Radiology

The science of radiology was born in 1895 when Wilhelm Roentgen discovered the x ray. The German scientist was studying high voltage discharges in vacuum tubes when he noticed that the Crookes tube he was focusing on caused a piece of screen coated with the chemical barium platinocyanide to fluoresce or glow. Roentgen quickly realized that he had produced a previously unknown type of invisible radiation. In addition, this radiant energy could pass through solids like paper and wood. He also discovered that when he placed a hand between the beam's source and the chemically coated screen, he could see the bones inside the fingers depicted on the screen. Roentgen quickly found that he could record the image with photographic paper.

Roentgen's discovery changed the course of medicine. With the ability to look inside the body without surgery, physicians had a new diagnostic tool that could actually locate tumors or foreign objects, like bullets, thus greatly enhancing a surgeon's ability to operate successfully. Roentgen called the new radiant energy x rays and, six years after his discovery, was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics.