It’s National Radiologic Technology Week!
On November 8th, 1895 German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen accidentally discovered x-rays. While experimenting with electrical currents he walked past a set of vacuum tubes and noticed mysterious rays that could pass through solid objects and cast ghostly images on a screen. He called this unknown phenomenon “x-rays.”
After showing an x-ray of a friend’s hand taken at a public lecture, the images stunned the world. Doctors quickly adopted the technology to look inside the body without the need for surgery.
Not everyone was enamored, however. The public had mixed feelings, many responding with fear or humor to the new technology, with some believing it could expose a persons secrets as well as their anatomy.
National Radiologic Technology Week honors the contributions of medical imaging and radiation therapy professionals to patient care and health care safety. It takes place each year on the week of November 8th. This year’s theme is “The Kaleidoscope of Radiologic Technology”.
In celebration we have a mini-exhibit, A Window Into the Invisible, curated by University Archivist Diane Fotinos. Located just outside the doors to the P.I. Nixon Library, stop by to learn more about Wilhelm Röntgen, historical views of the time, items from our historical collections, and more!
- Learn more from the American Society of Radiologic Technologists
- Discovering the Inside Story – A timeline of firsts in medical imaging and radiation therapy.
- X-ray Vision – A look inside medical imaging and radiation therapy.