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What is the SI unit for activity, defined as one decay per second?
AThe becquerel (Bq)
BThe curie (Ci)
CThe rem unit here
DThe rad unit here
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. The becquerel (Bq)
1. Activity needs a standard SI unit to be compared across different samples.
2. That unit is the becquerel, defined as one decay per second.
3. The curie is a separate, non-SI unit historically tied to the activity of 1 g of radium-226.
4. The rem and rad describe radiation dose to tissue, not decay rate.
5. So the becquerel is correct.
_Source: OpenStax Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 22 "The Atom", section 22.3 Half Life and Radiometric Dating_
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