Scientist Says He Stands by Fusion Data

NY Times ^ | March 9, 2006 | KENNETH CHANG

[neverdem]

A nuclear scientist at Purdue said yesterday that he would cooperate with the university's review of his fusion research. "From a technical point, we stand by our data," said the scientist, Rusi P. Taleyarkhan, a professor of nuclear engineering.

In 2002, scientists led by Dr. Taleyarkhan, who was then at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, announced that they had achieved fusion, the melding of hydrogen atoms to produce light and energy, in a small tabletop device by blasting a jar of solvent with strong ultrasound vibrations.

Scientists who have tried to reproduce the experiment say they have not seen any signs of fusion. The journal Nature reported on its Web site yesterday that several faculty members at Purdue, including Lefteri H. Tsoukalas, the head of the School of Nuclear Engineering who hired Dr. Taleyarkhan in 2003, now doubt the finding.

According to the article, Dr. Taleyarkhan had not shared raw data from experimental runs that he said had successfully produced fusion, had argued against the publication of negative results by other professors who had conducted similar experiments and had removed equipment from a shared laboratory, impeding colleagues' work.

Dr. Taleyarkhan said that he saw the article for the first time yesterday and that his Purdue colleagues' complaints "came as a major surprise to me."

On Tuesday, in response to the impending article, Sally Mason, the Purdue provost, said in a statement that "extremely serious" concerns had been raised about Dr. Taleyarkhan's work and that the university decided last week to review it.

In a follow-up statement released yesterday, Dr. Mason said, "There is disagreement within the scientific community both here and elsewhere concerning this research."

Dr. Mason said she had requested "a thorough review of the work and any concerns expressed about it."

She added, "As in any..."

[neverdem]

University to Investigate Fusion Study from the same author and source

[saganite]

Similar thread running here

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1592934/posts

[indcons]

I'll be VERY surprised if this guy is not unmasked as a fraud.

[neverdem]

Thanks for the link. Now the NY Times, AP & Reuters are covered.

[Mind-numbed Robot]

I'll be VERY surprised if this guy is not unmasked as a fraud.

This guy should partner with that South Korean scientists and start a discipline of faux science and fuse stem cells. :-)

[indcons]

Agreed....they can get the help from the global warming folks too. After all, all of them believe in fradulent science. LOL

[Jack Hammer]

Hey - if Doc Brown's Mr. Fusion can power a time machine on nothing but watermelon rinds, just think what it could do for the common automobile.

[woofer]

if Doc Brown's Mr. Fusion can power a time machine on nothing but watermelon rinds, just think what it could do for the common automobile.

Looks like this one requires a mason jar full of some kind of violative solvent that you then blast with heavy metal rock music.

Viola! Light in a bottle.

Or you can go to the hardware store and buy one of those things made of glass that you screw into a light socket.

[Victor]

I keep reading about fusion as if it is uncharted territory, but isn't the hydrogen bomb a fusion reaction?

Or is this some other aspect of the technology yet to be mastered....?

[agere_contra]

Controlled fusion is uncharted territory.

[crail]

I keep reading about fusion as if it is uncharted territory, but isn't the hydrogen bomb a fusion reaction?

Yes, but the hydrogen bomb isn't particularly well suited for generating electricity. Controlled fusion would be a very cheap and clean energy source, but controlling it very difficult. (And cold fusion would be an even cheaper and cleaner source, but so would sorcery. We'll see who gets there first.)

[Cliff Dweller]

"Thanks for the link. Now the NY Times, AP & Reuters are covered.

I'm waiting for the Enquirer!

[FreeKeys]

if Doc Brown's Mr. Fusion can power a time machine on nothing but watermelon rinds, just think what it could do for the common automobile.

[Victor]

"...Controlled fusion is uncharted territory...."

Of course. Thanks for the clarification.