Failure™ Magazine

You Glow Boy!

The story of a teenager’s nuclear ambitions.

Written by Jason Zasky   Filed under Science & Technology

A pivotal source of early inspiration was an out-of-print copy of “The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments,” by Robert Brent (1960), which included recipes for several hundred experiments, many of them volatile and potentially life threatening. In today’s litigation-happy culture, a youth-oriented chemistry book might feature innocuous experiments involving yeast and soil. By comparison, “The Golden Book…” provided detailed instructions for producing dangerous substances like chlorine gas—experiments that the young Hahn pursued with reckless enthusiasm. Not surprisingly, he routinely visited the ophthalmologist’s office or emergency room. By the time Hahn began experimenting with radioactive materials in his mid-teens he had already suffered: An extended period of impaired vision (red phosphorous explosion); a second-degree burn (propane stove); a severe sunburn (personal tanning lights); electric shock (hot-rodded bug zapper), and even knocked himself unconsciousness (sniffed homemade chloroform). Sometimes the damage was merely cosmetic, such as when he misjudged the proportion of ingredients in a homemade hair-dye and his hair turned green.

For the most part, his parents—Ken Hahn, a mechanical engineer, and Patty Spaulding, a homemaker—were supportive of their son’s hobby and only moderately concerned about his safety. Of course, support turned to anger when an explosion or chemical spill threatened the physical integrity of their home. But because Ken was frequently consumed by work and Patty was preoccupied with her own mental health problems the couple failed to consistently practice an expected level of parental oversight. “She was not a watchdog and he was very fixated on his work,” says Silverstein, referring to David’s parents. It’s also possible that both were intimidated by their son’s intellect: “Neither of them completed high school and I think they were very much awed by David’s intelligence,” he continues.

By the time David was ten years old, Ken and Patty were estranged, each moving in with new partners. This further fractured his home life and resulted in even less consistent supervision. Splitting time between his parents’ respective homes Hahn had enough personal freedom—and enough guile—to effectively conceal his most ambitious experiments. “It wasn’t just a lack of oversight—it was his own ability to hide what he was doing. I give him credit. David was a very clever kid,” notes Silverstein.

However, Ken was concerned enough about his son’s fixation with science that he urged David to diversify his interests and join the Boy Scouts of America—Troop 371—in his father’s new hometown of Clinton Township, Michigan. Ken’s well-intentioned move backfired as Hahn began studying nuclear energy under the tutelage of a local scout counselor. Before long, the counselor was teaching Hahn how to use a Geiger counter (a device that detects radiation) and where to find radioactive materials in nature. When it came time to fulfill his merit badge requirements Hahn selected atomic energy as one of his electives and completed the atomic energy merit badge program almost effortlessly.

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