The mushroom is called Reishi or Mannentake (10,000 year mushroom) in Japan, and Ling Chi or Ling Zhi (herb of immortality) in China and Korea. Ganoderma is known from Chinese medical writings from over 2,000 years ago and it is a popular symbol and subject in Chinese art. Reishi mushrooms are found worldwide in tropical and subtropical climates.
Nuclear Technologies History Part 2 - Splitting the Atom. 1  Fermi knew that when an atom splits it releases other neutrons, and he was quick to realize that under the right conditions those neutrons could go on to split other atoms in a chain reaction. This would lead to one of two things: a steady generation of energy in the form of heat or a huge explosion. If each splitting atom caused one released neutron to split another atom, the chain reaction was said to be critical and would create a steady release of heat energy.
Simply put, fission is the division of one atom into two, and fusion is the combination of two lighter atoms into a larger one. They are opposing processes, and therefore very different. (Merriam-Webster Online, www.m-w.com). Nuclear fission releases heat energy by splitting atoms.