THE RADIOACTIVE BOY SCOUT: THE TRUE STORY OF A BOY AND HIS BACKYARD NUCLEAR REACTOR

Christian Science Monitor ^ | Tim Rauschenberg

[billorites]

These days, the phrase "nuclear ambitions" is applied ominously to countries or heads of state. Yet it aptly describes an ordinary teenager in suburban Detroit named David Hahn. His experience is a frightening indication of how easily dangerous materials can be acquired - and hidden.

Despite growing up in an era of no-nukes activism, David wanted nothing more than to join the Curies in the annals of atomic history. That the radium they discovered eventually killed the Curies doesn't seem to have muted his enthusiasm.

David's aptitude for science was phenomenal. From a 1960s-era book of chemistry experiments, he quickly gleaned the principles and skills of manipulating reactions, and expanded his capabilities with long hours of research at the library.

His safety record was literally stunning. Taking only the barest precautions, he remained unfazed by accidents that turned his hair green, burned his skin, or knocked him out cold. Larger blunders alarmed his father and stepmother, but he learned to cover up his failures.

At school, he was a poor student and terrible speller (the wall of his potting-shed laboratory carried the admonition: "Caushon"). His occasional claims of chemical and, later, nuclear research were dismissed by parents and teachers as attempts to get attention.

And so it was that with ingenuity and supplemental information from letters to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 17-year-old David gathered and refined - mostly from household products - enough radioactive material to make a crude breeder reactor in his backyard.

It was small and would never create an appreciable amount of fissionable fuel, but by the time David disassembled the runaway experiment in 1994, his Geiger counter was detecting radiation from several houses away.

Journalist Ken Silverstein gathered material from extensive interviews with David and his family and from police and EPA reports about this backyard experiment. The story appeared as a Harper's Magazine article in 1998, and now Silverstein has expanded it into some 200 pages.

What emerges in that greater space is that David's pattern of grandiose plans followed by accidents and coverups mirrors the larger history of breeder reactors. In theory, breeders make more fuel than they use. In practice, as Silverstein notes, "the few attempts to build a breeder have resulted in some of the scariest episodes in the nuclear era."

Another problem that's agonizingly apparent is the emotional neglect of David by his family. His father spent time with him only on scouting trips. His adoring mother was too lost in alcohol and mental problems to be supportive. The personal tragedy here sounds as disturbing as the potential public disaster.

• Tim Rauschenberger is on the Monitor's Web staff.

The Radioactive Boy Scout The True Story of a Boy and His Backyard Nuclear Reactor
By Ken Silverstein
Random House209 pp., $22.95

[Cold Heat]

Sorry to burst your bubble but I earned my dolphins aboard a nuclear fast attack sub after attending nuclear power school. I have a MS in Nuclear Engineering and was the Lead Test Engineer at nuclear power plant startups in the US and overseas.

Does not explain why you are trashing someone you don't know.

Maybe one of those dolphins climbed up your keester....

[cinFLA]

I'm sorry, I would have spelled it out for you if I had known that you are a Engineer....LOL!

There is NO RD article sourced. How can I comment on it! How can YOU comment on it? Did you read it?

[cinFLA]

Does not explain why you are trashing someone you don't know. Maybe one of those dolphins climbed up your keester....

Show me where I posted falsely of him!!! You are really taking this seriously. What is your personal interest? Are you getting a cut on the book deal?

[cinFLA]

Apparently you have no problem with trying to trash me!

[cinFLA]

So the RD story is BS as well?

What RD story. There is none sourced.

[Cold Heat]

Well the poster did not source it but related info from it.

Yes, I do recall reading it.

I have been a subsciber for 20 years.

I have no reason to doubt the posters truthfulness.

Yet you do?

Amazing..........

[cinFLA]

Well the poster did not source it but related info from it. Yes, I do recall reading it. I have been a subsciber for 20 years. I have no reason to doubt the posters truthfulness. Yet you do? Amazing..........

Well, I guess you missed his post where he retracted his 'info'. Go back and read the thread.

[Cold Heat]

Show me where I posted falsely of him!!! You are really taking this seriously. What is your personal interest? Are you getting a cut on the book deal?

No........just rattling your cage.

You should get out more.

[cinFLA]

Well the poster did not source it but related info from it. Yes, I do recall reading it. I have been a subsciber for 20 years. I have no reason to doubt the posters truthfulness. Good. Then you will believe him and his retraction.

To: Cooter
I stand corrected. It's been awhile since I read the article. Although I did remember he entered the Navy.
42 posted on 03/17/2004 9:40:11 AM PST by Chewbacca ("Turn off your machines! Walk off your jobs! Power to the People!" - The Ice Pirates)

[cinFLA]

Yes, I do recall reading it.

Are you still sticking with the 'submarine story'? Sorry. He retracted it after another posted his assignment to CVAN 65.

And don't try to BS me about aircraft carriers. I also served an assignment aboard CVAN 65.

[cinFLA]

No........just rattling your cage. You should get out more.

My wife said putting sage in hot tea improves the memory. Maybe you should try it.

[cinFLA]

Seems the kid even flunked as a Boy Scout.

This is my response to the article "Tale of the Radioactive Boy Scout" (Reader's Digest, March 1999).

---

I very much agree with Mark Demma's comments on the unfair negative connotations given to Scouting and the Boy Scouts of America by this article (please see Mark A. Demma #3 ).

Merit badges are designed to foster new interests in a young man and to broaden his hands-on experiences. This rounding out of the adolescent is crucial to his mental and physical development, as the skills and information learned from working on merit badges far outlast the Scouting experience.

Merit badges absolutely do not promote irresponsibility and the "wielding of knowledge without the temperament of wisdom." On the contrary, merit badges provide a channel to focus the Scout's interest via a well-planned curriculum, an initial resource base (e.g., background information in the provided merit badge pamphlet), and adult guidance:


On his own initiative, the Scout selects one of the 119 available merit badges that interests him. His Scoutmaster then pairs him with an adult volunteer (with experience in the chosen field) who is available to answer questions, teach, and help guide the Scout through the badge's requirements.
To earn the Eagle Scout rank, a Scout must earn 21 merit badges -- including twelve badges required of all Scouts (e.g., first aid, citizenship, communications, personal fitness, personal management, etc.) and nine individually-chosen badges (e.g., atomic energy).

After earning a merit badge, Scouts are certainly encouraged to continue both independent study and guided investigation into the subject or related fields. However, the combination of adult guidance and the depth of the material covered by a Scout should adequately prepare him to avoid dangerous situations like the one created by David Hahn.

For example: I am an approved counselor for the Atomic Energy merit badge mentioned in the article. Two weeks ago I worked with eleven Scouts as they completed the requirements for this merit badge. My focus with the Scouts was for them to receive either:

a solid foundation for future study toward a career in nuclear engineering or nuclear theory,
a good introduction to concepts they will later use in high-school and college-level science and engineering courses and in science-related jobs, or
a broader general understanding of science concepts.
In addition, I stressed laboratory and material safety, even to the point of non-nuclear related safety (e.g., safe chemical and biohazard handling and disposal, high-school and college laboratory safety, and others; please refer to my merit badge resources page). I cannot imagine a merit badge counselor who would not emphasize the very real danger of working with radioactive materials, or a Scout who would not have learned of the consequences of concentrated radiation exposure after completing this badge.

Requirement 6c of the merit badge states:


Build a model of a reactor. Show the fuel, the control rods, the shielding, the moderator, and any cooling material. Explain how a reactor could be used to change nuclear into electrical energy or make things radioactive.
Even here, there are stark differences between satisfying the merit badge requirements and David Hahn's subsequent actions. In addition to a Scout noting the need for thick shielding around working reactors, he would learn of the radioactive byproducts of the fission reaction, the effect of the fission process on surrounding materials (e.g., it "makes things radioactive"), the harmful effects of ionizing radiation on living tissue, the need for neutron absorbers and moderators in fission reactions, and so on.

I certainly cannot speak of the reasons behind David Hahn's disregard for nuclear reaction safety principles, although perhaps his cavalier statements in the postscript lend some insight toward his actions. I strongly doubt his disregard stems from a failure of the Atomic Energy merit badge requirements or of the Boy Scouts of America to teach him practical responsibility, and I am disappointed in Reader's Digest and Harper's Magazine for using the title and text of this article to make this harmful insinuation.

John Linwood Griffin
March 18, 1999

[Cold Heat]

Let's assume the same individual is indeed in the Navy, I do not much care to debate what ship he served on. That list of sailors was from a data base that is voluntary.

My beef is with your sailor swabbing and stupid enlisted man comments which do not carry well with this enlisted ex Sgt.

So Mr. Engineer......Go blow smoke in some other direction or boob that gets impressed with little.

I am glad you forced me to read the rest of the thread.

I see some others brought you to task as well.

But you must be used to it by now.

[Constantine XIII]

bump!

[cinFLA]

I am glad you forced me to read the rest of the thread. I see some others brought you to task as well.

At least you know you were not the only one to get sucked by this book-selling hype!

[cinFLA]

My beef is with your sailor swabbing and stupid enlisted man comments which do not carry well with this enlisted ex Sgt.

I guess I could have made some stuped enlisted army comments but I didn't. Seems you have no problem trashing people.

[cinFLA]

stupid enlisted man comments

What stupid enlisted man comments? You are losing it.

[Cold Heat]

Mr. Griffin(You) should not take it so seriously. Boy Scout remarks like these are actually complimentary.

I have worked with the scouts for many years. I have held many positions on the volunteer side. They are not at all upset about it. One of my favorite films is "The Last Boy Scout" with Bruce Willis. There are many other stories and films that reference "merit badges" and all in a good way.IMO

This reactor story did not in any way denigrate the Boy Scouts.

You are apparently devoid of any sense of humor or understanding.

Stick to your science.(BTW, I do the Electrical Merit Badge)

[cinFLA]

So Mr. Engineer......Go blow smoke in some other direction or boob that gets impressed with little.

I don't smoke and it seems you cannot make a post with trying to slur me.

[Cold Heat]

Now you go read the thread Mr. "mop Jockey"!

I'll be waisting no more of my time with you.

You are at the very least a humorless jerk.

Maybe one day I will get a better opinion.