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polkjamespolk t1_j5vrbse wrote

Right now we're having a heck of a time figuring out how to mash hydrogen into helium. We can do it for a few seconds at a time. Imagine trying to fuse lead into gold. It would take energies we can't yet harness on Earth.

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plunki t1_j5vwlpe wrote

I believe element 118 was made with a krypton beam fired into a lead target, so we do have the energy, but only for making a couple atoms at a time!

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polkjamespolk t1_j5vysth wrote

Agreed. To clarify, I don't think we have the energy to produce industrial quantities of heavy elements. Also the cost would be insanely prohibitive.

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