1. The main types of EMR that have an impact on living tissue are ionizing radiation and non-ionizing radiation. Ionizing radiation has enough energy to remove tightly bound electrons from atoms, which can cause damage to DNA and other biological molecules. Examples of ionizing radiation include gamma rays, X-rays, and high-energy UV radiation. Non-ionizing radiation has lower energy levels and does not have enough energy to remove electrons from atoms. However, it can still cause damage to biological molecules through other mechanisms, such as heating. Examples of non-ionizing radiation include visible light, radio waves, and low-energy UV radiation.
2. Eating one banana is equivalent to receiving 0.01 mrem of radiation. The average person in the US receives about 300 mrem of radiation per year from natural sources, such as cosmic rays and radon gas. The risk of developing cancer from radiation exposure depends on the dose received, with higher doses increasing the risk. According to the National Cancer Institute, the risk of developing cancer from radiation exposure is about 5% per 1000 mrem of exposure. This means that eating 33,000 bananas (33,000 x 0.01 mrem = 330 mrem) would increase the risk of developing cancer by about 5%. However, this is a very high number of bananas, and it is unlikely that anyone would eat this many bananas in a short period of time. In general, the risk of developing cancer from eating bananas or other natural sources of radiation is very low compared to other sources of radiation exposure, such as medical imaging or nuclear accidents.