package of cigarettes a day, or being overweight--that such a small number of
persons might be affected or die as a direct result was so small as to he
worth the risk.
Those who did not support the MPC, or who believed in the
linear dose indicated that the argument regarding the cigarette smoker was
not applicable, since he had a choice whether or not to smoke, whereas general
populations have no choice in the amount of radiation uptake,
pointed out that from a moral viewpoint,
Additionally the
even one additional death,
or a limite:
amount of mutations was too high a price to pay for such testing.
The whole debate over MPC and linear versus threshold effect as it
related to testing was perhaps best summed up by the testimony of Pr. Walter
Selove, Department of Physics, University of Pennsylvania, who quoted from
a report by a committee on radiation hazards of the Federation of American
Scientists:
"The committee study of the available scientific facts has led to
two conclusions:
"First:
The added radiation hazard from continued nuclear weapons
testing at the present rate is no greater than that from other
radiation normally encountered...
“Second:
This small added radiation, from whatever sources, will cause
many deaths,
“The committee believes that both conclusions are scientifically
correct, and in no way contradict each other,
"Unfortunatelv, those who helieve that we should continue testinc.. .
often emphasize the first conclusion and ignore the second,
Similarly
those who believe that a test ban is desirable . . . often emphasize
the second and ignore the first.
The Committee believes that both
statements must he taken together since either alone is misleading."
Whether or not low doses of radiation have a threshold or linear effect,
has not yet been proven.
The "jury," in a sense,
is still out.
There is
still not enough evidence to show that one or the other of the theories
is correct for somatic damage,
However, for the hereditary effects of
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