In the early 1900s, scientists were uncovering more and more of how the universe worked down to the smallest part of matter called the atom. In 1905, Albert Einstein derived the famous equation E=mc^2: which for the first time other than science fiction opened a theoretical possibility that matter could be converted into energy and scientists were eager to discover the mechanism for this process to undergo. This was discovered on December 17, 1938, by Otto Hahn and his assistant Fritz Strassmann, which were the first scientists to split the atom. From this discovery, Enrico Fermi and other scientists began to theorize how to make a reactor that could be self-sustaining. This theory became a reality on December 2nd, 1942 under Stagg Field in Chicago when the team of scientists assembled over 360 tons of graphite, uranium oxide, and uranium metal. This was the first nuclear reactor which was affectionately named Chicago Pile-1. This was the start of the nuclear era. From this step forward in the dawn of the nuclear era, complete fields of study were opened such as medical devices for imaging, nuclear physicists and engineers. This field of study is intriguing and has great potential; however, before talking about power we must talk about the mechanism that this process must go through to make the energy which provides the capabilities to produce power.
