large/12904/worldswithinworlds_v1-3_1904_librivox_64kb_mp3/worldswithinworlds_02_asimov_64kb_61
large/12904/worldswithinworlds_v1-3_1904_librivox_64kb_mp3/worldswithinworlds_02_asimov_64kb
English
12904
We might think of a single uranium atom breaking down and shooting off an alpha particle. We might also think of a single carbon atom combining with 2 oxygen atoms to form carbon dioxide. WE MIGHT THINK OF A SINGLE GERANIUM ATOM BREAKING DOWN AND SHOOTING OFF AN ALPHA PARTICLE WE MIGHT ALSO THINK OF A SINGLE CARBON ATOM COMBINING WITH TWO OXYGEN ATOMS TO FORM CARBON DIOXIDE
 no use worrying about it. The amount of energy liberated by a gram of uranium in 1 second of radioactivity was an insignificant fraction of the energy released by a burning candle. In a few years, however, something became apparent. A lump of uranium might give off very little energy in a second, but it kept on for second after second, day after day, month after month, and year after year with no perceptible decrease. The energy released by the uranium over a very long time grew to be enormous. It eventually turned out that while the rate at which uranium delivered energy did decline, it did so with such unbelievable slowness that it took 4.5 billion years (!) for that rate to decrease to half what it was to begin with. If _all_ the energy delivered by a gram of uranium in the course of its radioactivity over many billions of years was totalled, it was enormously greater than the energy produced by the burning of a candle with a mass equal to that of uranium. Let’s put it another way. RE WAS NO USE WORRYING ABOUT IT THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY LIBERATED BY A GRAM OF URANIUM IN ONE SECOND OF RADIOACTIVITY WAS AN INSIGNIFICANT FRACTION OF THE ENERGY RELEASED BY A BURNING CANDLE IN A FEW YEARS HOWEVER SOMETHING BECAME APPARENT A LUMP OF URANIUM MIGHT GIVE OFF VERY LITTLE ENERGY IN A SECOND BUT IT KEPT ON FOR SECOND AFTER SECOND DAY AFTER DAY MONTH AFTER MONTH AND YEAR AFTER YEAR WITH NO PERCEPTIBLE DECREASE THE ENERGY RELEASED BY THE URANIUM OVER A VERY LONG TIME GREW TO BE ENORMOUS IT EVENTUALLY TURNED OUT THAT WHILE THE RATE AT WHICH URANIUM DELIVERED ENERGY DID DECLINE IT DID SO WITH SUCH UNBELIEVABLE SLOWNESS THAT IT TOOK FOUR POINT FIVE BILLION YEARS FOR THAT RATE TO DECREASE TO HALF OF WHAT IT WAS TO BEGIN WITH IF ALL THE ENERGY DELIVERED BY A GRAM OF URANIUM IN THE COURSE OF ITS RADIOACTIVITY OVER MANY BILLIONS OF YEARS WAS TOTALED IT WAS ENORMOUSLY GREATER THAN THE ENERGY PRODUCED BY THE BURNING OF A CANDLE WITH A MASS EQUAL TO THAT OF URANIUM LET'S PUT IT ANOTHER WAY
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