Is the cold fusion egg about to hatch?

[HankB]

Unfortunately, while I believe strongly in science, I've found that many scientists are corruptible. There are plenty of example of scams promulgated by supposed "men of science" . . .

* All manner of quack medical cures

* Pons & Fleischman with their cold fusion discovery.

* Joe Weber and his gravity wave experiment. (Using strain gages to detect deflections in large aluminum cylinders on the order of 1/100 the diameter of an atomic nucleus)

* A "more than 100% efficient" furnace for heating homes in Minnesota that impressed the faculty at U of MN. (Until a student realized their heat transfer measurements were done in centigrade rather than kelvin)

* Anthropogenic global warming . . . which can only be addressed by a massive transfer of money from my pocket to the accounts of people like Algore.

* The Dean Drive, a spaceship drive which converted rotational motion into linear thrust.

This latest "cold fusion discovery" seems to be just one more example of bad science. (And remember, it's not up to us to debunk it, it's up to the proponents to prove it. )

[zahc]

Pons and Fleischman get a bad rap. The tech press is as much to blame as they were. Sure, their experiment was wrong, probably, because nobody could duplicate it...but nobody should ever be punished for that. I don't put them in the same category with people that falsify data.

[Scout26]

What AJ said. It's perfectly on point.

I'd also like to point out, any time anyone says something about inventing a new "cold fusion" or "warp drive" or "refreshing diet soda that tastes great", start with the assumption that they are lying. Because they are and they're scamming someone.

I will point out that dihydrogen monoxide is refreshing diet drink, that unless one wishes to have it stored in overpriced convenience packaging, it is very,very affordable (offer not valid in Flint, MI).

[MechAg94]

I will point out that dihydrogen monoxide is refreshing diet drink, that unless one wishes to have it stored in overpriced convenience packaging, it is very,very affordable (offer not valid in Flint, MI).

But Brondo has electrolytes!!!!

[birdman]

* A "more than 100% efficient" furnace for heating homes in Minnesota that impressed the faculty at U of MN. (Until a student realized their heat transfer measurements were done in centigrade rather than

Technically, -any- heat pump is more than 100% efficient if the metric is heat delivered vs power expended.
...it's kinda the point.

[HankB]

Technically, -any- heat pump is more than 100% efficient if the metric is heat delivered vs power expended.
...it's kinda the point.

Heat pumps tap an outside source of heat.

In the case of the miraculous Minnesota heater, a guy noticed that hydraulic fluid heated up when it was circulated. He made a fancy radiator and circulated hydraulic fluid through it, then used a fan or blower to remove the heat. Measuring the airflow (CFM) and both input and output temperatures allows one to compute the amount of energy which heated the known volume of air. Comparing this to the electricity used to drive the pumps and the fan allowed one to compute the efficiency.

IF the temperatures were measured in kelvin vs. centigrade. Going from, say, 20C to 30C yields results appreciably different than going from 283k to 293k.

Coming up next: using lasers to separate hydrogen and oxygen in water to run a fuel cell which will power the lasers and produce water to refill the fuel tank in a closed loop, with enough energy left over to power a car.  (Another invention that got some press a number of years back. )

[birdman]

Heat pumps tap an outside source of heat.

In the case of the miraculous Minnesota heater, a guy noticed that hydraulic fluid heated up when it was circulated. He made a fancy radiator and circulated hydraulic fluid through it, then used a fan or blower to remove the heat. Measuring the airflow (CFM) and both input and output temperatures allows one to compute the amount of energy which heated the known volume of air. Comparing this to the electricity used to drive the pumps and the fan allowed one to compute the efficiency.

IF the temperatures were measured in kelvin vs. centigrade. Going from, say, 20C to 30C yields results appreciably different than going from 283k to 293k.

Coming up next: using lasers to separate hydrogen and oxygen in water to run a fuel cell which will power the lasers and produce water to refill the fuel tank in a closed loop, with enough energy left over to power a car.  (Another invention that got some press a number of years back. )

Yeah, I know.  My point was that compared to an electrical heater, a heat pump is >100% efficient.
Since by definition, an electrical heater is 100% efficient.

If you don't define the control volume, an electrical heater is either 100% efficient, or 0% efficient...same with almost any device.