Radiation Safety Practice Exam

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Study for the Radiation Safety Exam. Test your knowledge with multiple choice questions, each equipped with hints and explanations. Prepare effectively and confidently!

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The most common isotope of carbon has how many neutrons?

  1. 6

  2. 8

  3. 12

  4. 14

The correct answer is: 6

The most common isotope of carbon is carbon-12, which is denoted as \(^{12}_{6}C\). In isotope notation, the number at the top (12) represents the mass number, which is the total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus, while the bottom number (6) indicates the atomic number, which is the number of protons. Since carbon has an atomic number of 6, it contains 6 protons. To find the number of neutrons in the most common isotope, you subtract the number of protons from the mass number. Therefore, for carbon-12: Number of neutrons = Mass number - Number of protons = 12 - 6 = 6 This means that the most common isotope of carbon, carbon-12, has 6 neutrons. The other specified options refer to different quantities that do not accurately represent the neutron count in the most prevalent carbon isotope.

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