# The Radioactive Boy Scout **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 20, 2003, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767 "2003-09-20T05:23:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2016, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/21 "2016-11-14T22:19:34Z")
Actually, **eschereal** , neutron emission is a natural form of radiation, albeit a relatively rare one. And “splitting the atom” is a perfectly accurate description of fission. It’s not an accurate description of transmutation of uranium to plutonium, but that’s because transmutation of uranium to plutonium isn’t fission. Actual fission converts uranium to nuclei about half the size, such as xenon, iodine, and barium. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2016, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/22 "2016-11-14T22:38:02Z")
> [@Whiskey\_Dickens](#): > > That looks an awful lot like a “face of meth” mugshot. I don’t think that’s radiation poisoning. Would 17 smoke detectors even provide enough radioactive material to cause skin to blister? Did you read the Harper’s article? It was a lot more than that. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2016, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/23 "2016-11-14T23:46:39Z")
None of the websites reporting the death seem to be able to add to that information. It appears that most of them are reporting information that ultimately comes from the TRibutes website, which gives no cause of death. The kid was dangerously careless and cavalier in his attitude towards radioactive materials and experimenting with potentially hazardous materials. But in some ways, I’m more annoyed at the guy who wrote the book about him. He was highly critical of the Boy Scouts, apparently just for being the organization they are. He was also highly critical of the book Hahn was influenced by, **The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments**. I still have my copy. It’s an extremely good guide to understanding chemistry using a home lab, built of what was then easily-available household items (some of the stuff is more difficult to get, and they don’t make batteries out of carbon rods in manganese dioxide paste anymore). Certainly the book instructs kids in using hazardous chemicals (It tells you how to make chlorine gas, for instance. But it also tells you how to handle it properly) I learned an enormous amount from that book. It’s still available online, at a number of sites: > **[Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments : Brent, Robert : Free Download, Borrow,...](https://archive.org/details/GoldenBookOfChemistryExperiments)** > > This book was withdrawn from the library in 1969 and I think it is a real gem for the amateur scientists or budding scientists. I look high and low for a copy... ---
**Author:** ![bonzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2016, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/24 "2016-11-15T00:19:47Z")
Agreed - Ken Silverstein’s account of the whole mess, either at article or book length, was strikingly mediocre. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2016, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/25 "2016-11-15T00:57:44Z")
> [@Whiskey\_Dickens](#): > > That looks an awful lot like a “face of meth” mugshot. I don’t think that’s radiation poisoning. Would 17 smoke detectors even provide enough radioactive material to cause skin to blister? There is something [can’t remember what it is called] where you pick at your face and leave scabby bits like that, also associated with formiculation [insect crawling under skin feeling, mental illness or also can be a neurological issue associated with some medications] Perhaps he had the habit of licking his skin like that. ---
**Author:** ![Punoqllads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d2c977/32.png) [@Punoqllads](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Punoqllads)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2016, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/26 "2016-11-15T01:40:15Z")
> [@aruvqan](#): > > formiculation [quibble]formication[/quibble] ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2016, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/27 "2016-11-15T02:30:20Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > they don’t make batteries out of carbon rods in manganese dioxide paste anymore Sure they do. “Heavy duty” batteries–specifically, ones that _don’t_ say “alkaline”–will have the carbon rods. Still perfectly useful for things like remote controls where the battery will probably start leaking before running out of juice. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2016, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/28 "2016-11-15T02:58:32Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > Sure they do. “Heavy duty” batteries–specifically, ones that _don’t_ say “alkaline”–will have the carbon rods. Still perfectly useful for things like remote controls where the battery will probably start leaking before running out of juice. the dollar stores are full of em …from sunbeam to ones that have nary a word of printed English on em ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2016, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/29 "2016-11-16T03:41:12Z")
> [@installLSC](#): > > [A pretty good review of the “Radioactive Boy Scout”](http://pubs.acs.org/cen/books/8232/8232books.html), noting why Hahn’s ideas simply couldn’t work and why the shed was emitting radiation if it wasn’t really a reactor. Considering the author has helped discover 12 elements, I’ll take his word. I notice the author didn’t mention the radium Hahn got from the bottle of paint. I guess he feels it wasn’t really a factor. Interesting. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2016, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/30 "2016-11-16T23:47:56Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > Sure they do. “Heavy duty” batteries–specifically, ones that _don’t_ say “alkaline”–will have the carbon rods. Still perfectly useful for things like remote controls where the battery will probably start leaking before running out of juice. Yeah, but your general run-of-the-mill batteries from K-Mart or wherever will invariably be of different construction. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2016, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/31 "2016-11-17T00:06:43Z")
I want my carbon rods! I remember at least trying to shape the ends into points and creating an arc lamp. Don’t remember blinding myself, so it probably didn’t work. I also want my little vial of mercury and the asbestos insulation back… ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2016, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/32 "2016-11-17T13:34:55Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Yeah, but your general run-of-the-mill batteries from K-Mart or wherever will invariably be of different construction. As far as the anode/cathode, low priced non-alkaline batteries will be carbon zinc. What might differ is the electrolyte. Heavy duty ones will have zinc chloride. Not sure what one would want to do with that. Or ammonium chloride for _really_ cheapo ones. Batteries should be labeled correctly if you stick to name brands like Ray-o-Vac. (Certain devices require the right type of battery so the good companies don’t want consumers griping about damage.) ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/33 "2016-11-18T06:02:29Z")
> [@aruvqan](#): > > There is something [can’t remember what it is called] where you pick at your face and leave scabby bits like that, also associated with formiculation [insect crawling under skin feeling, mental illness or also can be a neurological issue associated with some medications] Perhaps he had the habit of licking his skin like that. Delusional parasitosis > **[Delusional parasitosis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delusional_parasitosis)** > > Delusional parasitosis (DP) or delusional infestation is a mental disorder in which individuals have a persistent delusion that they are infested with living or nonliving agents, such as parasites, insects, or bacteria, when no such infestation is present. Individuals may present with dermatologic symptoms, such as excoriation or formication (a sensation resembling insects crawling on or under the skin) associated with tactile hallucinations, or, in the case of Morgellons disease, a subtype Delus... This is also what people who claim to have “Morgellons” are probably suffering from. > **[Morgellons](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgellons)** > > Morgellons (/mɔːrˈɡɛlənz/) is the informal name of a self-diagnosed, scientifically unsubstantiated skin condition in which individuals have sores that they believe contain fibrous material. Morgellons is not well understood, but the general medical consensus is that it is a form of delusional parasitosis, on the psychiatric spectrum. The sores are typically the result of compulsive scratching, and the fibers, when analysed, are consistently found to have originated from cotton and ot The cond... ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/34 "2016-11-18T10:07:15Z")
yeah but the spots are on his face and it might be liver mulfunction causing it. When the liver gets sick it produces cholesterol and the sebecaous glands happily try to lower the blood level of cholesterol. Adults get cholesterol zits on the face … especially the eye lids but can be the face in general. Whether it was alcoholism (as his mental illness makes him unable to control himself) or cancer (which maybe metastised from lung cancer or bone marrow cancers …) there is no clue ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 11:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/35 "2016-11-18T11:04:38Z")
> [@Francis\_Vaughan](#): > > But there is [pretty nasty picture](https://nicedeb.wordpress.com/2007/08/03/scary-mugshot-of-radioactive-boy-scout/) of him at age 31 with what for all the world looks like radiation induced skin damage all over his face. > [@Whiskey\_Dickens](#): > > That looks an awful lot like a “face of meth” mugshot. I don’t think that’s radiation poisoning. > [@aruvqan](#): > > There is something [can’t remember what it is called] where you pick at your face and leave scabby bits like that, also associated with formiculation [insect crawling under skin feeling, mental illness or also can be a neurological issue associated with some medications] I’d be cautious about diagnosis based on one picture. There are quite a few skin conditions that can result in something like that. We also see only his face, we don’t know if it’s limited to that or actually all over his body. > [@Isilder](#): > > yeah but the spots are on his face and it might be liver mulfunction causing it. > When the liver gets sick it produces cholesterol and the sebecaous glands happily try to lower the blood level of cholesterol. Adults get cholesterol zits on the face … especially the eye lids but can be the face in general. If you’re refering to [xanthelasma](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xanthelasma) or [xanthoma](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xanthoma) they do not look like what is in David Hahn’s mugshot. My mother had them due to [familial hypercholesterolemia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Familial_hypercholesterolemia) (they can have other causes) and I can confidently state that they do not progress to red, scabby lesions. Also, they’re not “cholesterol zits” > [@Isilder](#): > > Whether it was alcoholism (as his mental illness makes him unable to control himself) or cancer (which maybe metastised from lung cancer or bone marrow cancers …) there is no clue Which is the important thing to remember - we don’t really know what caused his skin problems. Just remember it’s all speculation and guessing. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2016, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/36 "2016-11-18T16:39:53Z")
So how many more decay events would we need to witness to accurately determine the half-life of radioactive boyscouts? ---
**Author:** ![correlophus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@correlophus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/correlophus)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2016, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/37 "2016-11-19T00:56:36Z")
> [@KenGr](#): > > Having a nuclear engineering background and having read the available articles on this case, I will have to suggest you not take the conclusions of some of the articles too seriously. > > Apparently what this kid did was collect a lot of radioactive material which is commonly available and uncontrolled because there is so little of it and concentrate it. There is no way he ever built a “reactor” and apparently he understood that he couldn’t do that. He was trying to increase the reaction rate of certain nuclear processes by increasing the neutron flux. There is no clear evidence he actually succeeded at that. > > The articles all seem to contain some bogus science, perhaps the result of the reporters inaccuracy. Also, there is a bit of doubt about the statements that he has refused scans to determine his radioactive body burden yet he then joined the Navy serving on a nuclear powered ship. No way someone with a significant or undetermined internal contamination would be allowed to serve in the nuclear Navy. > > That said, there is no question that with the amount of radioactive material which exists naturally and is used in consumer, medical and industrial products, a hazardous radioactive source could be created. Why no one with significant radioactive contamination cannot work in the nuclear navy? Also, does anyone from here remember the time he was on the forum? What was his writing style and how did you suspect he was mentally ill? Btw, Hahn is rooster in german. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2016, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/38 "2016-11-19T01:19:17Z")
> [@correlophus](#): > > Why no one with significant radioactive contamination cannot work in the nuclear navy? You could certainly work on a nuclear-powered ship like an aircraft carrier, but no way in hell would you be allowed near the reactor. My understanding is that Hahn wanted a nuclear-related career but that wan’t going to happen. Two reasons I can think of: 1. Anyone that careless with radioactive anything would be allowed near a reactor or reactor-grade (or bomb grade) materials 2. There is a lifetime limit of radiation exposure in nuclear professions. Hahn may or may not have already exceeded that, but between refusing of medical screening and the possibility that might limit his military career length that just wan’t going to happen. Why hire Hahn when there was a pool of candidates who had proven more responsible in their actions (by not doing stupid shit with radioactive stuff) and could have full careers? ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2016, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/39 "2016-11-19T02:55:25Z")
> [@correlophus](#): > > Also, does anyone from here remember the time he was on the forum? What was his writing style and how did you suspect he was mentally ill? I do, since I was very interested in his case, and then was quite saddened to discover what was going on with him. Especially when I found the court records of his drug arrests. His writing style here (and on a couple of dating sites he posted on using the same username) was extremely disjointed and hard to parse, but the gist was that he had a theory that he had a brain disorder he termed “weak brain human” and that he might have been deliberately infected with it by the government, and he was looking for girls who were also “weak brain humans” to date. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2016, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767/40 "2016-11-19T03:52:14Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > There is a lifetime limit of radiation exposure in nuclear professions. Hahn may or may not have already exceeded that, but between refusing of medical screening and the possibility that might limit his military career length that just wan’t going to happen. Do they test for radiation levels before a sailor joins the submarine service (which would have ended Hahn’s hopes of a sub career at the start)? And if they don’t, how do they know a sailor is exceeding that limit? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-radioactive-boy-scout/202767.md?page=3)