PTB primary standard. Monte Carlo simulations were performed to determine k_dia for various diaphragm geometries of a low-energy x-ray FAC. The influence of the diaphragm thickness and the aperture shape were investigated. The results showed that the diaphragm needs to be sufficiently thick to prevent transmission yet as thin as possible to reduce scattering at the inner surface of the aperture. The optimal diaphragm thickness, which depends on the air path length of the FAC, ranges from 0.8 mm to 1 mm. Using a diaphragm geometry with a more complex geometry than a simple 1 mm thick diaphragm with a cylindrical aperture is not advantageous.

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Mammography is an X-ray imaging application used for breast diagnosis. Its high importance is denoted by the routinely mammographic examinations suggested for women above a certain age. In the era of digital mammography, various dedicated detector designs have been considered for possible use in a mammographic system. Despite, the detector characteristics the image of thick or dense breasts is a challenge since the amount of radiation transmitted through the breast and incident at the detector surface is a function of the ionizing radiation energy and exposure. In addition, possible breast lesions may be visible or not depending upon their size and composition. In general, a large size and high atomic number lesion has higher visibility than a small size and low atomic number one. A simple mathematical breast phantom was designed which was comprised from breast tissue as a background material and areas corresponding to a) blood for low atomic number material and b) Ca for a high atomic number material like microcalcifications. The phantom dimensions were 1000×1000 pixels, while the lesions were constructed as squares ranging from 2x2 pixels up to 50×50 pixels and lines. The breast thicknesses considered were 5.2 cm and 6 cm for the phantom. For the Ca the thicknesses ranged from 0.0008 cm up to 0.01 cm and for the blood lesions from 0.08 cm up to 0.5 cm. Simulations of the irradiated with 22 keV and 28 keV X-ray photons for different photon fluences, which after transmission from the phantom they have been assumed to impinge a Dexela mammographic detector, have been performed. It was found that at 22 keV and 6 cm breast thickness the 0.003 cm, 10×10 Ca lesion could be observed as well as the 20×20 blood lesion of 0.2 cm thickness. The increase of photon fluence improved the derived image due to the decrease of the image noise levels. The 5.2 cm thickness irradiation conditions produced less noisy images due to the higher number of photons impinging on the detector surface.

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This study aims to evaluate the dosimetric performance of TLD-200 thermoluminescent dosimeters and compare them with TLD-100, evaluating their suitability for radiation monitoring applications. The research relies on key dosimetric features, including linearity, temperature sensitivity, fading, and reproducibility. All experiments were conducted under controlled environmental conditions, adhering to the ambient temperature and relative humidity specifications provided by the manufacturer. Our work began with the calibration and validation of the Harshaw 6600 TLD reader to ensure accurate dose measurements. A total of 200 dosimeters were used to obtain statistically significant results. Linearity was evaluated for various dose levels provided by the internal Sr-90 beta irradiator, while fading effects were investigated to determine signal attenuation over time. Additionally, temperature sensitivity tests were performed to evaluate the impact of thermal variations on dosimetric response. Advanced statistical techniques were employed to assess measurement repeatability, reproducibility homogeneity etc. The results demonstrate that both TLD-100 and TLD-200 display reliable performance, with notable variations in sensitivity and stability under different dose ranges and environmental conditions. These outcomes confirm the suitability of the TLD-200 dosimeters for accurate dose measurement for research study and other monitoring measurements, but we can’t use those TLDs in the long term as bimonthly individual monitoring.

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