David Hahn: The Radioactive Boy Scout | Random Thursday

He was a bright guy... especially at night

"Americium? Lithium? Are you trying to make meth." "No sir, I'm just building a nuclear reactor in my parents basement. "Oh, well then carry on son."

Also moral of the story: if you're gonna be crazy interested in chemistry, make sure your parents are rich

David was actually a friend of mine. We met in the Marines. Good guy but very troubled. I hope he is at peace.

"HOW are we still a species" I question that every day, my man.

Ah yes, one of the famous scientific inventions: Safety, first discovered in 1990

That sulfur water story was hilarious hahaha the cuts were perfect!

That part where you say his geiger counter went off from the street because there was a clock with painted dials in the nearby store isn't quite what I've heard. Apparently, he would actually go from junk store to junk store specifically looking for these clocks as it was the easiest way for him to obtain radium. This one occasion, the reason his meter went off like crazy was because someone had actually left a can of radium paint inside one of those clocks when it was constructed. This was like winning the lottery for him. BTW - If I remember correctly, the device he constructed was the culmination of 3 or 4 years of gathering materials, including thousands of smoke detectors.

The saddest thing about this story is that had he had proper parenting and mentorship, he could probably be contributing to nuclear science to this very day.

Grew up in 60's and 70's. Had a chemistry set like that, a geiger counter, and a bottle of radium. We painted ghosts on the walls of our room that glowed in the dark. My brother actually painted it on his face so he would glow in the dark... (the bones in my legs would set off the geiger counter). Melted lead to make art projects, played with vials of mercury, chunks of sodium and lithium, made explosions with gun powder from shot gun shells, made strong electromagnets by wrapping wire around a metal pipe and plugging it into 110. Hard to believe we are both still healthy.

Me, reading title: "He did NOT build a breeder reactor" Middle of video: "He built a friggin breeder reactor!"

"...if he had directed that energy in the right direction..." Just stop, Joe! 🤣

He definitely should have flashed his atomic energy merit badge to that officer.

4:55 for the non-german speakers: it literally says "Doramad: Radioactive toothpaste"

His close friends described him as the life of the party, they kind of guy that could light up a room.

Random knowledge: Because of the horrors due to the radium girls, OSHA became a thing. Edit:...And after finishing this video, Dude actually did about the Radium girls. So as a new subscriber, I'm impressed by your level of dedication towards these stories.

I had one of those "how am I still alive?" chemistry sets as a kid in the 80s. In addition to all the delightfully toxic materials it provided, there were warnings about what not to mix that were specific enough that it was like an Opposite-Day Anarchists' Cookbook

Thanks for the story Joe! Sad ending. I made nitroglycerin at home when I was 13, I wanted to make dynamite and learned what I could from reading the World Book encyclopedia. As you can imagine, the article was NOT a detailed recipe. (Previously, I'd made contact explosive (potassium tri-iodide) with chemicals ordered from a drug store, and that worked ok, so levelling up!) Anyway, I mixed Nitric and Sulphuric acid and then poured glycerin on top, so that it would react. I had it in the garage, in the winter time. Well, nothing was happening, so I brought it inside to warm up, in my bedroom...oops. It started converting, and igniting as it converted, blowing acid out of the vat and onto my floor and bed, while releasing a massive cloud of bright orange smoke, like a tornado in reverse. So I walked downstairs and called the fire department, and asked them if it was dangerous. I think the guy had just gotten done saying "Yes!" when the first firetruck arrived. Followed by the police, etc. I think Mom was getting back from the grocery store about that time, too. The firemen hauled the gear outside, still on the table I'd put it on, and threw it into the snow. (They tried opening my window but it was frozen shut.) This being the 70's, I didn't go to jail or get arrested, I just got a Stern Talking To, and Dad made me donate all the acid to a local junior college lab. The firemen said I could, possibly, have blown up a large part of the block---but I didn't, and I think that's something. Later I found out you could order plans to make nitrocellulose by mail, which I did, but Dad was watching for that sort of thing, and intercepted the plans. After high school I got involved with this civic group, called the US Army, where I met others who shared my enthusiasm for splody things. Nowadays, I just live in a state with legal fireworks, just like the Good Lord intended...

" How are we still a species?". People learn more from mistakes than success. I feel bad for whoever lives on that property. I'm sure it's still contaminated

David sounds like a genius. If only someone could’ve mentored him and helped with the safety aspect. I can’t believe people blamed the mom. He was a teenager! He was doing educational projects. Unfortunately true, natural geniuses often have mental issues. He could definitely synthesize his own fent analogs if he tried