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Thursday, August 17, 2006

Sleep and Nuclear Fisson

I slept! Physically, I feel better. I ate plain tortillas for dinner last night (again). I took some pain killers for my neck and shoulders... which have been in knots. Stress or not being able to relax... whatever. I drank... a lot. Maybe it was chemically induced or just a result of a nice evening, but I slept. I watched "Path to Nuclear Fission: The Story of Lise Meitner and Otto Hahn" last night on PBS. It was the story of the two scientist, also life-long friends, who in 1938 found that the uranium atom splits when bombarded by neutrons. Their work facilitated the development of nuclear weapons. Hahn was a chemist and Meitner was a nuclear physicist. Really the story centered on Meitner's struggle with being a female scientist in the early 1900's and the challenges and dangers she faced as a natural born Jew during the era of World War I in Germany. She worked for many years without pay and even when she finally received a salary, it was a mere fraction of what Hahn, her scientific equal, earned as a man. During Hitler's rise to power, she was afforded some protection under her Austrian passport, but once he took control, she had to flee Germany illegally to survive. Hahn continued to correspond with her for guidance, interpretation, and opinion on his research. She was largely responsible for the discovery that earned Hahn alone a Nobel Prize in 1944, yet she was not credited in any fashion. This could be due to Hahn's fear of political repercussions and persecution, but even after Hitler was defeated and the threat was invalid, he stayed his course. Despite all this, she remained his dear friend until the end and they both died the same year. They were both 89 years of age. The truth was really gleaned from diaries and memoirs pieced together after their deaths. With all the photos of them together clearly showing a deep connection, healthy respect, and happy friendship, they were never romantically involved despite working so closely together for the better part of their entire lives. Who would have thought nuclear physics could be so romantic and sad? I'm a geek about stuff like that...
Posted by clayton in
(2) Comments | Permalink
Next entry: Ready to rob liquor stores, blow shit up, and write dirty music... Previous entry: only because my Mom asked me...
 on  08/17  at  04:14 PM

Your ability to sleep (however you managed it) is as much a relief to those who care about you as it is to yourself, I’ll bet. Now go eat some vegetables!

 on  08/17  at  05:45 PM

Vegetables make my poop slick.

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