probably a hoax, but, ....

[Guest guest]

Irish inventor says he's cracked world's energy needs

 

Wednesday, January 23, 2002

By Kevin Smith, Reuters

 

 

DUBLIN — It has been a pipe dream of inventors since Leonardo da Vinci, but

has the secret of free energy now been found in Ireland?

A cold stone house on a wind-swept Irish hillside may seem an unlikely setting

for the birthplace of such an epoch-making discovery, but it is here that an

Irish inventor says he has developed a machine that will do no less than change

the world.

 

The 58-year-old electrical engineer, who lives in the Irish republic and intends

— for " security and publicity-avoidance reasons'' — to keep his identity a

secret, has spent 23 years perfecting the Jasker Power System. It is an

electromechanical device he says is capable of nothing less than replenishing

its own energy source.

 

The Irishman is not alone in making such assertions. The Internet is awash with

speculation about free or " zero point'' energy, with many claiming to have

cracked the problem using magnets, coils, and even crystals.

 

" These claims come along every 10 years or so and nothing ever comes of them.

They're all cases of 'voodoo science,''' said Robert Park, professor of physics

at the University of Maryland.

 

The makers of the Jasker — a name derived from family abbreviations — say it

can be built to scale using off-the-shelf components and can power anything that

requires a motor. " The Jasker produces emission-free energy at no cost apart

from the installation. It is quite possibly the most significant invention since

the wheel, " said Tom Hedrick, the only person involved with the machine willing

to give his name.

 

Hedrick, chief executive of a company set up with a view to licensing the device

in the United States, said the technology shattered preconceived laws of

science. " It's a giant leap forward. The uses of this are almost beyond

imagination.''

 

RED HOT WITH CONTROVERSY

 

Not surprisingly, this topic is red hot with controversy. It has sharply divided

a world scientific community still on guard after the " cold fusion " fiasco of

1989, when a group of Utah researchers scandalized the scientific world with

claims — quickly found to be unsupported — that the long-sought answer to

the problem of cold fusion had been discovered.

 

Experts contacted by Reuters were wary, citing the first law of thermodynamics,

which in layman's terms, states that you can't get more energy out than you put

in.

 

" I don't believe this. It goes against fundamentals which have not yet been

disproved,'' said William Beattie, senior lecturer in electrical engineering at

Queen's University in Belfast, Northern Ireland. " These people (Jasker) are

either Nobel prize winners or they don't know what they're dealing with. The

energy has to come from somewhere.''

 

Undaunted, the inventor says that once powered-up, his device can run

indefinitely — or at least until the parts wear out, adding that he has

supplied all his own domestic power needs free for 17 months.

 

But he is keen to head off the notion that he has tapped into the age-old myth

of perpetual motion. " Perpetual motion is impossible. This is a self-sustaining

unit which at the same time provides surplus electrical energy, " he said.

 

THE SIZE OF A DISHWASHER

 

In a demonstration for Reuters, a prototype — roughly the size of a dishwasher

— was run for around 10 minutes using four 12-volt car batteries as an initial

power source. Emitting a steady motorized hum, the machine powered three

100-watt light bulbs for the duration.

 

A multimeter reading of the batteries' voltage before the device started up

showed a total of 48.9 volts. When it was switched off, a second reading showed

51.2 volts, indicating that, somehow, they had been reimbursed.

 

The machine went on to run for around two hours while photographs were taken,

with no diminution in the brightness of the light bulbs, which remained lit

during a short power cut. " The draw on the batteries was estimated at more than

4.5 kilowatts. With any existing technology the batteries would have been

drained flat in one and a half minutes,'' the inventor said.

 

Modern theories of zero point energy have their roots in quantum physics and

encompass the fraught areas of " antigravity machines'' and " advanced

propulsion'' research. Contributors to the debate range from serious exponents

of quantum science to those who insist free energy secrets have been imparted to

them by aliens. Still others seem convinced the U.S. government is conspiring to

suppress such discoveries.

 

Nick Cook, aerospace consultant to Janes Defense Weekly and author of The Hunt

for Zero Point is not as quick as some to dismiss the possibilities. " Zero point

energy has been proven to exist,'' he said. " The question is whether it can be

tapped to provide usable energy. And to that end, I think it's possible, yes.

There are a lot of eminent scientists now involved in this field, and they

wouldn't be if there wasn't anything to it.''

 

" In my experience opinion in this field is extremely polarized.... people either

go with this area of investigation in their minds or they don't, and if they

don't they tend to pooh-pooh it vehemently. It's very difficult to get an

objective assessment,'' he said. " Basically, no one wants to be the first to

stick his head above the parapet.''

 

Impervious to scepticism, Jasker's makers see the first practical application of

their technology as a stand-alone generator for home use, although the

automotive industry could also be a near-term target given the huge investment

in developing substitutes for gasoline-fueled engines.

 

With world oil reserves running down, there is mounting urgency in the quest for

alternatives. If the Jasker men really are onto something, it could be the most

important Irish invention since Guinness.