SMASHING ATOMS

Hokitika Guardian, 16 July 1930, Page 7

SMASHING ATOMS

LIGHTING TO ASSIST SCIENTISTS’ EFFORTS. The fact that two German scientists have been making serious attempts to discover atomic energy is of special interest to wireless investigators, because the science of wireless is based fundamentally on the behaviour of the atom and its electrons, and any attempts which are made to ; ncreaso our knowledge of these units are likely to affect also the theory and practice of wireless (writes G. H. Daly, in “Popular Wireless”!. It will not be out of place, therefore, to relate exactly what atomic energy is and how scientists hope to obtain it. Most people are aware that all matter is composed of tiny units called atoms ; a common brick, a star c,r a human being, all are built up of these tiny and invisible uffits.

USING THE HIDDEN KNERY. I Towards the end of last century it was discovered that the atom itself contained still smaller units, namely the now familiar electron, which appeared to revolve round a more or less stationary unit in the coiitre or the atom. This lias been given the name proton. The speed of a rifle bullet tlep-ids largely upon the charge behind the buhet, and so it must be wth the electron—its speed must lo the icntlt of some tremendous force in ids the atom—the force is certainty not supplied from outside, The discovery of the rapidly moving electron was the fist hint that science received of this so-called atomic energy.

When we use radium we :ue making use in a mild "’ay oi atomic energy, but radium ’8 rare ana expensive, so that the only liop9 or obtaining atomic energy on a large scale is to devise some method of exploding /the ordinary atom of matter; when it will discharge its electrons, and give us abundant energy in the form of heat.

Uranium is the most likely substance for our purpose, for it is brimful of latent radio active energy, more so than radium, and there ’.a plenty of it in the world, and if we can explode its atoms in some way or even accelerate their rate of explosion (for uranium atoms do explode, on’y they take some thousands of years to do so), then atomic energy will be plentiful.

: THE MAGNETIC METHOD. The point is how are we to explode these ordinary atoms? The two Ger-man-scientists, Lange and Biaseh, hope to accomplish the l'eat by submitting the atom by a potential of 9 million volts from thunderstorms and. atmospheric electricity generally. , The electron and proton are both electrical in nature, and they more

electrical than material, the electron being a negative charge and the proton a positive charge of electricity, and it is the positive charge of tire proton which holds the electron to its orbit, and prevents it lrnui Hying off into space like its radio-active brother.

If then, in some way, the electric strain which holds these two together can be broken even for an lnrtant, then the atom will split open, tlie electron will fly off at thousands of milejs per second, and terrific heat will be generated. And what is more likely lo break this electric strain than the. te.rifc potential tapped from a thunderstorm ?—so, at least, believe the German scientists. When we consider that there are billions of atoms in the size of a pin head, ail containing electrons capable of generating terrific energy, then the extent of atomic energy will be appreciated. There is also the possibility that the electron in the atom may be torn from the proton by magrmic mears, but this ha,s already been tried unsuccessfully, in the United States, while the thunderstorm method, with a potential of 9 million volts, is a new one on the atom. However, the magnetic method may again be attempted.

Tire importance of the experiment to wireless, apart from the world in general, is that whatever happens, some new data concerning the atom and the electron are likely to be forthcoming. Of course, the investigators may even find out that there is no such thing ns atomic energy and that the apparent high velocity of electrons inside the atom is not a demonstration of energy but something else, As a matter of fact, Professor Millikan, of cosmic.ray fame, has stated his disbelief in this energy, although the majority of scientists, such as Lodge, Rutherford, and Soddy, have made positive suggestions regarding it.

Should atomic energy be harnessed, however, it will cause a complete revolution to life on this planet. From the wireless point of view alone, we should;, be able to dispense. the mast costly part of the • transmitter -or receiver, namely the power supply; the atomic energy in ( a few ipounds of' uranium salts-‘being sufficient to run all the motors', and generators of a station like . Rugby for twenty Or thirty years/..';;' All valve filaments would, be coated with radio-active deposit,- and neither the low tension nor the hightension batteries would be necessary on the wireless set. '

At the same time, atomic. < energy is not going to be of very, ihueli use to us if we have to brave the dangers of tapping a thunderstorm every time we require any atomic y,energy. Some very much less difficult and dangerous methods will have to be discovered, and the most' we can hope for in the meantime is that the various attempts to break into the atom will throw some' light on the behnvious of the electron— surely the most elusive and mysterious entity of our time.