Teen creates fusion in his basement !!!!

deuterium isn't a key ingredient to nuclear weapons........

deuterium is a different form of hydrogen, naturally occuring in small abundance in ordinary water.

D20

$260/kilo, he just had to beg mom for the use of her credit card to order some.

Originally posted by DezertSkies
D20

$260/kilo, he just had to beg mom for the use of her credit card to order some.

I have to agree. The use of a credit card should be lowered to age 17.

7A

Ok, I just did a little more research and aparently this is a little hobby for amateur scientists.

and yes, I goofed.... Deuterium can be obtained perfectly legally.

these things are called fusors and an amateur can build one. Apparently they are rather costly. (up to $2000) and can be quite dangerous.

There is an extreme electrical danger associated with this project and a radiation danger from the reaction when more than 30,000 volts is pumped into the chamber.

Great for an amateur scientist, Id love to see one of these in action. Hell, I'd love to build one if I had the time and resources.

The article says nothing about what his machine is producing. Is it similar to the other Fusor reactors or is he getting better results? Or has he just built a complicated bit of kit in his basement that has impressed a gullible reporter?

Commendable bit of home science though undoubtably. And yes, he'll probably be in demand from industry

I think its because of his age. I am sure he had help from his parents. He had to find this parts and construct an air tight chamber as well as the electrodes needed.

Id say it was a gullible reporter. Nothing really spectacular...apparently this has been done since the 50's.

Yeah, here's the scoop on the fusor apparatus, that was first made in the 1960s:

en.wikipedia.org...

Allthough it was certainly an achievement to build especially for someone his age, this isn't a revolutionary find as it remains an endothermic reaction.