WHAT DOES MUTATION MEAN?
Mutat ions are the adverse changes
that take place in a l iving organism’s
body. Radiation or chemical substances
c au s e mu t a t i on s . T he e f f e c t s o f
radiat ion and chemical substances on
l i v i ng t h i ng s a r e a l way s ha rmf u l .
About 55 years ago, during the Second
Wo r l d Wa r , an a t om bomb wa s
d r opped on t he J apane s e c i t y o f
H i rosh ima . The atom bomb spread
radiation around the area and this
caused a lot of harm to people. The
radiation caused most of the people
either to become seriously i l l or die.
Moreover, it destroyed some bodi ly
systems of the exposed people, and
this in turn caused their chi ldren to
be born either sick or crippled.
Another such event took place in
the Russian city Chernobyl in 1986.
T he r e wa s an e x p l o s i on a t t he
Chernoby l nuc l ear p l ant , and th i s
caused radiation to spread over the
who l e c i t y , s u r r ound i ng
ar eas and even as far as
Western Europe. Just as in
Japan, the people who were
l i v i ng t he r e a t t he t ime
and t he i r c h i l d r en who
we r e bo r n s ub s equen t l y
e i ther became cr ippl ed or
died of radiation.
T he p i c t u r e s t ha t you
Mutations are harmful
events that have made a
child like this.
A lamb that ended up with
five legs due to a mutation.
People whose feet have been damaged
as a result of mutations.
91
