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WITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, MAROH 29, 1989, PAGE 5 Back in the farm country of my youtb, there is a saying: if it's too good to be true, it likely is. So it is with a foundation of skepticism that I greeted the news last week that two scientists had achieved the ilusive goal of creating nuclear fusion in ,àbatbtub. ("Really? In a bathtub?" 'Weli, not realiy. But we want te niake this good copy. That's good journalism, you know: creating understandabie images out of complex material." "But if it isn't true . . ."I "So it's not literaliy true. But the image is true. Tbink image, my cbild. In today's world, image is ail.") As we were saying: creating nuclear fusion witb a senior bigh school cbemistry lab. Before we go any further, we migbt pause for a .moment to discuss the principle of fusion. ("1s this for marks?" 'We're not even in school." 'Thon wby should we pay any attention?" 'Because someday it xight >be on Lifestyles of the Rich and Fainous." "'Oh."#) Two types of nuclear energy have been pràduced in tbe paat haif century: fissionand fusion. Fission splits heavier radioactive uranium, releasing lots of energy. This happons in the A-bomb, and in atomic reactors. - Fission aiso produces lots of waste products, al of tbem bad. The good tbing about nuclear fission is that aitbough it can be used in bomba, which are bad, it can aise be controiled, which means it can be used in ateniic reactors, and thus poide electricai power. The bad thing about this is tbat nuclear power generating stations aise produce lots cf waste products, al cf tbem radioactive. And the bad thing about that is tbat nobody bas yet figured eut a way te store the stuf -- WITH'OUR FEET UP by Bill Swan and it caret be destroyed. Fusion, on the other band, means taicing two ligbt atoms--say, deutérium or tritium, which are isotopes cf hydrogen -- and welding themn togetber te make other beavier atoms. This fusion does,,work __ it's the principle behind the bydrogen bomb. The theory bas been that is the procesa could bo slowed down a bit, and controlied, this fusion would provide ail the world's future energy needs. Nobody knows how tbe waste disposai problem would work, but the scientific community seema te bhave been cautiously optimistic that fusion will produce lesa "bot' waste than fission reactors. The big barrier te barnessing fusion lies ini the fact that fusion takes place only at relatively high températures -- about 100 million degreesg C, according te J.AL. Robertson, writing in T he Canadian Encyclopedia. That temporature exios on the. sun, at the core cf an H-bomb explosion, or perbapa in some chimney fires. ("Have we got te the batbtub part yet?" "In a minute." mp- Soetens' forums start Frlday Ontario riding MP Rene Soe- tens wiii begin bis 'Vox Pox Forums (Voice cf the Peopie)' program.on Friday, Marcb 31, 7:15 p.m., at the Witby Publiec Library. Forums are for electors to express interests and concerns directly to Soetens. The next forum wiii be heid April 28 at the Rouge Hill Libr- ary, and after that, May 26 at the A'a mnicipal councii cbam- bers,brthat7:15 p.i. REALTY CORPORATION 668-400 4% MLS RESIDENTIAL 3% MLS' COMRCIAL DEVELOPMENT 668m4000 -This Week Only Spec al -order your Wvonderf ul treasure and we'Il reduce the price by 20%. 4 tT.. tsaZ)UatSwS[DAUet :trte2 VCE~~~~~~~ y HEUAEHUELMTDsWall, window and __________________________________Y___1___ ncoeriSm 216 HYSRT wEAST , ONTARIO, CANADA LIlN 5R7 66&348.3 *TOONO:68-0061 * iveringsToeoto Oshawa CD ý Fimnn ng ______________________________________________Available "It botter be good." I neyer promnised thiÎt." "'Oh."') So. Along corne Martin Fleischmann and Stanley Pons. Using equipment you might find in a high school chemistry Iab, these two professora dlaim to have created nuclear fusion. At room temperature. By running electricity into a vat of deuterluni, and getting back four Urnes as niucb energy back as tbey put ini. Think about it: cheap power, no huge containment chambers; no "hiot" waste; inexhaustible and cheap fuel. Too good te be true? You beti Two rational explanations can be offered. 1) In 1947 the United States Air Force captured a littie green man from a flying saucer. This saucer man* bas been living either at the White House or at some Air Force base in Utah, and bas been slowly feeding the world the secrets of bisi advanced world: computera, the microcbip, and now *... controlled nuelear fusion. Next? Anti-gravity for everyone. ("Is tbis the part about the bath tub?" "Nope. No bath tub." "But you said . " I know. Got your attention, did-it? So, it's like these two professors built tbis fusion reactors in, sort of like a bath tub. Or at least tbey could bave. Maybe." I don't get it." "isten te tbe wrap-up.") The otber explanation -- this is mny favorite - predicts that the next part cf the Fleischmari's-Pons news conference will tale place on Saturday, at whicb tbey announce te an embarrassed media that tbey have just pulled off one of the best publicized April Fool's Pranka in history. L