Swedish police have detained 31-year-old Richard Handl in Ängelholm in western Sweden after he contacted the Swedish Radiation Authority (Strålsäkerhetsmyndigheten) to inquire if it was legal to construct a nuclear reactor at home. The man was interested in experimenting with the bits from an old smoke alarm and some materials he had purchased through the mail to see if he could produce a heating effect. He reportedly has an ongoing interest in the field of nuclear physics and had safe guards in place such as geiger counters to measure any radiation levels from the smoke alarm parts.
Richard began his experiment some six months ago and has reportedly been open about his plans to construct a nuclear reactor in his apartment in the small Swedish coastal town, maintaining a blog of his nuclear adventure.
After inquiring with authorities Handl was told that somebody would be sent to measure the levels of radiation in his flat.
“When they came they had the police with them. I have had a Geiger counter and have not detected a problem with radiation,” Yet Handl was arrested by the police and taken in for questioning. Since police could not understand anything scientific they kept all the bits and pieces Richard had collected and released him.
Richard told the newspaper that had he succeeded in building a nuclear reactor, generating any power would probably have proved beyond him.
“To get it to generate electricity you would need a turbine and a generator and that is very difficult to build yourself,” Richard has said.
He is reported to have spent around 6,000 kronor ($950) on his project and after all his equipment was seized in the raid, he has confirmed that in the future he intends to focus on the “theoretical” aspects of nuclear physics.
Innovation is again triumphant.
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