WHOA Horace -- Slow down! It doesn't say quite what you think!
Let's take it word by word.
Horace Heffner wrote:
On Oct 29, 2007, at 2:15 PM, DDMasters wrote:
Maybe you should read his web pages, he does say no generator is used
in his
#7 free standing unit. It is in plain English.
Somehow I missed that. It indeed says there under the Fig. 14 title:
This following paragraph discusses the CIRCUIT:
"No localized external power source is used in the following two
circuits. It is currently unknown how the circuit is being powered.
Except for an earth ground connection, no other connections are made.
Ron just said, no other connections are made TO THE CIRCUIT.
Note specifically, he excepts the earth ground -- that is significant:
The "except for an earth ground" clause applies to the CIRCUIT, _not_ to
the PAN (which "floats"), so it appears that the "no other connections
are made" clause ALSO applies TO THE CIRCUIT, but NOT TO THE PAN. In
fact, so far he has not mentioned the pan!
Now, he talks about the pan:
The aluminum pan in which the circuit is sitting is floating and not
connected to the earth ground or the circuit or circuit board."
The pan is NOT CONNECTED TO EARTH GROUND ... and NOT CONNECTED TO THE
CIRCUIT BOARD.
It is "floating" -- that means it's not connected to GROUND, and is not
part of a "circuit". Does Ron also intend it to mean it is not
connected to the signal generator hot wire? It's ambiguous!
NO MENTION, either positive or negative, is made of the SIGNAL GENERATOR
at this time.
I submit, again, that the language is actually AMBIGUOUS -- particularly
given the subsequent discussion of how to replicate this. I submit that
Ron could very well have tied the PAN to the SIGNAL GENERATOR and still
made the above statements, and, particularly given the subsequent
description, he could have done it in good faith.
Again, read the rest of what he says later on that page about HOW TO
REPLICATE THIS. He tells you how to hook up the signal generator TO THE
PAN, and how to adjust it -- and he NEVER says you should either
disconnect it from the pan, or turn it off!
From other things he has said, it appears that he views that as
"isolated" from the circuit.
I guess I was wrong about no direct answers. That's about as direct as
you can get,
I disagree. If, in the instructions for reproducing the effect, he ever
said "Now turn off the signal generator, and observe that the lights
stay on", THAT would be direct.
He never says that, nor does he say anything which implies you can do that.
except maybe the intended definitions of "external power
source" (external to what) and "connection" in this case.
Horace Heffner
http://www.mtaonline.net/~hheffner/
