Chris Zell <chrisz...@wetmtv.com> wrote:
> Saying that the human race - and its elite - are no more irrational than > in the past is no comfort if technology could give anyone the power of a > weapon of mass destruction. > That does not seem likely. Don't fret about it. Even if there is a potential for small nuclear bombs, I suppose cold fusion devices will remain high-tech machines that can only be produced in large factories, like NiCad batteries. We might be able to keep tabs on all factories capable of making devices. It seems unlikely to me that anyone will be able to fabricate a cold fusion device at home, using 3-D printers or what-have-you. Not for the next thousand years or so, until those machines evolve into Clarke's universal replicators. By the time that happens, the machines will be so sophisticated, they will have enough artificial intelligence to prevents such misuse. Look at it this way: there are many industrial products available right now, in mass quantities, that would cause mass destruction if someone deliberately used them. For example, passenger airplanes can be flown into large buildings like bombs. Fuel storage tanks can be ignited, causing tremendous explosions. Sarin can be manufactured by small groups of fanatics. All these things have happened, and might happen again. Yet the world goes on, and things are reasonably secure. We have managed to find ways to reduce the likelihood of these events. If it becomes apparent that a small cold fusion nuclear bomb is possible, perhaps we will find technical methods of keeping tabs on the production of cold fusion devices, and preventing anyone from making a bomb. > Worrying about assault rifles looks like small potatoes, over the long > road. > That's true. If it does come to pass, it will be hell of a mess. If you are looking for things to worry about, maybe you should turn your attention to robots the size of mice or birds that can fly into windows and assassinate people. I predict that cold fusion will make such robots easier, more practical, and with an unlimited range. Yikes! - Jed
