With World Radiography Day just around the corner, news has broken that the British public have voted the x-ray machine the most important modern discovery.

In a poll conducted by the Science Museum, the x-ray machine fought off stiff competition from the steam engine, the electric telegraph, the Model T Ford, the V2 Rocket Engine, the DNA double helix, Stephenson’s Rocket, the Pilot ACE Computer, the Apollo 10 Capsule and even Penicillin, to be crowned in the top spot as the nation’s most useful invention.

According to the results of the poll, in which 50,000 individuals participated, 10,000 people named the x-ray machine as the discovery which has had “the greatest impact on the past, present and future.”

The health professionals who take and interpret x-ray images are reportedly “delighted” that the public has recognised the importance of the technology and the impact it has had upon the medical profession since its invention over 100 years ago.

“It is particularly appropriate that x-rays were chosen because in a few days - 8 November - it will be the anniversary of their discovery,” says Richard Evans, the chief executive of the Society and College of Radiographers .

The first x-ray images were captured in 1895 after a series of studies by several mathemeticians and phycicists beforehand prompted Wilhelm Roentgen to begin investigating x-rays as part of his own experimentation with vaccuum tubes. Roentgen detected a certain wavelength of electromagnetic radiation, realising that the rays allowed the observer to ‘see’ into and through objects. Using his wife as the subject of his investigations, Roentgen captured images of her hand which clearly displayed the structure of her bones.  

Quite some time later, in the 1940s and 1950s, certain shops adopted the use of x-ray machines in their quest to encourage greater sales of shoes. However, these were subsequently banned as the harmful effects of unprotected exposure to such equipment came to light.

In the years that have followed his discovery, Roentgen’s aptly self-titled ‘x-rays’ have consequently opened up huge possibilities for medicine and healthcare. The x-ray machine developed by Roentgen and Russell Reynolds in Britain has paved the way for the wide range of sophisticated imaging techniques used by radiographers today to diagnose a multitude of illnesses and injuries, as well as treat certain cancers by shrinking and destroying tumours.

Each year, on the anniversary of Roentgen’s discovery of x-rays, around 20,000-plus diagnostic and therapy radiographers in the UK hold events and open days on 8 November to commemorate his work in what is collectively referred to as World Radiography Day.

Reflecting on the results of the poll, Katie Maggs, associate curator of medicine at the Science Museum said: “I’m thrilled to see the incredible development of the x-ray machine recognised in the Museum’s Centenary year.

“X-rays have radically changed the way we see and understand our world - our bodies in particular.”

Ben Bradshaw, the UK’s Culture Secretary, added: “Any competition that pits the Apollo 10 Spacecraft against Stephenson’s Rocket and the DNA double helix against the Model T Ford is bound to provide talking points a-plenty.”

Interestingly, the outcome of the poll saw medical inventions or discoveries placed in all top three slots, with Alexander Fleming’s Penicillin discovery taking second place and the location of the DNA double helix structure in third.

Posted: 04/11/2009