Inventor Claims Zero Point Energy Source
January 22, 2002 2:40 PM Subscribe
Inventor Claims Zero Point Energy Source Calling his invention a "Jasker", an Irish Electrical Engineer (who is keeping his identity a secret), claims to have a working prototype of a machine that is capable of replenishing its own energy source. We've heard this sort of thing before, and there are hundreds of other "inventors" making the same sorts of claims, but could this one be for real? And how does this fit in with the First Law of Thermodynamics?
"The Jasker produces emission-free energy at no cost apart from the installation. It is quite possibly the most significant invention since the wheel," Tom Hedrick, the only person involved with the machine willing to give his name, told Reuters.
(emphasis mine) This doesn't inspire confidence in me. Nor do their violations of physicallaws theorems verified by copious experimentation and consistency with observed phenomena.
posted by j.edwards at 3:15 PM on January 22, 2002
(emphasis mine) This doesn't inspire confidence in me. Nor do their violations of physical
posted by j.edwards at 3:15 PM on January 22, 2002
for free energy (after construction costs) I would prefer to look in the direction of Solar Chimneys. I don't understand why they haven't taken off.
posted by Nauip at 3:18 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by Nauip at 3:18 PM on January 22, 2002
but could this one be for real?
No.
However, if it were functional, a lot of countries would be screwed: Saudia Arabia, Venezuela, Mexico, Russia, Norway and Nigeria would all be hosed. The global economy would be knocked on its ass by the follow-on effects of so many national economies imploding.
I mean, long-term a new non-polluting energy source would be great for humanity.
Short-term, a lot of people would die.
posted by aramaic at 3:20 PM on January 22, 2002
No.
However, if it were functional, a lot of countries would be screwed: Saudia Arabia, Venezuela, Mexico, Russia, Norway and Nigeria would all be hosed. The global economy would be knocked on its ass by the follow-on effects of so many national economies imploding.
I mean, long-term a new non-polluting energy source would be great for humanity.
Short-term, a lot of people would die.
posted by aramaic at 3:20 PM on January 22, 2002
On a more serious note (that article was worrying for a while-my father is an Irish electrical engineer), Ireland is about to build the largest wind farm in the world, three times larger than all the others put together, and will provide 10% of the countries electricity needs.
posted by Zootoon at 3:25 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by Zootoon at 3:25 PM on January 22, 2002
forget the 100-watt light bulbs, buster, it's the 1000 watt jobbers that i need help powering... descretely
posted by tsarfan at 3:29 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by tsarfan at 3:29 PM on January 22, 2002
...how does this fit in with the First Law of Thermodynamics?
It does not. I don't doubt that advances in efficient production of energy and efficient machines will continue, possibly even with dramatic and surprising breakthroughs. However, energy is, has been, and will continue to be conserved.
Here's a good rule of thumb for the layman: A device claiming to be any variation of a perpetual motion machine is either an error, a hoax, a scam, or some combination thereof.
posted by majick at 3:48 PM on January 22, 2002
It does not. I don't doubt that advances in efficient production of energy and efficient machines will continue, possibly even with dramatic and surprising breakthroughs. However, energy is, has been, and will continue to be conserved.
Here's a good rule of thumb for the layman: A device claiming to be any variation of a perpetual motion machine is either an error, a hoax, a scam, or some combination thereof.
posted by majick at 3:48 PM on January 22, 2002
and at one point in time the world was flat... but we're smarter than that now. i'd even venture to say that we're living at the height of human innovation. could it possibly get any better???
posted by ggggarret at 4:00 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by ggggarret at 4:00 PM on January 22, 2002
First law of thermodynamics: You do not talk about law of thermodynamics.
posted by MarkBakalor at 4:05 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by MarkBakalor at 4:05 PM on January 22, 2002
Everything that can be invented has been invented.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 4:05 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by mr_crash_davis at 4:05 PM on January 22, 2002
Yeah, them physical properties of the universe, they're keeping a brother down.
posted by majick at 4:07 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by majick at 4:07 PM on January 22, 2002
Everything that can be invented has been invented.
I anticipate a world market for about five of these Zero Point Energy Devices.
posted by j.edwards at 4:25 PM on January 22, 2002
I anticipate a world market for about five of these Zero Point Energy Devices.
posted by j.edwards at 4:25 PM on January 22, 2002
I anticipate a world market for about five of these Zero Point Energy Devices.
If it really worked, why would you ever need more than one?
posted by rodii at 4:36 PM on January 22, 2002
If it really worked, why would you ever need more than one?
posted by rodii at 4:36 PM on January 22, 2002
It's better than a perpetual motion machine, it returned an extra 5 volts to the batteries when they turned it off.
Interesting, no?
posted by linux at 5:42 PM on January 22, 2002
Interesting, no?
posted by linux at 5:42 PM on January 22, 2002
Short-term, a lot of people would die.
what? why? if each household in the world could get their hands on one of these (they can't be too expensive to make if an Irish engineer made one), there would be no need for anyone to be beholden to another person for their electrical power.
nuts to saudi arabia, and nuts to every other nation that exports oil. their reserves of oil were destined to run out anyway. they might as well just switch over to Jasker machine production if they're so enthralled with supplying the world with energy.
there's no reason for people to die. the only people i see dying are rich oil tycoons that commit suicide after their fortunes dry up. good riddance, they deserve to die anyway.
posted by Hammerikaner at 5:47 PM on January 22, 2002
what? why? if each household in the world could get their hands on one of these (they can't be too expensive to make if an Irish engineer made one), there would be no need for anyone to be beholden to another person for their electrical power.
nuts to saudi arabia, and nuts to every other nation that exports oil. their reserves of oil were destined to run out anyway. they might as well just switch over to Jasker machine production if they're so enthralled with supplying the world with energy.
there's no reason for people to die. the only people i see dying are rich oil tycoons that commit suicide after their fortunes dry up. good riddance, they deserve to die anyway.
posted by Hammerikaner at 5:47 PM on January 22, 2002
I heard somebody opened a service panel for inspection and heard a voice:
'Sooo, yer after me lucky charms, are ye?'
posted by obiwanwasabi at 6:01 PM on January 22, 2002
'Sooo, yer after me lucky charms, are ye?'
posted by obiwanwasabi at 6:01 PM on January 22, 2002
Nuts to every other nation that exports oil
...that'll be a really amusing attitude when the Middle East & Russia go down in flames, dragging Africa with them. There was an important lesson to be had post-9/11. Evidently, you missed it.
posted by aramaic at 6:18 PM on January 22, 2002
...that'll be a really amusing attitude when the Middle East & Russia go down in flames, dragging Africa with them. There was an important lesson to be had post-9/11. Evidently, you missed it.
posted by aramaic at 6:18 PM on January 22, 2002
Personally, I hope to see the experimentalists come up with something like this -- essentially a perpetual motion machine plus cold fusion -- before the theorists can explain it. Unfortunately, I have a lot of doubts that some guy cooked up the answer in his garage, and it's a pretty poor idea to let my personal enthusiasm to get in the way of healthy skepticism.
inventor_man: "Perpetual motion is impossible. This is a self-sustaining unit which at the same time provides surplus electrical energy."
A "self sustaining unit" sounds an awful lot like a euphemism for "perpetual motion" to me. If this device were producing a net energy gain, the energy must be coming from somewhere. Maybe that somewhere is a source that can be drained to no ill effect and is bottomless for practical purposes -- I'm not up on Zero Point theory whatsoever -- but thermodynamic law still won't be denied.
An anonymous guy with a black box that nobody's had a chance to look inside, based on an unpublished process, does not a very credible claimant make. Add to that the fact that he went to the lay press with a golly-gee-willikers demonstration before he went to the scientific world.
It walks and talks like a duck.
posted by majick at 7:08 PM on January 22, 2002
inventor_man: "Perpetual motion is impossible. This is a self-sustaining unit which at the same time provides surplus electrical energy."
A "self sustaining unit" sounds an awful lot like a euphemism for "perpetual motion" to me. If this device were producing a net energy gain, the energy must be coming from somewhere. Maybe that somewhere is a source that can be drained to no ill effect and is bottomless for practical purposes -- I'm not up on Zero Point theory whatsoever -- but thermodynamic law still won't be denied.
An anonymous guy with a black box that nobody's had a chance to look inside, based on an unpublished process, does not a very credible claimant make. Add to that the fact that he went to the lay press with a golly-gee-willikers demonstration before he went to the scientific world.
It walks and talks like a duck.
posted by majick at 7:08 PM on January 22, 2002
I for one would be happy to see a zero-point energy source come into operation. I'm tired of living under the constant shadow of Governor Gary Locke's polite request that we conserve energy. I see his ghostly reflection in the bathroom mirror every morning.
posted by Hildago at 7:12 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by Hildago at 7:12 PM on January 22, 2002
What aramaic said.
posted by Optamystic at 9:16 PM on January 22, 2002
posted by Optamystic at 9:16 PM on January 22, 2002
what? why? if each household in the world could get their hands on one of these [...] there would be no need for anyone to be beholden to another person for their electrical power.
Where would their food come from? You can't eat electricity. If the only thing you have to sell suddenly becomes nearly worthless (not completely--there are other uses for petroleum), where do you get the money to buy food? And if the entire economy of a nation depends on that thing, you can't depend on your neighbors for relief...people starve.
(they can't be too expensive to make if an Irish engineer made one),
Now it's my turn to say it: WTF?
posted by rodii at 10:21 PM on January 22, 2002
Where would their food come from? You can't eat electricity. If the only thing you have to sell suddenly becomes nearly worthless (not completely--there are other uses for petroleum), where do you get the money to buy food? And if the entire economy of a nation depends on that thing, you can't depend on your neighbors for relief...people starve.
(they can't be too expensive to make if an Irish engineer made one),
Now it's my turn to say it: WTF?
posted by rodii at 10:21 PM on January 22, 2002
"Eric's History of Perpetual Motion and Free Energy Machines"
posted by talos at 5:33 AM on January 23, 2002
posted by talos at 5:33 AM on January 23, 2002
If both this and the supercompression from that Florida company prove true, watch for the feces to impact with the personal cooling device!
posted by 4midori at 9:25 AM on January 23, 2002
posted by 4midori at 9:25 AM on January 23, 2002
in this house we obey the laws of thermodynamics!!!!
posted by themikeb at 9:55 AM on January 23, 2002
posted by themikeb at 9:55 AM on January 23, 2002
Aramaic, what the hell are you trying to say? That if a cheap, replenishable method of generating energy were discovered, it should be suppressed and we should continue to use Oil in some sort of bizarre global welfare system?
posted by delmoi at 6:04 AM on January 24, 2002
posted by delmoi at 6:04 AM on January 24, 2002
It would be NICE if we could have a global welfare system, bizarre or otherwise, independant of the use of oil.
Of course, that's terribly unlikely to happen. But is it more unlikely then the magical energy box?
posted by Flimsy_Parkins at 11:51 AM on January 29, 2002
Of course, that's terribly unlikely to happen. But is it more unlikely then the magical energy box?
posted by Flimsy_Parkins at 11:51 AM on January 29, 2002
« Older FBI investigating Enron shredding | Getting to know the Hitlers Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by bshort at 2:57 PM on January 22, 2002