Book Title: Microcosmology Atom in Jain Philosophy and Modern Science
Author(s): Jethalal S Zaveri, Mahendramuni
Publisher: Jain Vishva Bharati
View full book text
________________
Atom in Modern Science
59
just as the process of liberating large number of neutrons was found, then in such an eventuality, by no means beyond the realm of the possible, would open potentialities of horror alongside which those of the hydrogen bomb would be puny. For any process that would release a large number of positrons in the atmosphere, in a chain reaction similar to the one now liberating neutrons, may envelope the whole earth in one deadly flash of radio-active lightning that would instantly kill all life. And although this is admittedly purely speculative, no one dare say that such a discovery will not be made, not when one remembers how remote and unlikely a process such as fission seemed to be just before it was made.
ATOM FOR PEACE
We have completed the review of the development of the theory of atom over a period of more than 2500 years. It would, however, be highly improper to close the chapter with a sense of utter doom which the above paragraph may forebode. Enormous progress has also been made in the direction of utilising nuclear energy for the benefit of mankind, and it is our duty to give the reader a glimpse of the nuclear research and development work in which some tens of thousands of scientists are busy all over the world today.
At Atomic Research Centers in the United States of America, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, the Federal Republic of Germany and International Centre a: Geneva, thousands of research teams are engaged in probing the heart of the atom.
Research work in the sub-nuclear world is based on a law of nature that the smaller the dimensions of the particles to be studied, the higher must be the energies of the beams serving as a probe. By way of comparison, consider the forces that hold the nucleus of an atom together. In order to learn something about the structure of the nuclei, one needs energies about 100 times greater than the binding energy of a proton in a nucleus. But to carry out research into the structure of proton or neutron, one requires energies 1000 times greater i.e. of the order of one thousand million electron volts. No wonder elementary ‘particle physics' is, therefore, sometimes called 'high energy physics.'
