I'm mainly confused about the wording my assignment manual, any confirmations and help is appreciated! I can do most of the calculations myself, I just need some help understanding some of the wording better.
The notes at the bottom are for my conclusions, ignore them hahaPart A:This is one of my instructions from my assignment:
"Locate Run 1 in the output and divide the five-minute background count by 5 to determine the background radioactivity in CPM. For each measurement, the detector will count the background radioactivity in addition to the radioactivity from the sample, so the e value of the background radioactivity must be subtracted from the measured radioactivity of each sample."-I'm wondering do I divide each data in the Counts (CPM) column to get just the Background Radioactivity? (I don't have a column for that)
ex) 61/5 = 12.2 (I'll be using data from the first row as my examples-of-understanding for myself)
Next, in my manual, it says to
"Subtract the background radioactivity from each measured radioactivity value and record this background-corrected value". -So, just to confirm, I am using the background radioactivity I just calculated above, subtract it by the Counts (CPM), and get the background-corrected values for each distance.
ex) 12.2-61 = -48.8 (Would I keep this number negative?)
After that, I am instructed to fit my data into a "power function". I am given a power function and a rearranged version of it: Y = C/X
2. I'm not sure how to use this function according to my data...Please help me understand this so I can apply it to my own data.
Then, I have to find the inverse square of the distance and the manual informs me to use: 1/distance
2, and that is apparently categorized as the inverse square of distance.
ex) 1/6
2 = .027 (Using 0 from the first row would give me an undefined answer, so I used the second data point)
Part B:First I am told to calculate for the "fraction of radiation passed" by using: I = f × I
0 by rearranging the given formula to find f. Would that become f= I/I
0? If that's the case, I'll list a few examples of further calculations using the rearranged formula:
ex) 381/381 = 1 and 313/381 = .8215
But I am given a note:
"(Note: You will need to use the background-corrected radioactivity with zero layers of cardboard for each calculation (unshielded from my data))."Would I have to copy the same instructions as Part A, where I had to basically divide 5 by the Counts (CPM)? If so, then I would have to do this calculation first, and then the one previously brought up?
ex) 381/5 = 76.2 , 76.2/76.2 = 1 and 313/5 = 62.6 , 62.6/76.2 = .8215
These are my thought possess as I go/type, but the answers would result in the same answer, but the process of achieving the answer is different. Should I keep dividing the data by 5 and divide that by the initial (76.2)?
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