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You may not know it, but November 8th is the International Day Of Radiology. On this day in 1895, German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen accidentally discovered x-rays. The British Library tells the story of the serendipitous revelation.

V0029523 X-ray of the bones of a hand with a ring on one finger
Credit: Wellcome Library, London. Wellcome Images
images@wellcome.ac.uk
http://images.wellcome.ac.uk
The bones of a hand with a ring on one finger, viewed through x-ray. Photoprint from radiograph by W.K. von R�ntgen, 1895.
1895 By: Wilhelm Konrad von R�ntgenPublished:  - 

Copyrighted work available under Creative Commons by-nc 2.0 UK, see http://images.wellcome.ac.uk/indexplus/page/Prices.html

First-Ever Medical X-Ray

V0029523 X-ray of the bones of a hand with a ring on one finger Credit: Wellcome Library, London. Wellcome Images images@wellcome.ac.uk http://images.wellcome.ac.uk The bones of a hand with a ring on one finger, viewed through x-ray. Photoprint from radiograph by W.K. von R�ntgen, 1895. 1895 By: Wilhelm Konrad von R�ntgenPublished: – Copyrighted work available under Creative Commons by-nc 2.0 UK, see http://images.wellcome.ac.uk/indexplus/page/Prices.html

At right, you can see the very first medical x-ray. It’s an image of Roentgen wife’s hand—including her massive wedding ring. The discovery earned Roentgen a Nobel Prize.

The International Day of Radiology was organized by a bunch of radiologists to raise awareness about how important radiology is. That may sound a bit self-aggrandizing, but medical imaging techniques really do save lives.

To celebrate this perhaps underappreciated holiday, General Electric scanned a bunch of random objects as part of their #SeeInsideIt campaign, and we are now sharing those images with you, because they’re pretty awesome.

Happy IDoR, everybody! Above is an MRI of a pineapple, and the photo gallery is below.

They're eggs, and the black parts are air cells. (In case you're curious, an air cell forms when an egg loses water and CO2 through its pores -- it pulls in the surrounding air to replace the lost volume.) When radiologists take an x-ray, they fire the radiation at an object that's either on top of or in front of an x-ray detector. If the rays don't reach the detector -- meaning they were absorbed by the densest parts of object, like the meaty section of an egg -- that area shows up white on the resulting image. If the rays encounter no resistance, they hit the detector and show up completely black, like in the airy part of the eggs. If the rays hit soft tissues and get partially absorbed, it creates a gray color in the image.

No, These Are Not Eyeballs

They’re eggs, and the black parts are air cells. (In case you’re curious, an air cell forms when an egg loses water and CO2 through its pores — it pulls in the surrounding air to replace the lost volume.) When radiologists take an x-ray, they fire the radiation at an object that’s either on top of or in front of an x-ray detector. If the rays don’t reach the detector — meaning they were absorbed by the densest parts of object, like the meaty section of an egg — that area shows up white on the resulting image. If the rays encounter no resistance, they hit the detector and show up completely black, like in the airy part of the eggs. If the rays hit soft tissues and get partially absorbed, it creates a gray color in the image.
Computed tomography scans also use x-rays. But instead of being stationary, the CT machine moves all around the object of interest, firing a thin beam of x-rays and taking many 'slices' of the object. These scans help doctors put together a three-dimensional picture of an injury, a tumor, or in this case an N64 game controller.

Nintendo Controller

Computed tomography scans also use x-rays. But instead of being stationary, the CT machine moves all around the object of interest, firing a thin beam of x-rays and taking many ‘slices’ of the object. These scans help doctors put together a three-dimensional picture of an injury, a tumor, or in this case an N64 game controller.
This abstraction was taken using x-ray backscatter. Instead of catching the x-rays that travel through an object, backscattering takes a picture of the x-rays bouncing off of it. So in this image, the black parts are the denser and the white parts are softer.

Video Camera

This abstraction was taken using x-ray backscatter. Instead of catching the x-rays that travel through an object, backscattering takes a picture of the x-rays bouncing off of it. So in this image, the black parts are the denser and the white parts are softer.
In this backscatter x-ray, the darker parts reveal the dense metal and wire components of a hand mixer.

Kitchen Mixer

In this backscatter x-ray, the darker parts reveal the dense metal and wire components of a hand mixer.
Imaging method: X-ray

7-Watt Lightbulb

Imaging method: X-ray
Look who's on camera now! Imaging method: CT scan

Old-School Film Camera

Look who’s on camera now! Imaging method: CT scan
Is it just us, or does it look like this crab contains a <a href="http://amazing-space.stsci.edu/resources/fastfacts/crab_nebula.php">Crab Nebula</a>? Imaging method: X-ray

Crab

Is it just us, or does it look like this crab contains a Crab Nebula? Imaging method: X-ray
Imaging method: X-ray

Calculator

Imaging method: X-ray
If this purse were actually owned by a real woman, there would be a lot more stuff in it. Imaging method: Backscatter x-ray

Purse

If this purse were actually owned by a real woman, there would be a lot more stuff in it. Imaging method: Backscatter x-ray
Imaging method: X-ray

CD Player

Imaging method: X-ray
Imaging method: CT scan

RC Car

Imaging method: CT scan
Imaging method: CT scan

Lock And Keys

Imaging method: CT scan
Imaging method: X-ray

Creepy Monkey Doll

Imaging method: X-ray
Imaging type: Delicious. Er, x-ray.

Pizza

Imaging type: Delicious. Er, x-ray.
Imaging method: X-ray

Rubber Ducky

Imaging method: X-ray
Though the console's identity was not revealed, we're pretty sure it's an N64. Imaging method: CT scan

Videogame Console

Though the console’s identity was not revealed, we’re pretty sure it’s an N64. Imaging method: CT scan
Imaging method: X-ray

Tangerine, Peeled

Imaging method: X-ray
Imaging method: CT scan

Walkie Talkie

Imaging method: CT scan
Imaging type: X-ray

Seashell

Imaging type: X-ray