The simplest explaination of how stars generate energy is not the P-P chain reaction currently accepted by almost everyone who has any interest in the topic. The simplest explaination is proton decay that was at one time way back considered logical. Proton decay transforms the total mass into energy and so the ideas that logically flow from fission processes become silly in proton decay generators. The life cycle of stars are dramaticly different for example. Proton decay is not popular now but at one time it was unpopular to think the world was round and mankind has not changed any since then.
