FBI pays visit to nuclear reactor-building gamer

by Justin McElroy { Jan 10th 2008 at 11:00AM }

Though a few of our commenters have challenged it over the years, we still hold the belief that gamers are some of the most clever, creative and downright brilliant people around. In fact, it's probably a good thing they have video games to keep them busy, or else they might do something like build a nuclear reactor in their basement. That's exactly what one Texas gamer and modder did and managed to get the FBI on his case in the process. We blame the post-holiday game drought.

No charges were filed though the FBI did take his project away, at the behest of his parents. While that may seem a little harsh, his mom's feelings were probably still a little hurt over the whole chocolate milk incident. ... No, you're right. It's probably not the same guy. But we can dream.

[Via GamePolitics]

Tags: crime, fbi

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

paragraph @ Jan 10th 2008 11:13AM

See, i don't get what the fuss is all about :-P

It's legal to build your own solar panel, wind turbine, electric motor, gasoline engine, battery, but not a Nuclear reactor, they all do the same things.

Atleast he didn't get charged, but still thats a bummer, he should have played it off as a science project. ;)

WiNG @ Jan 10th 2008 11:26AM

Here's the problem: one of the items in your list can cause an unstoppable chain reaction that destroys matter at its most fundamental level.

HINT: It isn't the wind turbine.

Kazi @ Jan 10th 2008 11:50AM

Also, interesting fact, nuclear reactors create zombies and mutants.

Mr.ESC @ Jan 10th 2008 12:00PM

Gamma radiation can and will cause the Hulk to smash your stuff, you don't want that right?.

Kazi-No, radiation don't create Zombies. Government scientists create zombies using virus and / or parasites I watched a report about it in Discovery channel last night. Did you know the U.S government created the Emos? The Emos were the result of an experiment to create better and smarter Zombies that went horribly wrong.

Oh yeah and mutants are created via nuclear waste not radiation.

Cyro @ Jan 10th 2008 11:14AM

Wow. I wonder how many people are actually capable of doing a Nuclear Reactor. I mean, how the hell do you get the uranium or plutonium from ??

NATO_Duke @ Jan 10th 2008 11:16AM

Well, i would have told you, but you didn't use our secret code word.

What has America turned into when a man can't build his own nuclear devices. WOLVERINES!!!!!!

WiNG @ Jan 10th 2008 11:30AM

Where did he get the plutonium?

From a group of Libyan nationalists. They wanted him to build them a bomb, so he took their plutonium and in turn, gave them a shiny bomb-casing full of used pinball machine parts!

You see, the reactor's electric. But he needed plutonium to generate the 1.21 gigawatts of electricity to power his Playstation 9.

Edge @ Jan 10th 2008 11:39AM

No gigawats.... jigawats ;-)

Wilson @ Jan 10th 2008 11:59AM

1.21 gigawatts? 1.21 gigawatts? Great Scott!

The Fuzz 53 @ Jan 10th 2008 12:28PM

FBI: "You're telling me that this sucker is nuclear?!"

Kid: "No, no. This sucker's electrical. I need a nuclear reaction to generate the 1.21 gigawatts of electricity to power the flux capacitor."

one i blind @ Jan 10th 2008 1:09PM

ummm amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/Uranium-Ore/dp/B000796XXM/ref=cm_cr_pr_pb_i

jcd @ Jan 10th 2008 2:14PM

check the "Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought" for a giggle

Intentless @ Jan 10th 2008 11:17AM

If it wern't for the fact a nuclear reactor... you know was nuclear/radioactive with the possibility of exploding I bet you would be able to get a "build your own reactor at home kit" for 29.99....

Dang that radiation....

jcd @ Jan 10th 2008 2:21PM

funny, the way to make it safe is to remove the part that makes it work

Roto13 @ Jan 10th 2008 11:20AM

So... what exactly does this actually have to do with gaming?

Night Elve @ Jan 10th 2008 11:23AM

Oh no! look at me I'm bitching about a news not entirely related to games!

Roto13 @ Jan 10th 2008 11:35AM

Well it sounds like they're just sticking the gaming thing in there for the sake of mentioning gaming. They might as well have said "Man who eats pizza builds nuclear reactor" or "Nuclear reactor built by cat person."

It's pointless.

Speddy @ Jan 10th 2008 12:17PM

What does this have to do with gaming??? A true gamer would know...about cooling systems!

Hmmm, how about a turbine-micro-generator, inline with your gaming PC cooling system? Instead of a reactor and rods, just consider the heat from your over-clocked CPUs and GPUs!

The heat from your PC can atleast power its cooling!
Or more!

Snarf! patenting it now...

NATO_Duke @ Jan 10th 2008 1:32PM

Good point Roto - I'm off to the cat people and pizza lovers forums to post this story too! Those bastards have to pay for their love of nuclear energy.

The Fuzz 53 @ Jan 10th 2008 11:23AM

Was he trying to generate 1.21 gigawatts?

Zertoss @ Jan 10th 2008 11:38AM

lol Xbox to the Future

Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Jan 10th 2008 11:36AM

I just want to know where the hell he got the uranium from. If a bored gamer living in his parents basement can acquire nuclear material, whats stopping someone else with more nefarious goals from doing so?

redneckvampire @ Jan 10th 2008 12:04PM

The internet....duh!
http://www.unitednuclear.com/uraniumstock.htm

You actually don't need it to make a reactor. Do a search on the Atomic Boy Scout. It's happened before.

Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Jan 10th 2008 12:32PM

Thats hardly enough for a nuclear reaction.

redneckvampire @ Jan 10th 2008 2:40PM

You need to read up a little more about nuclear physics. He wasn't making a bomb, he was building a reactor.

Player1 @ Jan 10th 2008 11:41AM

Not only does this support the belief that gamers are some of the most brilliant people around, but that they are also man-children living in their parent's basement.

Intentless @ Jan 10th 2008 11:53AM

Technically there are laws against building a reactor even without having any radioactive material.

Cyro @ Jan 10th 2008 12:06PM

rly?

Topher @ Jan 10th 2008 12:05PM

This sounds like a similar story about the radioactive boyscout. This guy was building a nuclear reactor to get an eagle scout badge. He was getting the radioactive material he needed by stealing smoke detectors.

Patrick @ Jan 10th 2008 12:05PM

I'm sure where this kid lives plutonium is available at your corner drug store. But where I live it's a little hard to come by.

Jerk Face @ Jan 10th 2008 12:19PM

I love that picture.

Korova @ Jan 10th 2008 12:21PM

Or was he "an out of work game redeveloper" because he suggested that the sequel to Mass Effect should be called Weapons of Mass Effect 2 and involve building one's own reactor and seeing what happens. Apparently, you get pwnd by a moustachoed regulator.

curlyfries @ Jan 10th 2008 3:21PM

He didn't build anything by the sound of it, just bought some Uranium and planned to build something. Building a nuclear reactor is not easy - you need to be able to get hold of, or make, some enriched Uranium at the very least. There are countries that would find the process difficult or impossible at present.

rob @ Jan 10th 2008 10:59PM

a rector will not go nuclear like a A-bomb ya it can go boom but just a normal explosion with radio active fall out it can get so hot that it can melt through the earth's crust and fracturing it casing lava to flow out its called the China Syndrome from a old movie with the same name.

Ben @ Jan 11th 2008 12:42AM

You are a damned idiot if you trust Jane Fonda for information about nuclear reactors. My guess is that he had some unenriched uranium ore (which can be easily bought in the US) and dumped it in some water and possibly with some graphite around it. Even if he had access to enriched uranium, nuclear reactors are by no means simple to build. Just look at the monstrosity of a pile that Fermi had to build for the first one.