2 ms·
The Manhattan Project physicists once feared setting the atmosphere on fire. Scientific paradigms progress with time.
by Apocryphon 3y ago
The Manhattan Project physicists once feared setting the atmosphere on fire. Scientific paradigms progress with time.
- cthalupa 3y agoThis fear seems to have been largely played up for drama. My understanding of the situation is that at one point they went 'Huh, we could potentially set off a chain reaction here. We should check out if the math adds up on that.' Then they went off and did the math and quickly found that this wouldn't happen because the amount of energy in play here was order of magnitudes lower than what would be needed for such a thing to occur and went on about their day. The only reason it's something we talk about is because of the nature of the outcome, not how seriously the physicists were in their fear.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]