Principles of Radiation Interactions
MIT OpenCourseWare offers this graduate-level course on how radiation deposits energy in biological material. Lectures cover the physics of energy deposition by different radiation types, the creation and behavior of secondary radiations, and the resulting damage to DNA and cells. Topics include in vitro cell survival models, in vivo mammalian system responses, radiation therapy principles, radiation syndromes in humans, and carcinogenesis. The course also examines environmental radiation sources on Earth and in space, along with radiation protection standards. Lecture material is supplemented with readings drawn from current scientific literature, connecting classroom concepts to ongoing research in nuclear science and health physics. Materials come from MIT's Nuclear Science and Engineering and Health Sciences and Technology departments and are free to access through MIT OpenCourseWare, with no certificate offered.