Jan 20 2007
The Physics Of Po-210
The problem with the Po-210 aspect of the Litvinenko death is the mass numbers are hard to grasp. But they are critical to understand why there was probably no assassination. Let me establish some basic numbers first.
A gram is equivalent to the contents of a pack of Splenda sweetener or sugar. Keep the gram in mind because I am going to compare the gram to the ton (2,000 pounds) in order to demonstrate orders of magnitude in weights and measures. The other example I will use is 16 oz. or one pound. So let’s do some numbers:
Po-210 is deady at 50 nano-grams. That is 50 x 10e-9 grams. Not one hundredth (10e-2). Not one thousandth (10e-3). Not one millionth (10e-6). It is 50 times one billionth (10e-9) of a gram. For comparison to the ton lets assume we have 1,000,000 cars each weighing 1 ton (2,000 pounds). One billionth of that mass of cars is only 2 pounds. Now contemplate that ratio with the gram and you can see how small an amount we are talking. Out of one million cars we are talking two pounds of their mass.
Litvinenko was poisoned by around 200 times the lethal dose, at least according to this source. It is not important whether it was 100 or 200 times, what is important is the orders of magnitudes on weights and measures. That dose was 10 times 10e-6 grams (1 millionth of gram). If we go back to the car example that 200 times factor is the same as comparing 2 pounds (2 bottles of coke) to 400 pounds. But at the gram level we are still talking sizes that are microscopic. 400 pounds out of 2 million tons is nothing, just like a millionth of a pack of sugar is probably invisible to most people. This is the amount we are led to believe was handled by an assassin. A millionth of a packet of sugar.
Now lets talk heat production. One gram of Po-210 generates 140 watts of heat. But the Litvinenko dose was 10 times a millionth of a gram (give or take). So that amount of Po-210 can only generate one millionth that amount of heat, or 140 microwatts. 140 microwatts is not going to heat a damn thing, especially a cup of tea. Lets assume their was 20 ounces in his cup and he only drank one ounce. 20 times more Po-210 is only going to get you 2.8 milliwatts of heat. The tea’s temperature is going to swamp this miniscule amount of energy. The heat from his dosage was undetectable. It was searing his insides, but only because the material was right up against cells, bioling them to bursting. Again, a microscopic activity.
This is why the dosage seen in Litvinenko could not have come from the tea cup found in the Millenium hotel. The deadly dose inside Litvinenko, while 200 times more than needed to kill him, was such a small amount it could not scar or burn or imprint porcelain. While damaging to human cells, porcelain (like skin) would not be harmed anymore than it would be in a microwave a the levels found in Litvinenko.
Now, a gram of Po-210 sitting in a tea cup could very well scar the porcelain, depositing Po-210 in the melted porcelain that would later be distributed inside a dishwasher to other items and kitchen staff. That is becaue we are talking about a concentrated block of material, not atoms floating in a liquid freely. Liquid tea laced with the amount that killed Litvinenko would be undetectable, doing nothing to the cup.
Both theories cannot be true. The cup could not have such an obvious signature and delivered such a small amount of Po-210 inside Litvinenko. Just not possible – in my opinion. I may be wrong, but the two data points – dosage and tea cup signature – do not make sense together.
A hunk of valuable Po210 in a teacup, left by Colonel Mustard? I’m skeptical.
But a spoon, stirred by hundreds of customers, would score the porcelain and make it difficult to wash away the Po, and a large amount of radiation would leave a large amount of contamination in that cup.
I think about the Po amounts and the poisoning this way: if 10ug was the dose for poisoning then maybe 5 Po-salt crystals in a glass vial were dissolved in a tsp of lemon juice and these were added to the tea.
And, the cup is a MacGuffen.
Placed later on, to be found.
It’s not uncommon to hear the word “plant” where there’s no greenery to be found. Just someone with access to a crime scene, who wants to “set something up.”
For instance, in the Duke “non” case, NiFong took the contents of the garbage bag in the kitchen. In it, supposedly was a fake nail that came off the hand of “one of the dancers.” Inside the garbage pail? Who knows?
If you’re at a party; and you can be incriminated by a nail that shows DNA, where nothing else shows DNA of anyone accused; you could draw a conclusion that NiFong CHEATED.
That’s also how MacGuffens fall into place.
And, ya know what else? The tea cup could have been used by the smugglers to take a “substance” (still unknown if it was liquid, powder, flakes or rocks), and use the tea cup (because it was white inside) … to see, or to measure, something that was brought into this room. And, who knows? Cash could have traded hands IF the smugglers were “doing something” where there was a trade. Made.
Litvinenko was not assassinated. Nor was he killed on the spot where the exposure came. Different rooms.
He didn’t even get sick all at once. But he did get very sick. And, began vomiting within 24 to 48 hours; after some type of exposure took place. And, none of the other smugglers comes close to getting this sick, this fast. Instead? The innocently enough go around various cities, while particles jump off their clothes.
And, for all we know what took place between Litvinenko and others could have been nothing more than an unfortunate handshake. Where he was bare handed. And, his counterpart (or the other guy), wore gloves.
All you know is that at no time while he was alive was he dispensing CLUES. He seemed not to talk honestly at all. Though he did point to Scaramella. (Well, the italians also showed up in iraq! And, not because they were there helping our troops!)
If I had to guess, Bush knows more than we do.
And, for some reason Turki was told to get the hell out of DC! You ever hear “diplomatic talk” like that? Reagan once dreamt of leaning over Gorby’s shoulder, and whispering “NYET” into his ear. But that is a story told about a dream sequence.
IF the arabs believe they can “build a workable suitcase nuke,” good luck to them. For all we know, 9/11 was a lucky shot. As most of the time, when people try to pull off untested criminal activities, their plans go awry.
Clumsy crooks, however, have been known to drop things. They could drop the blow torch on the way of heating up the lock, to open the door to the bank. The “get-away” car could lose battery power, and stall out in traffic.
Hollywood doesn’t like mishaps. So when they film the “big details” in James Bond movies, for instance. They do it shot-by-shot. With many re-takes. And, bottles of Katchup.
And, when real people die; especially those that “dream of being buried as muslems,” when they are in fact not muslems; usually don’t meet with having their caskets kept in the parking lot.
But arabs and rumors really do connect. And, you can watch bonanzas of money flow, too. If you can cook up the scheme that gets these paranas, interested in your formulations. They don’t even have to be accurate in any details. They just have to “look” accurate. And, the russians are great at supplying NON-WORKING military components. It’s not just Chernobyl. But an entire way of thinking, “where the workers are called kings,” and no management skills exist along the way to produce anything that would meet with an inspector’s approval.
As a matter of fact, even in your jeans, if you look in the pockets of a new pair of pants, you can usually find an “inspector’s mark.” Proving that the sewing job met the factory manager’s approval. Russians, here, have no idea what I am talking about. They’re never exposed to “on time inventory.” Or even what goes on, on most shop floors. Where production can be stopped, if something goes wrong “along-the-line.”
That’s why anything you buy out of russia is doomed to fail.
Now, go ahead. Claim that there was an operational, and fail-proof method of getting polonium-210 into the hands of terrorists. And, then what they were going to do was going to work. By the way. There are NO FEFUNDS. Just stupid arabs swearing they get to win because alloo is on their side. Glad God’s talking to somebody. But I don’t even trust the arabs when it comes to anything involving their behaviors. Yes. There are some of them rich enough to be lunatics on a gargantuan scale. Too bad, too, no one is interviewing that imam that swore Litvinenko’s casket was radioactive. He didn’t seem to need no stinking po-210 test! Or weights and measures, either.
This had to be a plant. Probably by the Bereszovsky people. Goodness knows they had the polonium on hand to do this. Really something to do to a country that saved your life or at least your freedom and possibly money. If true, they need to be strung up for causing contamination to a endless variety of people through the dishwasher. Just think of how many people came to this bar since Nov. 1. This is cold and callous.
If someone dropped a gram of Po-210 in crystalline metal form first, and then added water for tea, it would have a few seconds to do its burning before being diluted. As far as the dose, it depends on how soluble it is in water. Does it mostly sink to the bottom of the cup? How much did he drink? He theoretically could have ingested only a few micrograms of the entire cup containing much more.
Carol, I would be so happy if you could make your point within 4 or 5 sentences.
Barbara, I agree… someone besides Sasha must have used that poisoned cup.
Sammy, interesting… your theory is sort of a mix of AJs smuggling and the “MSMs” assassination. But Sasha would certainly have seen a gram of insoluable Po in his cup, and everyone in the room would likely have been lethally poisoned, one gram of Po completely dissolved in 100ml is so toxic that: a drop would be enough to kill around 5000 people at the dosage Sasha was given. So if Sasha coughed after drinking that, or wiped his mouth and opened a door, or kissed his wife, we’d have a huge number of people poisoned.
AJ would like to find such large amounts of Po, for his theory, but there isn’t any factual evidence to believe this.
I have been following your reports over on The Pink Flamingo. I trust you are going to be putting this into book form. I just hope you are good at fiction, because this story is still too strange. If it weren’t in the headlines no one would believe it.
The Pink Flamingo
Jerry,
In England, a cuppa tea is always mixed with milk and very opaque. The Po would probably sink to the bottom of the cup and not be visible. As elements go, its pretty heavy. Just an aside comment.
Litvinenko was British. I’m not so sure russians would take to the “milk in the tea,” as thinking it was worth drinking. And, I don’t think MEN, when they get together, would go for a “cup of tea the way the queen would have it,” served a four. With a side of tea sandwhiches.
Glad, at least, Barbara joins me on the idea this was a “plant.” And, not a green growing ivy, either.
Why does Litvinenko have to “drink from the poisoned cup?” This isn’t Shakespeare. He just had to be involved with smuggling radioacative material about. And, November 1st wasn’t the first time this stuff was in transit.
It’s pretty obvious something went wrong with the container.
But how?
Is it possible the particles could “leak” because the idiots handling the radioactive stuff were clueless? Remember, we’re not dealing with setting off the Geiger Counter. Don’t go and overlook the clues you do have.
As to “mass,” when used in science (and not by the catholic church), refers to something that fits Einstein’s equation, perfectly. And, Einstein drew us into the nature of the majesty of the universe, in that everything is composed of “something else.” We just don’t see the atoms in the chair. So to speak.
Too bad this is too long in words for the jerry’s to follow. But I don’t care. I produce words my way. Others produce them in their own fashions. And, words are like energy. Stringing out of a place that is bottomless. (You don’t have to run out of words, for ideas to become present.)
But no matter how deft some people are at expanding on the crime scene; I don’t think it’s all that natural for RUSSIANS to call up hot pots of tea! And, that’s as yet NOT how Litvinenko became poisoned over repeated exposures. And, it’s not how, from the leaks we get; when the “professionals” showed up, that they discovered “hot spots” in formerly clean hotel rooms.
What we’ve learned, however, is that particles “escaped.” And, left tell tale signs of having once been present.
Among at least 4 men. (Since this particular room, on November 1st, seems to have had four men with a working relationship, present at a time an accidental spill may have happened.)
Nah. Litvinenko was not mixing tea.
Burly men, if they were drinking anything at all, were also eating food. As to the liquid? Why not vodka.
Tea cups, and vodka, have an interesting history. When New Yorkers DRANK during Prohibition, at their “clubs,” according to Samuel Fuller’s autobiography, A Third Face; he saw journalists drinking OUT OF TEA CUPS. This was done to fool the cops! So that if the drinking establishments were raided, the MEN would down their drinks, claiming they were “drinking tea.” And, ALL NEW YORK BARTENDERS KNEW THIS “TRICK.” Along with “Knock Three Times, and Say Joe Sent Ya.”
There are still lots of holes in this story.
And, beyond the “planted,” stories; which seem to produce our “clues,” is the reality that the imam did not allow Litvinenko’s casket INTO the very room where there was a funerial “send off.” (I find this most peculiar.)
I also find Turki’s UNDIPLOMATIC exit from DC, also up there with “most peculiar.” You think ambassadors just flee town? You think the ambassador to DC, from inside the HOUSE OF SAUD, just up and goes away?
Did you know that inside the residence of DC’s ambassador from the HOUSE OF SAUD, when Bandar lived there … Laura Bush, herself, HOSTED events. “Believe it or not.” But Laura Bush hosted major, main line Washington DC parties, from inside the Ambassador from Saudi Arabia’s residence.
Put together this tidbit. Those parties are where the “best of DC” congregate. To get to one of those parties you’d have to be at the TOP OF THE LIST. Regular folks aren’t invited.
Yet Turki had to FLEE. Did an Israeli come along and secretly shake his hand, causing his penis to fall off? Oddly enough the arabs believe the strangest rumors. Rumors!
You think you’re working with rumors! Hello.
So, does the fact that the British police hve a photograph of the guy they claim poisoned Litvinenko mean nothing in your fantasy world?
“Panorama” is screening a documentary tommorrow (in the UK)about the Litvinenko affair. This is a reputable programme so I imagine they have some significant information. Will fill you all in on Tuesday.
Conesplif,
The only ones claiming the photo (which I reported on weeks ago) is of the killer is Berezovsky\’s buddies. The police only say he flew in with Kovtun from Hamburg. The physics could care less what these people claim. Are you reading all my posts or just the ones you can\’t comprehend?
The physics clearly shows the tea cup couldn\’t be the vessel of the extremely diluted dosage Litvinenko ingested AND have a signature of Po-210 so strong it contaminated an entire kitchen and staff, retained its signature after weeks of repeated use at the hotel, and was identifiable from all the other contaminated dishwear. You can pretend physics doesn\’t exist – but I suggest you accept it before you make a leap off a tall building. There is now way for the tea cup to hold a highly concenttrated form of Po-210 and also deliver the minute amount found in Litvinenko (10 millionths of a gram).
Note: All of you who are of a mind the Litvinenko dosage was only 10-30 times the lethal dose are actually making the point stronger. The lethal dose is 50 billionths of a gram. Try and measure out 50 billionths of a sugar packet. You need special equipment which can control air flow from pushing on the scales and messing up the measurement. Very expensiver equipment. Or a highly diluted mixture where a fraction of a gram goes into gallons of liquid (many gallons). So the smaller the dose Litvinenko took the less likely it was an assassin. Sorry, math doesn\’t lie and a human\’s ability to manage microscopic particles and amounts is clearly understood (we can\’t with out hands alone). the picture is irrelevant. You have to have a realistic scenarion with the doses and amounts we are seeing.
AJ,
I don’t buy your arguments for three reasons.
1) You stress the physics. In that case, let me remind you that as a pure alpha-emitter, Po-210 will be undetectable by instruments such as geiger counters that detect area contamination. On the other hand, once people *look* for it by taking swabs, preparing samples specifically for Po, and doing alpha spectroscopy, *extremely* small quantities, down to 10,000 atoms or less, become detectable. It is natural that contamination would show up in all sorts of places under such circumstances, a common experience in wet labs that use radioactive tracers. We don’t know the quantitities of of Po-210 found contaminating various places, and we have no reason to think that those leaking to the press are particularly numerate on these points.
(2) To prepare pure Po-210 requires the work of many people, all of whom need to be paid a salary, and all of whom need to use expensive scientific apparatuses and have access to a nuclear reactor. In other words, the poison was VERY expensive. It does not seem like a cost-effective way to perform terrorism, and not a good tool for assymettic warfare,
I think that the isotope must have been produced by a government. I do not think that ‘rogue elements’
in the Russian nuclear weapons establishment are credible under the current regime.
(3) No one who had any experience in handling radioisotopes would want to commit an assasination with this stuff, or even try to handle it. I think that
the person who brought the isotope into the UK
was most likely not aware what he was carrying.
Finally: blaming Berezovsky for this in the 1990’s is one thing. Blaming him now reminds me of assertions in the 1930’s that Trotsky was deliberately engineering shortages of consumer good by using his agents for ‘wrecking’.
” The cup could not have such an obvious signature and delivered such a small amount of Po-210 inside Litvinenko. Just not possible – in my opinion”
just to belabour the obvious, you have never worked with radioisotopes. If you had, you would be well aware of the ability of virtually any radioisotope to permanently label virtually any solid. You certainly have no knowledge of the adsorption of Po salts to china or porcelain; I don’t even believe that you know the amounts of compound involved.
If you do know of a solid which is resistant to being labelled with radioisotopes, I suggest you market it. You will make a fortune. Governments around the world eagerly await your insight.
Panorama suggested ~ 0.1 Curies of Po dosed to Litvinenko; that’s a vast amount of activity. I have no doubt that 0.1 Ci of any radioisotope would label a porcelain cup like a beacon.
yours
per