The recent talk about the efficiency of Gauss guns has reminded
me of a complaint one of my friends had on the subject.
His feild is high-energy physics (super-colliders and such) and today he
is working on his doctorate at Fermilab, so I have to gather that he
knows a thing or two about the subject.
His argument was that the actual details of creating the kind of
magnetic field needed for Gauss rifles and pistols, feild strength over
the short distance of the barrel length, and most importantly for the
very narrow barrel diameter. He said this would this would induce
radiation that would make firing the gun more hazardous to the user than
the target. Or, in his words;
"The surest way to kill someone with a Gauss rifle is to let him use one."
Needless to say, we listened to his complaints but used the Gauss guns
anyway :)
John H Bogan
[email removed]
P.S. You should have heard him go on about Meson guns. Sheesh.