For some, one of the greatest concerns of the present day involves the hope for a vast overhaul of the way humans use and obtain energy. While some advocate tapping existing resources (such as drilling for oil), many are focused on the future with emerging trends toward sustainable or “green” energy systems, which include utilizing ocean currents, wind, geothermal energy and sunlight in processes that can generate electricity. The energy innovations of the future, however, are occurring today, according to some.

The latest circumstance to have emerged with regard to such energy innovations occurred last week, when two Italian scientists with the University of Bologna announced that they developed “a cold fusion device capable of producing 12,400 W of heat power with an input of just 400 W.” Andrea Rossi and Sergio Focardi, the men behind the claims, released their information both through a scientific journal and a press conference held in Bologna which, curiously, was only open to the press on an invitation basis. 50 people attended the pair’s demonstration, where they claimed to have shown how their fusion device worked. But many questions remain… and they don’t merely pertain to the immediate question as to whether the two have indeed managed to harness the power of cold fusion.

While Rossi and Focardi say their unique process can produce energy in ways that cost “significantly less than coal or natural gas plants,” Clay Dillow, writing for Fox News, recently argued that we’ve yet to actually see reliable proof of what Rossi and Focardi are claiming. “The problem is, they haven’t provided any details on how the process works. After their paper was rejected by several peer reviewed scientific journals, it was published in the Journal of Nuclear Physics,” which Dillow points out was an online journal; and not only that, but a publication which Rossi and Focardi founded themselves.

“Further,” Dillow continued, “they say they can’t account for how the cold fusion is triggered, fostering deep skepticism from others in the scientific community.” If the two are actually making the claim that this process will be made available commercially by the end of 2011, how is it that they can state that their process works, if they indeed cannot account for what what exactly triggers the fusion itself? At best, the claims these two are making at present seem dubious… and for now, you can call me a pessimist if you like, but I’ll keep my bets on windmills and solar panels.

We’re making extraordinary leaps these days when it comes to technology. While so many automakers are fumbling trying to design electric cars and the like that increase fuel efficiency, English engineer Gordon Murray has designed a tiny three-seater that already gets 80 mpg… he’s working on achieving 100.

Meanwhile, NASA is taking submissions for “inflatable space-houses,” outsourcing to students this summer in an effort to find a new design for a functional inflatable lunar habitat.

Of course, it doesn’t look like we’ll be going to the moon again any time soon, since costs behind such a production are more than most countries are willing to undertake during economically recessive times on a global scale. For those of us who spend our evenings just staring at the moon from a distance instead, even folks suffering from macular degeneration need not worry: a new telescope that replaces the eye’s nature lens is reportedly able to magnify what the eye would normally see by almost three times (does that still constitute being a “naked eye”?). But what if real innovations in fuel efficiency and sources could take place, something akin to Tesla’s designs for electric spacecraft that would have resembled modern reports of UFOs?

One former NASA engineer, the late Dr. Charles Yost, spent his retirement working in a laboratory in Western North Carolina attempting to do just that. Having assisted in the design of Apollo-era NASA space modules, the story goes that Yost had been visiting the mountains decades ago when, during a night-time hike on a mountainside, he observed a strange, football-shaped aircraft glowing green as it drifted overhead. Referring to the unidentified object as a “UFO,” Yost stood and observed the craft for several moments, proclaiming later to colleagues that he wanted to “build one.” Upon his retirement, Yost purchased land on the very mountain where he had the experience, and constructed a pyramid-shaped laboratory which be came the home of his business enterprise, Dynamic Systems, whose innovations include Tempur-pedic “memory foam” mattresses.

Yost’s passion, of course, would always be trying to build an Electric Spacecraft, which became the name of a quarterly scientific journal he published. Contributors from around the world submitted articles pertaining to innovations in electromagnetic energy, propulsion and other sciences aimed at revolutionizing energy and aeronautics so that, essentially, an electric spacecraft the likes of most purported UFOs could be built. Imagine a vehicle that produces tremendous electromagnetic fields capable of buoying itself against Earth’s own gravitational field, navigating through air and space with unprecedented command and maneuverability. In theory, this is far from being an impossibility… although it’s hardly anything we’re close to building right now; at least as far as we’ve been made aware.

Of course, while some are busy wondering how aliens might achieve such unique modes of transportation, some argue that the technology needed to build such craft has existed for millennia right here on Earth. Ancient Vedic texts describe what the ancient Indians called “vimanas,” often depicted as resembling airplanes, floating cities, and even disc-shaped objects capable of tremendous speed and airborne agility. The craft, which by most accounts appear to be mythic in nature, are curiously treated as though they did exist in many instances, even evoking detailed commentary on their inner workings. Deciphering the methods of propulsion used by the vimanas becomes a trifle difficult, since scholars remain uncertain as to the identity of some of the elements involved. Some have argued that the core engine in these craft, according to interpretations of the Sanskrit documents, involved an engine that had some mercuric component that powered the craft. Centuries later, it was alleged that the Nazis had designed a similar craft, referred to as “the Bell,” which achieved anti-gravitational effects with a mercury-propulsion system. Coincidentally, Hitler had expressed great interest in the Vedas and ancient Sanskrit documentations, more likely for occult purposes (another fascination many of the primary Nazi leaders shared), and deployed groups to obtain and study the documents.

The ancient Vedas also describe weapons with tremendous destructive potential: specifically, the inclusion of what sound like mushroom clouds resulting from nuclear blasts. This sheds an unsettling light on the discovery of several ancient sites around the world where ancient stone walls have been vitrified; that is, the separate stones melded together by a sudden, intense blast of heat. In more recent times, this was found to have occurred at Hiroshima, and at a question and answer among college students shortly after World War II, Dr. Robert Oppenheimer was asked if the initial test blast at Alamagordo was indeed the first detonation of a nuclear device here on Earth. His reply was, “Yes, in modern times.” Oppenheimer was also well-versed in the Sanskrit texts, especially those pertaining to “an unknown weapon, a ray of iron” used to strike down entire cities in a single blast. Could his development of atomic weaponry have been influenced by ancient sources?

If indeed technology has existed at any point that would permit the kind of superior maneuverability a “UFO” might allow, it seems almost inevitable that we’ll unlock those secrets again at some point. While we marvel at the technological innovations of today, some might argue that we’ve hardly reached our renaissance, and that greater wonders await us; once achieved, hopefully we’ll use them responsibly, knowing the destructive potential that comes paired with such great power.

We think of the universe in terms of what we can see. The stars, galaxies, gas clusters and particles that light up our night have intrigued and fascinated us since the beginning of time. However it is the dark universe, what we cannot see and what we cannot fathom, that makes up the majority of our sky. If we cannot see it and we don’t know what it is, how do we know dark matter exists and who really cares anyway?

The story of our dark and mysterious universe begins with Fritz Zwicky. Like many “brainiacs” before him, he had nothing better to do one day than to contemplate the universe or his navel or both at the same time. He found through complex and extremely boring math stuff, that the universe has a lot more mass than what can be accounted for by what we see. This “missing mass” problem was the birth of the idea of dark matter or as I prefer to call it “awesome nothingness”!!

“There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the universe is for and why it is here, it will be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened.” – Douglas Adams

The Universe is a Jar of Jellybeans

We think of space as a vacuum, so where does all this awesome nothingness that is dark matter fit in? Just think of the universe as a jar of jellybeans filled up mostly with black ones and a few of the coloured variety. The yummy colours are the baryonic matter we see and the black ones are our dark matter. They may taste yuk but they hold the universe together and may ultimately decide the fate of the jar.
What exactly are these black jellybeans? Many more brainiacs have come up with a number of speculations or what I call “untheories”, that is, through lots of careful observations and more wiggy math stuff, you have no idea what it actually is, but you have a really good idea what it isn’t.

M.A.C.H.Os vs W.I.M.Ps

Dark matter is not the baryonic matter of protons and neutrons that we know and feel comfortable with. It does have to be something and there are a few ideas. Dark matter could be made up of M.A.C.H.Os also known as Massive Astrophysical Compact Halo Objects, or a complicated way of saying brown dwarf stars and black holes. Now I am as fond of a good singularity as the next person, but black holes are so last millennium. In my opinion M.A.C.H.Os get beaten up by W.I.M.Ps also known as Weakly Interacting Massive Particles that are subatomic in nature, have a low mass and rarely interact with normal matter. Wouldn’t you know it wimps take over the universe. Next geeks shall inherit the earth!

Dark Fluid, not Just a Good Cup of Coffee

So we accept the existence of dark matter and it may seem pretty wimpy, but that is not the end of the story. Our universe is not static but expanding. The Big Bang may explain this expansion, but how do we account for this expansion accelerating?

This is where Dark Matter could be gravitationally repulsive, which creates a form of Dark Energy. Dark Matter and the subtle effects of this energy act as a kind of Dark Fluid that fuels the universe itself; pretty much like coffee keeps us going.

Get Warped

The repulsive gravitational effects of dark energy has implications for us beyond just powering the expansion of the universe. That’s right my pointy eared trekkie fans, Dark fluid could make warp speed and interstellar travel a reality. Two physicists from Baylor University have suggested that utilizing dark energy generated from the manipulation of dimensions, can create a bubble that can propel us at faster than light speeds. The basis of this innovative theory is that rather than moving an object at incredible speeds, you manipulate space-time to expand behind and shrink in front of it. This effectively moves space around the object. I just love people who think outside the space ship.

The Ultimate Fate

Dark matter and Dark energy may just be the most fundamental stuff in the universe. It will take eons for us mundane humans to get our heads around the concepts and implications and it is easy to say “So what?” Dark matter and its behavior, may give us a greater understanding of the origins of the universe and it’s ultimate fate. The amount of Dark energy generated is accelerating the universe but where does it all end? When thinking of Dark Fluid we have to ask, “how much is really being generated and will it end with the universe being Open, or expanding forever, or will gravity catch up and be pulled back into a Big Crunch?”

Maybe the universe is so elegant that there is just enough energy to balance out and stop the universe expanding at some point, also known as a Flat universe. Whatever the ending, you and I will not be here to see it, but it is fabulous to contemplate anyway.

Sources

[Science Daily] [Space.com] [Harvard.edu] [Dapla.org] [Dark Energy] [Warp Technology]