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Originally Posted by Kagen4o4
the one screwed up thing about the american government at the time on the atomic bomb was that the scientists told them there was a slight (very very small) chance that detonating one of those things could ignite the oxygen in the air causing a chain reaction that could incinerate the earth. to which the american government replied "do it"
as small as the odds were. thats still a big risk. imagined the scientists biting their fists waiting to see if it would happen
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Actually, that thought has always fascinated me. I usually remember that bit of trivia if I happen to be down Los Alamos, New Mexico way. I imagine the physicists kissing their wives good-bye on the morning of the first test then going to stand on a mountainside somewhere and wondering...
The scientific detachment, looking at the blue sky, fluffy white clouds overhead, perhaps hearing the call of a meadowlark...
Waiting under the New Mexico sky...
For the end of the world...
Do you suppose they placed bets among themselves?