Here is
an interesting tidbit on a possible
"new
form of energy".
Sounds like they got the statistical fluctuations in fluids that violate
the second law of thermodynamics to exceed that achieved by Wang, Evans,
et al. The latter experimentally showed such an effect in cubic
micron sized regions, for up to two seconds, and these results were
formally published in July of last year. During that "reversal"
time, reactions can and will "run backwards". Hence negative
entropy can be formed, producing excess energy (which can subsequently
be dissipated as heating). In a cubic micron of water, e.g., there
are some 30 billion ions and molecules. A little region of 30
billion ions and molecules, where the law of attraction and repulsion of
charges is momentarily reversed, can indeed see attraction of two H+
ions into a quasi-nucleus of deuterium, except for the flip of one
quark. Even in regular fusion, it is known that the quasi-nuclei
first formed before full fusion (in that case, by sheer brute kinetic
energy and driving one charge into the repulsion of another until the
strong force region is reached) more often decay by quasi-fission back
apart again, rather than fusing into a new element to complete a
transmutation. One probably should look at the reaction obtained
by these folks (and measured by some scientists) in view of the yield
from quasi-fissioning of quasi-nuclei formed by proven statistical
fluctuations and the fluctuation theorem.

Cheers,

Tom

Take water and potash, add
electricity and get - a mystery By Robert Matthews, Science Correspondent - The
Daily Telegraph(Filed: 18/05/2003)

British researchers believe that they have made a
groundbreaking scientific discovery after apparently managing to
"create" energy from hydrogen atoms.

In results independently verified at Bristol
University, a team from Gardner Watts - an environmental technology
company based in Dedham, Essex - show a "thermal energy cell" which
appears to produce hundreds of times more energy than that put into it.
If the findings are correct and can be reproduced on a commercial scale,
the thermal energy cell could become a feature of every home, heating
water for a fraction of the cost and cutting fuel bills by at least 90
per cent.

The makers of the cell, which passes an electric
current through a liquid between two electrodes, admit that they cannot
explain precisely how the invention works. They insist, however, that
their cell is not just a repeat of
the notorious "cold fusion" debacle of the late 1980s. Then two
scientists claimed to have found a way of generating nuclear energy from
a similar-looking device at room temperature. The findings were widely
challenged and the scientists, Martin Fleischmann and Stanley Pons,
accused of incompetence, fled America to set up labs in France.

"We are absolutely not saying this is cold fusion, or
that we have found a way round the law of energy conservation," said
Christopher Davies, the managing director of Gardner Watts.

"What we are saying is that the device seems to tap
into another, previously unrecognised source of energy."

According to Mr Davies, the cell is the product of
research into the fundamental properties of hydrogen, the most common
element in the universe. He argues that calculations based on quantum
theory, the laws of the sub-atomic world, suggest that hydrogen can
exist in a so-called metastable state that harbours a potential source
of extra energy.

This theory suggests that if electricity were passed
into a mixture of water and a chemical catalyst, the extra energy would
be released in the form of heat.

After some experimentation, the team found that a small
amount of electricity passed through a mixture of water and potassium
carbonate - potash - released an astonishing amount of energy.

"It generates a lot of heat in a very small volume,"
said Christopher Eccles, the chief scientist at Gardner Watts.

The findings of the Gardner Watts team were tested by
Dr Jason Riley of Bristol University, who found energy gains of between
three and 26 times what had been put in.

In a written report, Dr Riley concluded: "Using the
apparatus supplied by Gardner Watts and the procedure of analysis
suggested by the company, there appears to be an energy gain in the
system."

In tests performed for The Telegraph, the cell heated
water to near-boiling, apparently producing more than three times the
amount of energy fed into it.

Scientists admit to being astonished by the sheer size
of the energy increase produced by the cell. "I've never seen a claim
like this before," said Prof Stephen Smith of the physics department at
Essex University.

"In the case of cold fusion, people talked about
getting a 10 per cent energy gain or so, which could be explained away
quite easily but this is much too big for that."

Prof Smith said he was sceptical about the theory put
forward by the company. He conceded, however, that scientists had also
been baffled by the source of energy driving radioactivity, as the key
equation involved - Einstein's famous E=MC2 - had yet to be discovered.

According to Prof Smith, if there is a flaw in the
company's claims, it lies in the measurement of the amount of electrical
energy pumped into the cell. It is possible that, as sparks pass between
the electrodes, there is an energy surge which would not be picked up by
the instruments measuring the electrical input.

Prof Smith said: "This needs to be very carefully
checked, as there could be far more energy going in than the makers
think."

Prof Smith's views were echoed by Dr Riley, who said:
"There's no doubt that there was a heat rise but I'd like to see a more
thorough investigation of the electrical energy supplied into the cell."

While many scientists are trying to solve the mystery
of the thermal energy cell, its huge commercial potential has already
caused interest.

Cambridge Consultants, one of Britain's most
prestigious technology consultancies, has teamed up with Mr Davies and
his colleagues to develop a working prototype. "We've had a
multi-disciplinary team working on this, and we're perplexed," said
Duncan Bishop, head of process development at Cambridge Consultants.

"We are offering to risk-share on it, as it will need
about £200,000 to prove the principle behind it."

According to the Gardner Watts team, it will take about
six months to carry out tests putting the reality of the effect beyond
all doubt. The company then plans to develop a prototype capable of
turning less than one kilowatt of electrical power into 10 kilowatts of
heat.

Mr Davies said: "The technology could be licensed by a
company making household boilers for the domestic market. " He added
that the plan is to have the first thermal energy cell devices on the
market within two years.