Notes From Terranova Research Concerning Diaconium 2/2

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Date: 2523-03-09

Received a sample of Diaconium, approx. 2 kilograms in weight and ten centimeters by twenty centimeters by five centimeters in size.

Appearance is a dull white surface streaked with silvery highlights. Silver appears and disappears depending on the viewing angle: most likely due to some kind of wavelength diffusion. Very pretty.

Sample is soft to the touch and emanates a very slight warmth: cause unknown. No other energy radiation detected.

Weight of sample appears to vary with time: on subsequent attempts at fine-grained weight measurement, I found the sample to weigh the following:

2.01455637 kg

2.01284656 kg

2.00853875 kg

2.00839586 kg

…these fluctuations are MASSIVE in a sample this size, and are completely unexplained. Although it's not visible to the naked eye, the sample is clearly decreasing in mass over time. However, the decreases appear far more random than a standard radiological decay model, and has no identifiable chemical output. Warrants future study. Must book time on the nano-scale spectrometer to investigate further.

Additional notes: Conclusion:
 * No odor.
 * Substance tastes faintly of lemons.
 * Substance is not conductive.
 * Exposure to extreme high heat does not appear to affect the chemical structure.
 * Substance can be cut fairly easily with plasma torch. Interior appears homogeneous with exterior.
 * Exposure to sonic vibration at very high wavelength causes sample to emit visible light. Possible sonoluminescent effect? VERY INTERESTING!!! Reached out to several colleagues at the Cookery to see if I can get my hands on one of their sonic generators.
 * Exposure to water yields no interesting effects.
 * Exposure to various concentrated acids and bases yields no interesting effects
 * Exposure to high explosive yields no interesting effects.
 * Sectioned off one hundred 1 ng samples of substance and placed in isolation overnight for observation. On returning the next morning, found that two samples had DISAPPEARED ENTIRELY. Others decreased in size at seemingly random amounts with no correlation to their energy output. I suspect some form of contamination in the experiment, as this result would otherwise violate three or four laws of thermodynamics.
 * Ingesting a small quantity of the substance led to no ill effects, except a slight pain while urinating.

Highly unusual substance. Appears to have low reactivity, except for possible sonic interactions. I can't think of any current material applications. Its rarity makes it precious, and its bizarre random reduction in mass makes it highly interesting from an academic standpoint, but it appears useless from a practical perspective.

I'll update this log if and when I hear back from our friends at the Cookery.

Paul Allen, PhD

Materials Specialist III

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Date: 2523-03-25

Heard back from Malcolm at the Cookery. He looked over my notes and was very negative about any possible use for the substance. He also rejected my line of inquiry concerning possible sonic properties of the material. Was quite harsh about it, actually.

Oddly enough, he also refused to loan us a sonic generator, or to permit me to use the Cookery's equipment. Got very ornery about it when I asked. Then he turned around and requested a sample of the material from* us. *The gall of that man. I got thirteen tons of refined uranium out of him for what was left of our diaconium stock; only about half a kilogram. For someone so uninterested in diaconium, he certainly paid dearly for it. The rube.

Paul Allen, PhD

Materials Specialist III