https://hackerpaper.kaipfister.de/p/1209.6501/Collected HN comments and submissions linking this paper.enMon, 02 Nov 2026 11:16:22 GMThttps://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4690162urn:hackerpapers:mention:1209.6501:4690162Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:23:01 GMT<p>A recent pre-print paper suggests that a few mistakes in Widom-Larsen&#x27;s calculations lead to overestimating the amount of energy that can be produced: A correct calculation gives a neutron production rate from (1) about 300 times smaller than what estimated in [1–3], for the value of the mass renormalization factor β ≈ 20 considered there. In turn, it is questionable that values of β can be realized, in particular for bound electrons, so large as to give rise to useful nuclear transmutation rates. A more detailed analysis of the attainable values of β is needed to obtain more definite…</p><p><a href="https://hackerpaper.kaipfister.de/p/1209.6501/">Paper and discussion history</a>. A mention is not an endorsement.</p>nucl-th