Looking at the solemn expression on the old man's face, Lu Zhou, who was on the hospital bed, was slightly stunned, and then smiled and said.

"I didn't have to be grateful, I just did what I had to do as a scholar."

For him, studying those difficult questions is a very interesting thing in itself.

It's like solving a math problem.

Whether it's the exploration and thinking of the unknown, or the refreshment of finally getting out of the labyrinth, all of this really makes him feel happy.

Whatever others think, at least that's what he thinks.

And it has never changed.

Therefore, even without the spur of the system mission and the expectations placed on him, after seeing the dawn of controlled fusion, he will do his best to bring it to this world.

It's just that if it weren't for that pressure, it probably wouldn't have come so quickly......

The old man looked moved, and said softly: "It is an honor for the country to have a scholar like Mr. ”

Lu Zhou said humbly: "You are serious. Without the cooperation of others and the support of various departments, it would have been absolutely impossible for me to achieve such an achievement alone. ”

The old man smiled and said nothing.

While the Manhattan Project was the result of thousands of people working together, no one would have overlooked Oppenheimer's importance.

After a moment's pause, he spoke.

"In any case, you are a communal. If you have any requests, please let me know. ”

After thinking for a moment, Lu Zhou smiled and said, "It's not so much a request, it's more like a suggestion." ”

The old man's face was slightly furrowed, and he said seriously: "Professor Lu, please speak." ”

Lu Zhou: "The breakthrough of controllable fusion technology, while bringing about changes in productivity, will inevitably have an impact on the traditional energy industry, and if the contradictions are not properly handled, these contradictions are likely to become obstacles to social change." ”

Hearing this, the old man smiled faintly: "This Professor Lu can rest assured, we don't have such a problem." ”

Unlike Western countries.

In China, there is no such thing as an "energy giant" in the true sense of the word.

Whether it is the three barrels of oil or the State Grid, although they are nominally enterprises, in essence, whether they are the first or second leaders, the first attribute of their identity is not capitalists.

At the end of the day, the Society. The market economy is not entirely at the service of capital.

In the face of higher interests, there are only two ways to choose any interests below this. Either go with the tide of history, or be left under the wheel of history.

This includes, but is not limited to, capital.

Hearing the old man's words, Lu Zhou nodded clearly.

Now that he has thought about it, there is no need for him to say more.

He doesn't really want to talk too much about how to balance the interests of all parties and how to properly settle the workers in the coal power industry, which belong to the realm of sociology and economics, and he believes that there are many experts in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences who know more about this area than he does.

What he is interested in, and what he is responsible for, is nothing more than research.

So, if the first question is just a casual one, then the second question is what he really wants to talk about.

After a pause, Lu Zhou continued to speak: "The second thing is about controlled fusion itself. ”

The old man said seriously: "Professor Lu, please speak." ”

Leaning on the soft pillow and staring at the ceiling of the ward, Lu Zhou briefly sorted out his thoughts in his mind and slowly spoke: "At present, the fuel for controlled fusion is deuterium tritium, and after solving the problem of tritium self-sustaining, the controlled fusion technology has the basis for commercialization." However, no matter how high the self-sustaining efficiency is, the loss of tritium will still inevitably occur. ”

Therefore, there is also a view in the academic community that deuterium and helium 3 are used as reactants for fusion reactions. Since D fuses with helium-3 to produce electrons instead of neutrons, it has less loss of reactor material and more energy can be released. ”

A little unable to keep up with Lu Zhou's train of thought, the old man frowned slightly: "Helium 3? ”

Lu Zhou nodded: "If you can't understand it, you can understand the DT fusion reactor we are using now as coal-burning, and helium-triple fusion as oil-burning." ”

This is a rather abstract metaphor.

Although academically speaking, it is not rigorous, but it is easy for the general public to understand.

Old man: "I'm afraid the helium-3 fusion you mentioned is not so easy to achieve." ”

Lu Zhou smiled: "That's for sure." ”

The more charge the nucleus carries, the greater the Coulomb repulsion force and the greater the kinetic energy required to get closer to the nucleus, i.e., the smaller the reaction cross-section.

According to theoretical calculations, the cross-section of the deuterium-tritium fusion reaction is dozens of times that of the deuterium-helium-3 fusion reaction. This means that the Lawson criterion for achieving fusion reactions could mean billions of degrees of heat for helium triple fusion.

With the current technology, it is unlikely that helium-3 can be used as fuel for fusion reactors.

Therefore, helium triple fusion is also widely regarded as an ideal fuel for second-generation fusion.

The old man was silent for a while, and then asked, "The cost of generating electricity from the DT fusion reactor is low enough and inexhaustible for hundreds of years, do we need to develop this helium-3 resource now?" ”

Lu Zhou: "I think it's still necessary. ”

Old man: "Oh? ”

Lu Zhou said succinctly: "The helium-triple fusion reaction does not produce neutrons, which is safer than the deuterium-tritium reaction. From an engineering point of view, this is also the only possibility to achieve miniaturization and lightweight fusion reactors. On the other hand, now that the controllable fusion reactor has been ignited, and the feasible technical roadmap and solutions are clear, the next country that will master the controllable fusion technology will be born in the next two decades at the latest. ”

This is not the pre-industrial age, and in the information age, no technology can be kept secret forever.

Even if others may not be as good as STAR-2 in terms of control protocols and anti-irradiation materials, they can do so to a limited extent. Just like the atomic bomb, the road of the latecomers will always be smoother than that of the firsters.

The way to maintain an advantage is never by locking the door, but by always being ahead of others.

Hearing this, the old man's face showed a serious expression, and he continued to ask, "What is your suggestion?" ”

Lu Zhou said seriously: "Restart the manned lunar landing program." ”

Of course, just going to the moon is not enough.

It is better to build permanent research stations on it, or even outposts of colonized space, or even cities......

A little unable to keep up with Lu Zhou's jumping thinking, the old man hesitated slightly, and then said with a smile: "Why did it suddenly go to the sky?" ”

Lu Zhou smiled and explained: "The reserves of helium three resources on the earth are extremely scarce, and they are not suitable for industrial fuel, but on the moon it is quite abundant. If we want to be ahead forever, we must always be ahead of others. Both technically, and in the resources themselves. ”

Hearing this, the old man nodded thoughtfully.

Seeing that the old man seemed to understand what he wanted to express, Lu Zhou continued while the iron was hot.

"The problem of energy has been solved, and we have already received our ticket to the space age ten or even twenty years ahead of schedule. Now that the New World is in sight, we are closer than anyone else, and it would be a shame not to touch it there. Lu Zhou smiled, and his tone gradually brought a bit of fascination, "The interests of the present are important, but on this basis, we should also look to the more distant future." ”

"Right above our heads, sooner or later, it will become the Persian Gulf of the new century. Not just energy, but also minerals. From the Earth-Moon system to the more distant galaxies, it will be our springboard to the universe. Whoever masters there means masters the entire galaxy and masters the future! ”

Compared with international politics and financial markets, as a scholar, Lu Zhou is naturally more concerned about the more distant future.

Although the blueprint in his heart may not be realized in this era, this does not prevent him from doing something about it.

He believed that one day he would be able to see.

Even if he can't see it, someone will see it for him.

A certain piece of his heart seemed to be touched, and the old man looked at Lu Zhou and said seriously: "We will seriously consider your proposal." ”

Glancing at his watch, seeing that the time was almost up, he got up from his stool.

At this moment, the old man suddenly thought of something, so he changed the tone of casual chat, smiled and said with a soothing atmosphere, "Originally, I came to visit the patient, but I didn't expect to talk to the patient about national affairs for an hour. Speaking of which, isn't Professor Lu going to think about it for himself? ”

Lu Zhou: "Yourself? ”

Old man: "Yes. ”

From the beginning, he asked Lu Zhou himself if he had anything he wanted.

As long as it is within his ability, he will find a way to fulfill his wishes.

However, the young man in front of him once again surprised him.

Staring at the ceiling and thinking for a while, Lu Zhou smiled and said, "This question is too difficult, I really don't need anything special...... In fact, I don't lack anything in my life now. If there is one wish, apart from the research itself, it is probably to see that my own research results can be put to good use. ”

With a slightly moved expression, the old man solemnly promised, "I can assure you about this. ”

Lu Zhou smiled and said, "Well, then I'll be relieved." ”

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Thanks to the book friend "A Little Bee" for the reward!!