RADIOLOGIC SCIENCE FOR
TECHNOLOGISTS 12TH EDITION BY
BUSHONG STUDY GUIDE 2026 –
COMPLETE CHAPTER REVIEW &
PRACTICE MATERIALS (LATEST EDITION)
Chapter 1: Essential Concepts of Radiologic Science
1. Question: What is the fundamental unit of matter for a chemical element?
Answer: The atom.
2. Question: What are the two main regions of an atom?
Answer: The nucleus and the electron cloud (shells).
3. Question: Atoms with the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons are
called?
Answer: Isotopes.
4. Question: What type of energy is contained within the nucleus of an atom?
Answer: Nuclear energy.
5. Question: What is the process by which an unstable nucleus releases energy to become more
stable?
Answer: Radioactivity.
Chapter 2: The Structure of Matter
6. Question: What are the three primary particles that make up an atom, and what are their
charges?
Answer: Proton (+), Neutron (neutral), Electron (-).
7. Question: The number of protons in an atom’s nucleus defines its what?
Answer: Atomic number (Z).
8. Question: The total number of protons and neutrons in an atom’s nucleus is its what?
Answer: Mass number (A).
,9. Question: What is a molecule?
Answer: Two or more atoms chemically combined.
10. Question: What type of chemical bond involves the sharing of electron pairs between
atoms?
Answer: Covalent bond.
Chapter 3: Electromagnetic Energy
11. Question: In the electromagnetic spectrum, what property is inversely proportional to
wavelength?
Answer: Frequency.
12. Question: X-rays and gamma rays are forms of electromagnetic radiation that are classified
as what type of energy?
Answer: Ionizing radiation.
13. Question: What is the velocity of all electromagnetic radiation in a vacuum?
Answer: Approximately 3 x 10^8 m/s (the speed of light).
14. Question: The relationship between energy (E) and frequency (ν) of a photon is given by
what formula?
Answer: E = hν (where h is Planck's constant).
15. Question: What property of an x-ray beam increases as the kilovoltage peak (kVp) is
increased?
Answer: Beam quality (penetrability) and energy.
Chapter 4: Electricity, Magnetism, and Electromagnetism
16. Question: What is the SI unit of electric current?
Answer: Ampere (A).
17. Question: A coil of wire with a current passing through it creates what type of magnet?
Answer: An electromagnet.
18. Question: What law states that a changing magnetic field induces a current in a conductor?
Answer: Faraday's Law of Electromagnetic Induction.
19. Question: In an x-ray circuit, what device increases the incoming line voltage to the
kilovoltage required by the x-ray tube?
Answer: The high-voltage transformer (or step-up transformer).
,20. Question: What device in the x-ray circuit converts alternating current (AC) to direct current
(DC)?
Answer: The rectifier (or rectification bridge).
Chapter 5: The X-ray Tube
21. Question: What are the two primary electrodes within an x-ray tube?
Answer: The cathode (negative) and the anode (positive).
22. Question: What is the primary function of the cathode filament?
Answer: To thermionically emit electrons when heated (the source of electrons).
23. Question: What is the name of the phenomenon where x-rays are produced when high-
speed electrons are suddenly decelerated in the anode?
Answer: Bremsstrahlung radiation ("braking radiation").
24. Question: What is the primary cause of heat production in an x-ray tube?
Answer: Over 99% of the kinetic energy of the electron stream is converted to heat at the
anode.
25. Question: What component of the x-ray tube is designed to rotate to dissipate heat over a
larger area?
Answer: The rotating anode.
Chapter 6: X-ray Production
26. Question: At what energy level do characteristic x-rays from a Tungsten (W) target first
appear when using a properly calibrated generator?
Answer: At 69.5 keV (the K-shell binding energy of Tungsten).
27. Question: What factor primarily determines the maximum energy (keV) of an x-ray photon
in the bremsstrahlung spectrum?
Answer: The peak kilovoltage (kVp) applied across the x-ray tube.
28. Question: What is the primary factor affecting the quantity (number) of x-rays produced?
Answer: Milliamperage-seconds (mAs).
29. Question: In the x-ray emission spectrum, what happens to the amplitude when mAs is
increased?
Answer: The amplitude increases at all energies, but the shape of the spectrum remains the
same.
, 30. Question: What is the term for the reduction in x-ray intensity on the anode side of the
beam due to the heel effect?
Answer: The anode heel effect.
Chapter 7: X-ray Interaction with Matter
31. Question: Which x-ray interaction with matter is the primary contributor to patient dose
and radiographic fog?
Answer: Compton scatter.
32. Question: Which interaction involves the total absorption of a low-energy x-ray photon by
an inner-shell electron and is responsible for photoelectric effect?
Answer: The photoelectric effect.
33. Question: What interaction is responsible for the contrast between bone and soft tissue in a
diagnostic radiograph?
Answer: The photoelectric effect.
34. Question: Which interaction is predominant at higher energies (e.g., above 70 keV) and with
low atomic number materials?
Answer: Compton scatter.
35. Question: What interaction involves no energy transfer and is responsible for the
unchanged wavelength of the scattered photon?
Answer: Classical (Coherent / Rayleigh) scatter.
Chapter 8: Image Quality
36. Question: The ability to visualize small structures and sharp edges is defined as what?
Answer: Spatial resolution (or recorded detail).
37. Question: What is the primary factor under technologist control that reduces geometric blur
(unsharpness)?
Answer: Using a small focal spot.
38. Question: What is the relationship between Object-to-Image Receptor Distance (OID) and
image magnification?
Answer: As OID increases, magnification increases and spatial resolution decreases.
39. Question: The random fluctuation in optical density on a radiographic image is called what?
Answer: Noise. The primary contributor in radiography is quantum mottle.
TECHNOLOGISTS 12TH EDITION BY
BUSHONG STUDY GUIDE 2026 –
COMPLETE CHAPTER REVIEW &
PRACTICE MATERIALS (LATEST EDITION)
Chapter 1: Essential Concepts of Radiologic Science
1. Question: What is the fundamental unit of matter for a chemical element?
Answer: The atom.
2. Question: What are the two main regions of an atom?
Answer: The nucleus and the electron cloud (shells).
3. Question: Atoms with the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons are
called?
Answer: Isotopes.
4. Question: What type of energy is contained within the nucleus of an atom?
Answer: Nuclear energy.
5. Question: What is the process by which an unstable nucleus releases energy to become more
stable?
Answer: Radioactivity.
Chapter 2: The Structure of Matter
6. Question: What are the three primary particles that make up an atom, and what are their
charges?
Answer: Proton (+), Neutron (neutral), Electron (-).
7. Question: The number of protons in an atom’s nucleus defines its what?
Answer: Atomic number (Z).
8. Question: The total number of protons and neutrons in an atom’s nucleus is its what?
Answer: Mass number (A).
,9. Question: What is a molecule?
Answer: Two or more atoms chemically combined.
10. Question: What type of chemical bond involves the sharing of electron pairs between
atoms?
Answer: Covalent bond.
Chapter 3: Electromagnetic Energy
11. Question: In the electromagnetic spectrum, what property is inversely proportional to
wavelength?
Answer: Frequency.
12. Question: X-rays and gamma rays are forms of electromagnetic radiation that are classified
as what type of energy?
Answer: Ionizing radiation.
13. Question: What is the velocity of all electromagnetic radiation in a vacuum?
Answer: Approximately 3 x 10^8 m/s (the speed of light).
14. Question: The relationship between energy (E) and frequency (ν) of a photon is given by
what formula?
Answer: E = hν (where h is Planck's constant).
15. Question: What property of an x-ray beam increases as the kilovoltage peak (kVp) is
increased?
Answer: Beam quality (penetrability) and energy.
Chapter 4: Electricity, Magnetism, and Electromagnetism
16. Question: What is the SI unit of electric current?
Answer: Ampere (A).
17. Question: A coil of wire with a current passing through it creates what type of magnet?
Answer: An electromagnet.
18. Question: What law states that a changing magnetic field induces a current in a conductor?
Answer: Faraday's Law of Electromagnetic Induction.
19. Question: In an x-ray circuit, what device increases the incoming line voltage to the
kilovoltage required by the x-ray tube?
Answer: The high-voltage transformer (or step-up transformer).
,20. Question: What device in the x-ray circuit converts alternating current (AC) to direct current
(DC)?
Answer: The rectifier (or rectification bridge).
Chapter 5: The X-ray Tube
21. Question: What are the two primary electrodes within an x-ray tube?
Answer: The cathode (negative) and the anode (positive).
22. Question: What is the primary function of the cathode filament?
Answer: To thermionically emit electrons when heated (the source of electrons).
23. Question: What is the name of the phenomenon where x-rays are produced when high-
speed electrons are suddenly decelerated in the anode?
Answer: Bremsstrahlung radiation ("braking radiation").
24. Question: What is the primary cause of heat production in an x-ray tube?
Answer: Over 99% of the kinetic energy of the electron stream is converted to heat at the
anode.
25. Question: What component of the x-ray tube is designed to rotate to dissipate heat over a
larger area?
Answer: The rotating anode.
Chapter 6: X-ray Production
26. Question: At what energy level do characteristic x-rays from a Tungsten (W) target first
appear when using a properly calibrated generator?
Answer: At 69.5 keV (the K-shell binding energy of Tungsten).
27. Question: What factor primarily determines the maximum energy (keV) of an x-ray photon
in the bremsstrahlung spectrum?
Answer: The peak kilovoltage (kVp) applied across the x-ray tube.
28. Question: What is the primary factor affecting the quantity (number) of x-rays produced?
Answer: Milliamperage-seconds (mAs).
29. Question: In the x-ray emission spectrum, what happens to the amplitude when mAs is
increased?
Answer: The amplitude increases at all energies, but the shape of the spectrum remains the
same.
, 30. Question: What is the term for the reduction in x-ray intensity on the anode side of the
beam due to the heel effect?
Answer: The anode heel effect.
Chapter 7: X-ray Interaction with Matter
31. Question: Which x-ray interaction with matter is the primary contributor to patient dose
and radiographic fog?
Answer: Compton scatter.
32. Question: Which interaction involves the total absorption of a low-energy x-ray photon by
an inner-shell electron and is responsible for photoelectric effect?
Answer: The photoelectric effect.
33. Question: What interaction is responsible for the contrast between bone and soft tissue in a
diagnostic radiograph?
Answer: The photoelectric effect.
34. Question: Which interaction is predominant at higher energies (e.g., above 70 keV) and with
low atomic number materials?
Answer: Compton scatter.
35. Question: What interaction involves no energy transfer and is responsible for the
unchanged wavelength of the scattered photon?
Answer: Classical (Coherent / Rayleigh) scatter.
Chapter 8: Image Quality
36. Question: The ability to visualize small structures and sharp edges is defined as what?
Answer: Spatial resolution (or recorded detail).
37. Question: What is the primary factor under technologist control that reduces geometric blur
(unsharpness)?
Answer: Using a small focal spot.
38. Question: What is the relationship between Object-to-Image Receptor Distance (OID) and
image magnification?
Answer: As OID increases, magnification increases and spatial resolution decreases.
39. Question: The random fluctuation in optical density on a radiographic image is called what?
Answer: Noise. The primary contributor in radiography is quantum mottle.
