German scientists to conduct nuclear fusion experiments

[ThePaladin]

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2...ela-merkel

Scientists in Germany are poised to conduct a nuclear fusion experiment they hope will advance the quest for a clean and safe form of nuclear power.

In a test expected to be attended by Angela Merkel, the chancellor, researchers will inject a tiny amount of hydrogen into a special device and heat it until it becomes a super-hot gas known as plasma – mimicking conditions inside the sun.

The experiment at the Max Planck Institute in Greifswald, north-east Germany, is part of a worldwide effort to harness nuclear fusion – a process in which atoms join at extremely high temperatures and release large amounts of energy.

First thing out of younger kid's mouth when he saw me tonight was to ask if I'd heard about this.

And I had no idea that Angela Merkel holds a doctorate in physics.

[NH watcher]

Interesting DLP, thanks for posting. Merkel's doctorate is actually in quantum chemistry, but her biography says she went to school to study physics, so I assume quantum chemistry is the "bridge" discipline between chemistry and physics.

Merkel is the German equivalent to Condi Rice in the US, even though Rice has decided never to seek higher office (i.e., the US Presidency), but both have similar backgrounds. Merkel is married, while Rice has remained single, but Merkel does not have any children of her own. Merkel is also fluent in Russian from her living in the (former) East Germany, which has given her a close relationship with Putin, who speaks fluent German, as a former KGB officer. Rice, whose doctorate is in international politics, is a specialist in the Cold War and Russian studies, and speaks Russian too.

And Merkel and Rice are both avid sports fans: Merkel with European football (soccer), and Rice with American football (Rice stating multiple times that her dream job would be as the NFL commissioner).