Speaker: Adam Riegel, Hofstra University
Date: Friday, February 19, 2021
Topic: Health Physics at Chernobyl
Abstract: Dr. Riegel will introduce physical concepts of radiation and the biological effects radiation has on the
human body through the lens of last year’s HBO miniseries “Chernobyl.” Topics will include differences in
alpha, beta, and gamma radiation, the units of radiation exposure and dose, and the illnesses caused by
significant acute radiation exposure such as those seen in the tragic nuclear incident at Chernobyl and
represented in the recent miniseries. Dr. Riegel will also briefly introduce the field of medical physics and
discuss opportunities in the MS in Medical Physics program at Hofstra University.
Dr. Adam Riegel obtained his PhD in medical physics in 2010 from the Graduate School of Biomedical
Sciences from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. Since that time,
Dr. Riegel has been a therapeutic medical physicist in the Department of Radiation Medicine at Northwell
Health. Dr. Riegel received board certification in 2013 and is currently the associate chief physicist at
Northwell. Dr. Riegel holds the rank of Adjunct Associate Professor in the Hofstra College of Liberal Arts
and Sciences, Associate Professor in the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, and is the
director of the medical physics graduate program at Hofstra University. Dr. Riegel is an active researcher
with numerous publications and is a participant in the regional and national medical physics community,
serving as a reviewer for several physics and radiation oncology journals and as a member of several
scientific and professional committees.
Time: 12:30 PM
Location: Zoom (email physics@tcnj.edu for link)