At 10:56 AM 8/11/2012, David L Babcock wrote:
I was quite able to sleep at nights until I learned that the LENR
bunch was finding helium at appropriate levels.
You noticed. That finding began and was published by roughly 1993, I
forget the exact dates. Miles at China Lake, working with others. It
was amply confirmed within a few years.
The problem is that PdD cold fusion, as found in the Fleischmann-Pons
Heat Effect, is dependent on difficult-to-control conditions, and may
not be sufficiently reliable -- ever -- for commercial use, plus
palladium and deuterium are quite expensive. *Maybe* it can be
developed, and maybe not, and until we understand the mechanism, it's
impossible to tell.
The nickel-hydrogen claims are exciting, but, so far, not adequately
demonstrated or independently verified. (Because even highly
convincing demonstrations can be faked, independent verification is
what we look for when a field has a high possibility for attracting
fraud, or for anything extremely unusual.)
There were many people confidently predicting that it would all be
over by October of last year, because that was when Rossi was
promising product availability. He said "wait until October" many
times. October came and went, and all the months after that. Rossi
could end this charade at any time, it would be trivial. Many of us
have concluded that, if this is real, and it might not be real, he
has a motive to make himself look like a total con artist. If that's
his motive, he's succeeded.
Yet others still simply believe whatever new announcement he's made,
or whatever comment anyone else has made that falls short of what
we'd need: independent verification. It's an interesting study in our
collective gullibility *even if Rossi's devices turn out to be for real.*
Papp/Rohner seems to be carefully avoiding making any such
investigations. No ashes, therefore NOT nuclear. And so at this
point, not convincing (although very exciting).
One miracle is enough. LENR can do anything that [maybe!] Papp can,
just a tad more complex and expensive -but still leaving
hydrocarbons behind in the dust. Plenty of reason for more sleepless nights.
Ol' Bab, who was an engineer...
I'm only a bit familiar with the story of the interaction with
Feynman, which left a man dead. If someone has actually made a
running Papp engine, it would be amazing. However, like any such
claim, we would be foolish to accept it as true without independent
verification.
(We also should not reject claims as "impossible." We don't really
know what's possible. Improbable, fine. Don't put money into it
unless you see enough. And notice the lack of independent
confirmation. That is not a sign of the reality of this engine.
Beware of frauds. Time will tell.)
(The world is full of mysteries which may never be solved.)
