This is not a repeat of the suggestion that dense hydrogen is the same
species as "dark matter" ... but there is a good case for that proposition.
It is about "dark" as in evil. If there is a foreseeable downside to
LENR, it is the possibility of weaponization. Not just that - it is the
easy weaponization of commonly available materials, which makes it much
scarier than nukes.
In the past, observers of the LENR scene - who delve into almost every
remote possibility for anomalous energy - have not wanted to talk about
the possibility of a cold-fusion bomb. Even when P&F reported their
amazing meltdown, the implications were minimized. It is an
uncomfortable topic since for one thing, weaponization could provide
Federal regulators with a ready made excuse, should they want to limit
research into the field at the behest of the fossil fuel industry, for
instance.
However, the reality of our technological world - which is fed by the
WWW and knows no boundaries - is that there is no field of human
endeavor which benefits from intentional neglect: the ostrich meme -
buying one's head in the sand. The worst possible approach for any
Nation is to look the other way and ignore the dark side. If there is
any likelihood that LENR can do harm, it is better that we (e.g. the
free world) discover it first - so as to better prepare for the eventual
situation where our enemies, or former friends, will consider the NiH
bomb to be a golden opportunity for their own purposes.
If Holmlid is correct to the extent that irradiating the dense allotrope
of deuterium - UDD - using a small laser - can result in the "quark
soup" disintegration of the target particle into muons, in addition to
nuclear fusion, then the potential to do immense harm cannot be
over-estimated. The destructiveness of the small laser reaction
increases by orders of magnitude over the fissionable nukes - from MeV
to GeV. The same situation exists if a "critical mass" level exists.
Over the years, at least 6 more reports and likely more, have emerged of
a runaway reaction in LENR like the one P&F reported, or in one case
even more impressive. Any runaway reaction would point to the existence
of a critical-mass parameter.
The suitcase nuke, scary enough but achievable, then evolves into the
water-bottle size, or pen size (laser pointer size) - which is
deliverable by drone and feasible to the wealthy investor of almost any
country.
- [Vo]:The dark side of dense hydrogen Jones Beene
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