Prof. Dr. Georg Steinhauser is alumnus of University of Vienna (MSc in chemistry 2003) and Vienna University of Technology (PhD in radiochemistry 2005). After ten years of research using the Atominstitut’s TRIGA Mk II reactor, he was hired in 2013 by Colorado State University’s Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences for a tenure track faculty position (Assistant Professor in radiochemistry). Since 2013, he is member of the Radiation Protection Advisory Board of the Austrian Federal Minstry of Health (Strahlenschutzbeirat). In October 2015, he was hired by Leibniz University Hannover (Institute of Radioecology and Radiation Protection) as a Professor for physical radioecology. His main research focus is environmental radioactivity in Chernobyl and Fukushima as well as environmental nuclear forensics. Steinhauser has (co-)authored more than 90 publications. He is a member of the GDCh (board member of AK ARH), GÖCH, DPG, ASER, and Executive Officer of the ANS Biology and Medicine Division. Since 2016, he is editor of the Springer journal Environmental Science and Pollution Research.
Abstract
The hazards of radiation
Hardly any other hazard in our lives is perceived by the public with more emotions and concern like ionizing radiation. I will try to put this picture into relation by comparing hazards and radiological events. We will learn that events the public was most afraid of turned out not to be the biggest contributor to the radiological risk.