An investigation of the Therac-25 accidents

Between June 1985 and January 1987, the Therac-25 medical electron accelerator was involved in six massive radiation overdoses. As a result, several people died and others were seriously injured. A detailed investigation of the factors involved in the software-related overdoses and attempts by users...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Computer (Long Beach, Calif.) Calif.), 1993-07, Vol.26 (7), p.18-41
Main Authors: Leveson, N.G., Turner, C.S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accidents
Biomedical applications of radiation
Computer industry
Drugs
Electron accelerators
Food industry
Food manufacturing
History
Injuries
Software safety
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Summary:Between June 1985 and January 1987, the Therac-25 medical electron accelerator was involved in six massive radiation overdoses. As a result, several people died and others were seriously injured. A detailed investigation of the factors involved in the software-related overdoses and attempts by users, manufacturers, and government agencies to deal with the accidents is presented. The authors demonstrate the complex nature of accidents and the need to investigate all aspects of system development and operation in order to prevent future accidents. The authors also present some lessons learned in terms of system engineering, software engineering, and government regulation of safety-critical systems containing software components.< >
ISSN:0018-9162
1558-0814
DOI:10.1109/MC.1993.274940