A civil matter involves legal actions between individual people or businesses over issues like personal injury, breach of contracts, property rights, etc. A criminal actâ¦ion involves legal actions between the government and individual people for violation of that government's laws against criminal behavior.
Nuclear energy was discovered accidentally by French physicist Henri Becquerel, when he found that photographic plates stored near uranium compounds reacted as though they had been exposed to light in a way similar to X-rays.uclear reactors produce energy from uranium through an atomic fission reactionâthat is, radioactive atoms are split apart and the energy that is released in that fission is harnessed to produce heat and electricity.
Then suddenly, late in 1938, Otto Hahn (pictured at right with Lisa Meitner) and Fritz Strassmann (pictured at left) discovered a fundamentally new and unexpected exception. After irradiating uranium with neutrons, they were surprised to detect barium, an element only about half of the mass of uranium.The conclusion was inescapable; they had split the uranium atom into two parts. They had discovered nuclear fission -- the splitting of the atom.Two physical properties of nuclear fission are particularly exciting and important; splitting the uranium nucleus with a neutron releases energy and a few additional neutrons.hen suddenly, late in 1938, Otto Hahn (pictured at right with Lisa Meitner) and Fritz Strassmann (pictured at left) discovered a fundamentally new and unexpected exception. After irradiating uranium with neutrons, they were surprised to detect barium, an element only about half of the mass of uranium.