Part 1 here: www.youtube.com David Hahn, nicknamed the “Radioactive Boy Scout”, is an Eagle Scout who received a merit badge in Atomic Energy and spent years tinkering with basement chemistry which sometimes resulted in small explosions and other mishaps. He was inspired in part by reading The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments, and tried to collect samples of every element in the periodic table, including the radioactive ones. Hahn diligently amassed this radioactive material by collecting small amounts from household products, such as americium from smoke detectors, thorium from camping lantern mantles, radium from clocks and tritium (as neutron moderator) from gunsights. His “reactor” was a large, bored-out block of lead, and he used lithium from $1000 worth of purchased batteries to purify the thorium ash using a Bunsen burner. Hahn posed as an adult scientist or professor to gain the trust of many professionals in letters, despite the presence of misspellings and obvious errors in his letters to them. Hahn ultimately hoped to create a breeder reactor, using low-level isotopes to transform samples of thorium and uranium into fissionable isotopes. Although his homemade reactor never achieved critical mass, it ended up emitting dangerous levels of radioactivity, likely well over 1000 times normal background radiation. Alarmed, Hahn began to dismantle his experiments, but a chance encounter with police led to the discovery of his activities, which triggered a Federal …
17 Responses
ok evryone sayin that he’s going to die of cancer how cares? he knew the risks and chose to do it that way so how cares dont try to be a smart ass…
david is going to die of cancer, be sure
this is what you call an intelligent fool
He served on a nuclear aircraft carrier, but was not allowed into the US Navy’s nuclear pipeline. I was in the US Navy going through nuclear training when this guy served and he made it into conversation at our classes (especially since the book was published in 2004).
He should have went into physics.
RESPEKNUCKLES!
@jdm97ek4 He was recently arrested for stealing smoke detectors in his apartment complex to harvest the radioactive parts from them.
he locked up or still out? the feds probably went ape shit over this
@fetalbetal I blame Obama.
i bet you if you try to download this video, the government will be all over your house.
and….. did this video just tell us exactly how to make plutonium or did i miss something
what?? no one hired him??
I’m surprised he didn’t get cancer…. But god, that’s some ingenuity for you.
I blame suburbs, theism, and the human condition.
This guy will rule the world one day. Hes my hero :D
wow this turned out shitty… what a dumbass.
Which show was this from?