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From: Sender name Sender Email * To: Recipient name Recipient Email * Message (the link to this story will be appended automatically) Science May 14, 2011 Comet Theory Comes Crashing to Earth An elegant archaeological hypothesis, under fire for results that can’t be replicated, may ultimately come undone. By Rex Dalton COMMENTS <#comments> | PRINT <#> | SHARE <#> Comet Theory Shows Seams in Scientific Method Even though they can’t replicate their work, the authors of a controversial scientific theory about a comet impact that caused the Clovis catastrophe refuse to give in to their many critics. (Wikimedia Commons) Related Stories * Sea Change in Government Science Still Offshore * Name That Finding; Devalue Those Results * Forensics in Three Dimensions It seemed like such an elegant answer to an age-old mystery: the disappearance of what are arguably North America’s first people. A speeding comet nearly 13,000 years ago was the culprit, the theory goes, spraying ice and rocks across the continent, killing the Clovis people and the mammoths they fed on, and plunging the region into a deep chill. The idea so captivated the public that three movies describing the catastrophe were produced. But now, four years after the purportedly supportive evidence was reported, a host of scientific authorities systematically have made the case that the comet theory is “bogus.” Researchers from multiple scientific fields are calling the theory one of the most misguided ideas in the history of modern archaeology, which begs for an independent review so an accurate record is reflected in the literature. “It is an impossible scenario,” says Mark Boslough , a physicist at Sandia Laboratory in Albuquerque, N.M., where he taps the world’s fastest computers for nuclear bomb experiments to study such impacts. His computations show the debris from such a comet couldn’t cover the proposed impact field. In March, a “requiem” for the theory even was published by a group that included leading specialists from archaeology to botany. Yet, the scientists who described the alleged impact in a hallowed U.S. scientific journal refuse to consider the critics’ evidence — insisting they are correct, even though no one can replicate their work: the hallmark of credibility in the scientific world. The primary authors of the theory are an unusual mix: James Kennett , a virtual father of marine geology from the University of California, Santa Barbara; Richard Firestone , a physicist at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory in California; and Allen West , an unknown academic from the mining industry who lives in Dewey, Ariz. “We are under a lot of duress,” said Kennett. “It has been quite painful.” So much so, that team members call their critics’ work “biased,” “nonsense” and “screwed up.” Such intransigence has been seen before in other cases of grand scientific claims. Sometimes those theories were based on data irregularities. Other times, the proponents succumbed to self-delusion. But typically, advocates become so invested in their ideas they can’t publicly acknowledge error. A new look at the comet claim suggests all of these phenomena may be in play, apparently creating a peculiar bond of desperation as the theory came under increasing attack. Indeed, the team’s established scientists are so wedded to the theory they have opted to ignore the fact their colleague “Allen West” isn’t exactly who he says he is. West is Allen Whitt — who, in 2002, was fined by California and convicted for masquerading as a state-licensed geologist when he charged small-town officials fat fees for water studies . After completing probation in 2003 in San Bernardino County, he began work on the comet theory, legally adopting his new name in 2006 as he promoted it in a popular book. Only when questioned by this reporter last year did his co-authors learn his original identity and legal history. Since then, they have not disclosed it to the scientific community. West’s history — and new concerns about study results he was integrally involved in — raise intriguing questions about the veracity of the comet claim. His background is likely to create more doubts about the theory. And the controversy — because it involves the politically sensitive issue of a climate shift — is potentially more broadly damaging, authorities suggest. “It does feed distrust in science,” says Wallace Broecker , a geochemist at Columbia University and an international dean of climate research. “Those who don’t believe in human-produced global warming grab onto it.” West is at the nexus of almost all the evidence for the original comet claims. His fieldwork is described in the 2006 book he authored with Firestone, /The Cycle of Cosmic Catastrophes/ . To show the comet’s deadly plume, West collected various sediment samples from 25 archaeology sites across the United States. He used a magnet to find iron flecks reportedly from the comet, scooped up carbon spherules reflecting subsequent fires, and argued that high concentrations of such material at particular sedimentary levels supported their theory. The team has argued a 4-kilometer comet tumbled into ice sheets 12,900 years ago, leading to the so-called Younger Dryas , when the temperature cooled for more than a thousand years. The flying debris appeared to answer questions about the Clovis peoples’ disappearance that had defied prior explanation. The supposed remnants of the comet hadn’t received intense scrutiny by researchers previously probing sediments at archaeology sites. And water from melted ice flowing into the oceans could explain the precipitous temperature drop. But all these claims have been sharply disputed in a series of scientific articles over the last 18 months. Examples include: University of Wyoming archaeologist Todd Surovell and his colleagues couldn’t find increased magnetic spherules representing cosmic debris at seven Clovis sites . Nicholas Pinter and his colleagues at Southern Illinois University Carbondale argue the carbon spherules are organic residue of fungus or arthropod excrement . And Tyrone Daulton of Washington University in St. Louis and his colleagues reported that supposed nanodiamonds formed by the impact were misidentified . Speaking of the various reports, Surovell said, “We all built a critical mass of data suggesting there was a serious problem.” Now, Boslough and colleagues have conducted new analysis of purported comet debris samples that raises even more troubling credibility questions. On March 25, Boslough reported that radio-carbon dating of a carbon spherule sample shows it is only about 200 years old — an “irregularity” that indicates is it not from the alleged 12,900-year-old impact time. This means that a sample from a layer purporting to show a high concentration of spherules at the inception of the Younger Dryas actually only was about as old as the Declaration of Independence. About two years ago, as his doubts on the theory were building, Boslough contacted West to secure carbon spherule samples for analysis. West sent him 16 spherules, purportedly from the Younger Dryas boundary sediment layer at an archaeology site called Gainey in Michigan — a location with the highest spherule count of studied locations. Boslough subsequently forwarded the unopened package of spherules to the National Science Foundation-funded radio-carbon laboratory at the University of Arizona in Tucson. There, a dating specialist randomly selected a spherule — the one ultimately found to be about 200 years old. Boslough reported these results at an American Geophysical Union conference in Santa Fe, N.M. Afterward, Boslough said: “I don’t think there is any reason to accept what West reported. I have a serious problem with everything from him.” Did someone salt a sediment layer to increase the spherule count? Or did the 200-year-old sample inadvertently get mixed in somehow? Boslough says he can’t provide an answer, but there was some form of “contamination.” But an answer is needed, he said: “I wouldn’t sweep it under the rug.” After his presentation, West wrote Boslough that he believed that the questioned sample somehow got mixed naturally over time into a lower sediment layer. Both Kennett and Firestone agreed. But Vance Holliday , a University of Arizona archaeologist who has studied Clovis sites for 30 years, found this explanation nonsensical. Such mixing of spherules from different eras could invalidate any conclusion that higher spherule counts represented evidence of a comet impact. “I suspect something very odd is going on,” adds Holliday, who also has become a critic of the comet theory . After the theory was first announced in 2007 in Acapulco, Mexico, Holliday had attempted to collaborate with Kennett to test the idea. But Kennett effectively blocked publication of the study last year after the results didn’t support the comet theory. And those results were blindly analyzed by an independent reviewer selected by Kennett himself. That independent reviewer was none other than Walter Alvarez — an esteemed University of California, Berkeley, geologist and son of Luis Alvarez , the Nobel Prize-winning physicist who first proposed an asteroid struck the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico about 65 million years ago, wiping out the world’s dinosaurs and most life. The Holliday-Kennett study has never been presented publicly. The results were obtained independent of the two authors. Holliday then agreed to discuss events; Kennett also answered questions about the study but didn’t reach the same conclusions as his colleague. For decades, Holliday has studied a Clovis site at Lubbock Lake Landmark State Historical Park in Texas, just east of the original location where the Clovis people’s distinctive fluted projectile points were first discovered in New Mexico. After a visit there in the summer of 2007, Holliday examined sediments from an exposed section that included the signature of the inception of the Younger Dryas. He then took samples from six sedimentary layers within a 35-centimeter section encompassing the Younger Dryas. The study then worked like this: Based on analyses of the layers, both Kennett and Holliday sent to Alvarez their predictions on which layer reflected the geochemical characteristics for the beginning of the Younger Dryas. But neither Kennett nor Alvarez knew the order of the sediment layers; not knowing this order would add credibility to their conclusions. In a surprise, Kennett’s analysis included sedimentary counts for what he called nanodiamonds — which his group says were produced by the enormous energy from comet explosion. Holliday accurately predicted what layer was associated with the Younger Dryas boundary. But Kennett did not. Kennett’s selected nanodiamond-rich layer was 25 centimeters above the Younger Dryas boundary — meaning it was about 1,000 years younger than the claimed impact time. To Alvarez, this indicated a comet-impact hypothesis was incorrect. After considerable behind-the-scenes arguing, Holliday said, Kennett ultimately complained last summer that the study was “fundamentally flawed” and wouldn’t allow him to publish his results. Now, Kennett says, he is continuing to analyze the data. “It is very peculiar,” Holliday said. “They propose an idea, a study contradicts it, then they criticize the scientists or the work.” Both Kennett and Columbia’s Broecker, are elected members of the prestigious U.S. National Academy of Science; near age peers, they are also old friends. Years ago, Broecker noted, Kennett published seminal discoveries on ancient climate shifts by studying cores drilled deep into the ocean floor. Speaking graciously of Kennett, Broecker lauded his friend’s early climate studies as extremely important. But when the comet theory came along, Broecker immediately was highly skeptical. Kennett repeatedly called him to lobby for the comet until Broecker cut him off saying he didn’t want to hear about the theory anymore. “It is all wrong,” said Broecker, if not “very likely total nonsense. But he never gives up on an idea.” Kennett seems fixated on the Younger Dryas, Broecker added, “He won’t listen to anyone. It’s almost like a religion to him.” Acknowledging the dispute, Kennett said, “I know he thinks I’m wrong; maybe he’ll change his mind someday.” About 20 years ago, Broecker noted Kennett had proposed a similarly wayward theory that a burst of methane from the ocean floor — sometimes called “a methane gun” — warmed the climate, ending the Younger Dyras. “He pushed the methane-gun theory for years,” said Broecker. “He predicted an enormous methane peak would be reflected in ice-core records. But there wasn’t one; it was a ridiculous idea to begin with.” Then he switched to the beginning of the Younger Dryas, Broecker added, “He was determined to make a splash; it blinded his judgment.” Ironically, he may be making a different type of impact with his odd-couple collaboration with West. West has no formal appointment at an academic institution. He has said he obtained a doctorate from a Bible college, but he won’t describe it further. Firestone said West has told him he has no scientific doctorate but is self-taught. West’s Arizona attorney refers to him in writing as: “A retired geophysicist who has had a long and distinguished career.” In the early 1990s, a new-age business West was involved in Sedona, Ariz., failed, and his well-drilling company went bankrupt. Then he ran afoul of California law in small Mojave Desert towns in a scheme with two other men, with court records saying they collected fees up to $39,500 for questionable groundwater reports. He originally was charged with two felonies for falsely representing himself as a state-licensed geologist but agreed to a no contest plea to a single misdemeanor of false advertising as part of plea bargain in which state records say he was fined $4,500. Two other men in the scam also were sanctioned. Acknowledging he made a mistake, West has sought to downplay the 9-year-old conviction. And last September, after his impact theory colleagues learned of it, he went back to court in Victorville, Calif., convincing a judge to void the old plea. After earlier denying any impropriety with his Younger Dryas work, West declined a recent interview request. Last month, he wrote a letter charging it was “highly prejudicial and distorted” to bring up his legal past in the context of his current studies. He is a member of “a group of two dozen dedicated scientists performing cutting-edge, although controversial, research,” he wrote. Initially last year, Kennett was speechless when confronted with West’s history. He and Firestone learned of it because of this reporter’s questions. Since then, he has continued to collaborate and publish research with West. Within weeks of learning of West’s background, Kennett pushed for news coverage last September of an article contending nanodiamonds in Greenland supported their comet theory. But the article didn’t sway critics. Today, Kennett won’t discuss West’s criminal past at all — saying West is “wonderful, an absolutely remarkable researcher.” Firestone acknowledges West “did some strange things” but continues to defend that his work is above reproach. Among the theory’s critics, there are decidedly differing opinions. “This is so far beyond the pale — outside of normal experiences in conducting science — you can’t ignore it,” Southern Illiois’ Pinter said. Asked if he would collaborate with West, he said, “I would run screaming away.” And the three years and research dollars spent on the claim leave a bitter memory for some. “My response is not publishable,” said Pinter. Some academic institution needs to thoroughly examine the issue and answer the obvious questions that abound, critics say. Several said they already would have reported the events to administrators at their respective universities. UCSB is the most likely institution to conduct a review, since Kennett used an NSF grant there on comet studies. But this will mean questioning an esteemed faculty member — Kennett — who is seen as having helped put the campus on the international scientific map. Among those who believe a formal inquiry should be initiated to determine if there was any misconduct is Jeffrey Severinghaus , an isotopic chemist at the University of California, San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. An inquiry is the first level of such scrutiny; an investigation that could lead to sanctions would follow if the inquiry finds evidence of impropriety. Such probes have sniffed out questionable data from cases such as the rejected cold fusion claim and the false Korean assertion of cloning human embryos from stem cells . “Wow,” said Severinghaus upon hearing of the latest developments in the comet theory, which he initially doubted because of his earlier ice-core studies. “It certainly sounds like there is sufficient evidence to justify an initial inquiry.” Asked if he would seek such a move, he said, “Absolutely. It is really important to maintain the public trust in science. That means if there is a bad apple, it is rooted out and exposed.” Bruce Hanley, UCSB’s director of research compliance, declined to be interviewed, although in an email he wrote that UCSB “is extremely interested in maintaining a high level of integrity” in research, and has a formal process for review of “unacceptable research practices.” Such a review is done confidentially. Meanwhile, the next stop for the comet proponents’ road show is Bern, Switzerland. In July, they are scheduled to present research to a major international conference that studies the last 2.5 million years, the quaternary. With many leading impact scientists in Europe equally skeptical of the theory, their welcome may be as icy as that period often was. /Sign up for the free Miller-McCune.com e-newsletter. / /“Like” Miller-McCune on Facebook. / /Follow Miller-McCune on Twitter. / /Add Miller-McCune.com news to your site. / word on the street Post your comment here * <#> * Disqus <#> o Login <#> o About Disqus * Like <#> * Dislike <#> * o Glad you liked it. Would you like to share? Facebook Twitter * Share <#> * No thanks <#> Sharing this page … Thanks! Close <#> Add New Comment Post as … Showing 18 comments Sort by Subscribe by email <#> Subscribe by RSS * Reykholt2002 [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-204858630> <#> It's odd that this perspective ever gained any traction - it's flawed at the core with its insistence that the hypothesis explains the "disappearance of the Clovis culture". This is a straw-man of the worst sort, as no-one has ever actually suggested that Clovis disappeared in any catastrophic sense. The archaeological record is extremely rich and clear in this regard, more heavily studied than nearly any other part of the North American prehistoric record, and it's clear that those populations that made and used "Clovis" fluted points survived and flourished, their fluted point styles changing to greater or lesser degrees in different parts of North America over a span of ca. 1,500 years, some into other types of fluted points and others developing different styles that replaced the technological system represented by "Clovis points" and other fluted projectile point styles. So, (1) there is no accepted "Clovis people" or "Clovis culture" to be eradicated - rather a technological system and/or a style of projectile point used over much of the North American continent by people of an unknown broad number of cultural backgrounds and (2) there is no "disappearance" of this culture/people/technological system to be explained. It's a bit like claiming to have found the "explanation" for the "catastrophic disappearance of cars on the North American continent" because a specific type, with fins on the trunk fenders, ceased to be manufactured around 1964, regardless of the fact that cars were made both before and after, and only a style or technological embellishment disappeared while the technology itself (cars) and the people who drove them continued to increase in numbers and diversity... Flag <#> bob smith and 11 more liked this <#> Like Reply Reply * Ptolemeia [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-204358282> <#> Rex Dalton is obviously a slimey, disgusting media whore licking his master's boots. This entire article is a disgusting example of the double standards that prevail in corrupt science. These bozos lost the public trust when they let Climategate pass without demanding an inquiry. Talk about double standards! Climategate Goes SERIAL: Now the Russians Confirm that UK Climate Scientists Manipulated Data to Exaggerate Global Warming Climategate: CRU Was But the Tip of the Iceberg Lobbyists who cleared 'Climategate' academics funded by taxpayers and the BBC Flag <#> pinroot and 10 more liked this <#> Like Reply Reply * Fenbeast07 [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-203652202> <#> ARGH! It's not a theory, it's a hypothesis. A theory is a hypothesis with accumulated evidence that supports its veracity -- the more evidence, the more accepted and non-controversial (at least to scientists) the theory. Biological evolution and global climate change are two examples of well-supported theories that have held up against tons of challenges -- which is why most reasonably well-educated, non psycho scientists accept both as fact. In contrast, a hypothesis is an explanation that must be held up against available and new evidence repeatedly to see if it makes sense. This one doesn't have sufficient evidence to support it, apparently... so it isn't a theory, it's a hypothesis that has been shown to be incorrect. PLEASE use these terms correctly, it's the misuse of and lack of understanding of the difference between a theory and a hypothesis that fuels continued debate over climate change & evolution. Flag <#> TallDave and 9 more liked this <#> Like Reply Reply * Peter H [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-205032186> in reply to Fenbeast07 <#comment-203652202> <#> To be supported by Eric Steig is surely a confirmation that the debate over "Climate Science" is a broken flush and thats not a hypothesis! Flag <#> TallDave and 1 more liked this <#> Like Reply Reply * mememine [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-203559203> <#> Climate Change? Climate Change wasn’t about energy, or pollution or waste, it was a CO2 death threat to billions of children, a mistake and a criminal exaggeration. In Obama’s State of the Union Speech in Feb., the threat of this “world climate crisis” wasn’t even mentioned, not once. The world has walked away from taxing the air to make the weather colder. And American IPPC funding was pulled and what did the countless thousands of consensus and concerned and saintly scientists do when they were snubbed? Nothing. If the majority of scientists all agreed about catastrophic crisis, wouldn’t they have marched in the streets and demanded air time to warn the world not to ignore mankind‘s greatest crisis ever? The new denier is anyone who still thinks climate change is a concern beyond the universities and EXPLOITING lab coat consultants who for 25 years studied the effects (not the causes) of something that never happened. R.I.P. Climate Blame.Will the scientists and news editors see their day in court for knowingly leading us to a false war against a non existent enemy of CO2 for 25 years of needless and costly panic? YES, most certainly because meanwhile, the UN had allowed carbon trading to trump 3rd world fresh water relief, starvation rescue and 3rd world education for just over 25 years of climate control instead of needed population control. REAL planet lovers and REAL progressives and REAL civilized and loving people were happy and relieved the science was criminally exaggerated leaving a bright future for our children instead of an unspeakable death on a dying planet from evil CO2. As for the rest of you, you can all go back to rubber necking car accidents, yelling “Fire” in the theatre and spooking the kids at Halloween. We know and won’t ever forget how much you remaining climate doomers enjoyed condemning billions of children to death just to get them to turn the lights out more often. Call the courthouse everyone. We missed getting Bush on his WMD’s so lets fix this otherwise history will condemn all of us for this insanity of climate control. Will the scientists and news editors see their day in court for knowingly leading us to a false war against a non existent enemy of CO2 for 25 years of needless and costly panic? YES, most certainly because meanwhile, the UN had allowed carbon trading to trump 3rd world fresh water relief, starvation rescue and 3rd world education for just over 25 years of climate control instead of needed population control. REAL planet lovers and REAL progressives and REAL civilized and loving people were happy and relieved the science was criminally exaggerated leaving a bright future for our children instead of an unspeakable death on a dying planet from evil CO2. As for the rest of you, you can all go back to rubber necking car accidents, yelling “Fire” in the theatre and spooking the kids at Halloween. We know and won’t ever forget how much you remaining climate doomers enjoyed condemning billions of children to death just to get them to turn the lights out more often. Call the courthouse everyone. We missed getting Bush on his WMD’s so lets fix this otherwise history will condemn all of us for this insanity of climate control. Flag <#> TallDave and 6 more liked this <#> Like Reply Reply * Eric Steig [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-203814251> <#> Having been the victim of attacks on my character, as a consequence of publishing something that appears to go against the grain (though in my case it has turned out to be correct: O'Donnellgate), I am pretty sympathetic to Kennet and his colleagues, and I'm disappointed to see my colleagues jumping on the bandwagon of declaring foul. I have myself been skeptical of the comet hypothesis for the Younger Dryas (see , but I have articulated my concerns on the basis of the science, not on insinuations about the character or hidden motivations of the scientists involved. The fact is that the scientific process works in weeding out untenable ideas, and there is no reason to call it a 'scandal' when an idea (outrageous or not) turns out to fall into disfavor. Flag <#> 3 people liked this. Like Reply Reply * PeteWilson [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-204953764> in reply to Eric Steig <#comment-203814251> <#> Eric It is unsurprising that you are sympathetic to someone who intransigently refuses to accept a devastating refutation of their work. You would appear to have much in common. http://climateaudit.org/2011/0... Flag <#> TallDave and 4 more liked this <#> Like Reply Reply * Corban Dallas [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-205200344> in reply to PeteWilson <#comment-204953764> <#> Well, only because his above post mentioned "attacks on his character", he is technically correct. His character was attacked, but only after arrogant and incorrect statements made regarding the provenance of the data/methods/code underlying his study towards those who would eventually refute it. The character attacks shouldn't have happened, but, the arrogance shouldn't have either... Flag <#> TallDave and 2 more liked this <#> Like Reply Reply * top dog [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-210881630> <#> Cold fusion is here NOW This is serious and REAL and the US government has been working on it for 10 years. Please take 15 min and explore the link provided Andrea Rossi has given three demonstrations so far including with professors from Bologna University and the Swedish skeptics society and the Chairman of the Swedish Physics Union. This is an directory of Rossi efforts http://peswiki.com/index.php/D... . This is a link to the LENR site where detailed information about cold fusion efforts is available. www.lenr-canr.org/News ... The US Naval Research lab has been working on this with positive results for over 10 years and has confirmed it existence. Yet the major scientific magazines refuse to touch this issue since it was purportedly discredited by some researchers and an institution that stood to lose 10s of millions in funding per year in hot fusion. Rossi has announced a 1MW Cold Fusion facility to be opened in Greece this Oct. Still top line periodicals have yet to publish even one article. This will change the economics of the world lifting many people out of poverty and it will also threaten many vested interests. http://pesn.com/2011/05/17/950... "..Ampenergo was founded by Karl Norwood, Richard Noceti, Robert Gentile and Craig Cassarino. It is important to note that Robert Gentile was the Assistant Secretary of Energy for Fossil Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) during the early 1990's. This helps confirm Rossi's claim that tests of the E-Cat have been observed by the U.S. Department of Defense and the DOE. It is very likely that at least certain individuals in the DOD and DOE are aware and interested in the Energy Catalyzer. However, their silence is deafening. It is unknown if any military or secret government research is taking place, but there are unsubstantiated rumors floating around the internet of the US Navy using a nickel-hydrogen cold fusion reactor to power a submarine. Although the rumor is not likely to be true, if they have known about the technology for a couple of years, it is possible testing is taking place. Trillions of dollars go missing from the DOD budget on a regular basis, and the money is obviously being spent on something..." FROM LENR-News Rossi 6-hour demonstration convinces Swedish expertsApril 2011On March 29, 2011, a test of a smaller Rossi device was performed. It was attended by two new observers: Hanno Essén, associate professor of theoretical physics and chairman of the Swedish Skeptics Society, and Sven Kullander, chairman of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences' Energy Committee. They agree with other independent observers that the device must be producing a nuclear reaction. See NyTeknik: Swedish physicists on the E-cat: "It's a nuclear reaction." This test employed a new, smaller device with a 50 cm3 cell. It produced ~4.4 kW for 6 hours, or 25 kWh (90 MJ).Essén and Kullander wrote a report, also in NyTeknik, Experimental test of a mini-Rossi device at the Leonardocorp, Bologna 29 March 2011. Focardi gave a revealing radio interview. Here is an English translation.NyTeknik has published a number of articles about Rossi. They are all listed here. The New Energy Times is keeping a close watch on news articles about Rossi. They have a list of articles here. Plans to begin commercial cold fusion reactor production this yearMarch 2011A company has been formed in Athens, Greece, Defkalion Green Technologies S. A., for the purpose of manufacturing and selling Andrea Rossi Energy Catalyzer cold fusion reactors. According to the Greek newspaper "Investor's World" and other sources, the company is capitalized at €200 million, which includes €100 million to be paid in as royalties, presumably to Rossi. The Greek press says the company plans to manufacture 300,000 machines a year for the Greek and Balkan market. The company website says it has exclusive rights to sell the machines everywhere except the Americas.www.lenr-canr.org/New... has announced that he is fabricating a 1 MW reactor to produce hot water (not steam or electricity), scheduled for October 2011. He is building the machine in Florida before shipping it to the Defkalion factory. It will consist of 100 small devices similar to the one demonstrated at U. Bologna.We have uploaded a new paper from Scott Chubb describing the Rossi device and recent events about it.Rossi 18-hour demonstrationFebruary 2011, updated March 2011On February 10 and 11, 2011, Levi et al. (U. Bologna) performed another test of the Rossi device. Compared to the January 14 test, they used a much higher flow rate, to keep the cooling water from vaporizing. This is partly to recover more heat, and partly because Celani and others criticized phase-change calorimetry as too complicated. There were concerns about the enthalpy of wet steam versus dry steam, and the use of a relative humidity meter to determine how dry the steam was. A source close to the test gave Jed Rothwell the following figures. These are approximations:Duration of test: 18 hoursFlow rate: 3,000 L/h = ~833 ml/s.Cooling water input temperature: 15°CCooling water output temperature: ~20°CInput power from control electronics: variable, average 80 W, closer to 20 W for 6 hoursThe temperature difference of 5°C * 833 ml = 4,165 calories/second = 17,493 W. Observers estimated average power as 16 kW. A 5°C temperature difference can easily be measured with confidence.3,000 L/h is 793 gallons/h, which is the output of a medium-sized $120 ornamental pond pump. The control electronics input of ~80 W is in line with what was reported for tests before Jan. 14. Input power was high on that day because there was a problem with cracked welding, according to the Levi report.18 hours * 16 kW = 288 kWh = 1,037 MJ. That is the amount of energy in 26 kg of gasoline (7.9 gallons). Given the size and weight of the device, this rules out a chemical source of energy.NyTeknik published a fascinating description of the latest experiment (in English). This includes new details, such as the fact that the power briefly peaked at 130 kW. NyTeknik also published an interview with two outside experts about the demonstration: Prof. Emeritus at Uppsala University Sven Kullander, chairman of the National Academy of Sciences Energy Committee, and Hanno Essén, associate professor of theoretical physics, Swedish Royal Institute of Technology. Two versions are available, in English and Swedish.On March 3, Rossi conducted an informative on-line chat with NyTeknik readers.Rossi and U. Bologna have announced that tests on the device will continue for a year FROM LENR-News Rossi 6-hour demonstration convinces Swedish expertsApril 2011On March 29, 2011, a test of a smaller Rossi device was performed. It was attended by two new observers: Hanno Essén, associate professor of theoretical physics and chairman of the Swedish Skeptics Society, and Sven Kullander, chairman of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences' Energy Committee. They agree with other independent observers that the device must be producing a nuclear reaction. See NyTeknik: Swedish physicists on the E-cat: "It's a nuclear reaction." This test employed a new, smaller device with a 50 cm3 cell. It produced ~4.4 kW for 6 hours, or 25 kWh (90 MJ).Essén and Kullander wrote a report, also in NyTeknik, Experimental test of a mini-Rossi device at the Leonardocorp, Bologna 29 March 2011. Focardi gave a revealing radio interview. Here is an English translation.NyTeknik has published a number of articles about Rossi. They are all listed here. The New Energy Times is keeping a close watch on news articles about Rossi. They have a list of articles here. Plans to begin commercial cold fusion reactor production this yearMarch 2011A company has been formed in Athens, Greece, Defkalion Green Technologies S. A., for the purpose of manufacturing and selling Andrea Rossi Energy Catalyzer cold fusion reactors. According to the Greek newspaper "Investor's World" and other sources, the company is capitalized at €200 million, which includes €100 million to be paid in as royalties, presumably to Rossi. The Greek press says the company plans to manufacture 300,000 machines a year for the Greek and Balkan market. The company website says it has exclusive rights to sell the machines everywhere except the Americas.www.lenr-canr.org/New... has announced that he is fabricating a 1 MW reactor to produce hot water (not steam or electricity), scheduled for October 2011. He is building the machine in Florida before shipping it to the Defkalion factory. It will consist of 100 small devices similar to the one demonstrated at U. Bologna.We have uploaded a new paper from Scott Chubb describing the Rossi device and recent events about it.Rossi 18-hour demonstrationFebruary 2011, updated March 2011On February 10 and 11, 2011, Levi et al. (U. Bologna) performed another test of the Rossi device. Compared to the January 14 test, they used a much higher flow rate, to keep the cooling water from vaporizing. This is partly to recover more heat, and partly because Celani and others criticized phase-change calorimetry as too complicated. There were concerns about the enthalpy of wet steam versus dry steam, and the use of a relative humidity meter to determine how dry the steam was. A source close to the test gave Jed Rothwell the following figures. These are approximations:Duration of test: 18 hoursFlow rate: 3,000 L/h = ~833 ml/s.Cooling water input temperature: 15°CCooling water output temperature: ~20°CInput power from control electronics: variable, average 80 W, closer to 20 W for 6 hoursThe temperature difference of 5°C * 833 ml = 4,165 calories/second = 17,493 W. Observers estimated average power as 16 kW. A 5°C temperature difference can easily be measured with confidence.3,000 L/h is 793 gallons/h, which is the output of a medium-sized $120 ornamental pond pump. The control electronics input of ~80 W is in line with what was reported for tests before Jan. 14. Input power was high on that day because there was a problem with cracked welding, according to the Levi report.18 hours * 16 kW = 288 kWh = 1,037 MJ. That is the amount of energy in 26 kg of gasoline (7.9 gallons). Given the size and weight of the device, this rules out a chemical source of energy.NyTeknik published a fascinating description of the latest experiment (in English). This includes new details, such as the fact that the power briefly peaked at 130 kW. NyTeknik also published an interview with two outside experts about the demonstration: Prof. Emeritus at Uppsala University Sven Kullander, chairman of the National Academy of Sciences Energy Committee, and Hanno Essén, associate professor of theoretical physics, Swedish Royal Institute of Technology. Two versions are available, in English and Swedish.On March 3, Rossi conducted an informative on-line chat with NyTeknik readers.Rossi and U. Bologna have announced that tests on the device will continue for a year Flag <#> 1 person liked this. Like Reply Reply * Smifffy2012 [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-205051192> <#> some questions...do these 'critics' believe in the Bible, the word of 'God' 7 therefore the Creation (myth ) ... ? ...if so, Surely, despite their professional & therefore, State salaries to tow the line, even their opinion Must be, at best, questionable........Alvarez's suggestion of Chicxulub was ridiculed, initially.......so, this idea iS worth serious research & if nothing else, may well, may well help explain an event that so far, has no explanation......until one of these state sponsored, salary guarding 'experts' can convince Anyone WHY there are metal deposits jammed into tusks & bone, Why those same bones show evidence of flash burns on one side Only, How the Carolina Crater Fields were made & just Why the mile thick glaciers collapsed so abruptly in phases, then I think those same critics should just sit down..........ttt !! Flag <#> 1 person liked this. Like Reply Reply * Peter John [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-204748897> <#> Still yet the Great Slave Lake, the Great Bear Lake and the Great Lakes form a straight line. Flag <#> 1 person liked this. Like Reply Reply * Hsu_ag-member [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-204888260> in reply to Peter John <#comment-204748897> <#> I honestly don't know: Are these lakes only 13,000 years old? Flag <#> Like Reply Reply * E.P. Grondine [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-204297817> <#> Hi Ray - There's another part of this story you missed: http://cosmictusk.com/blast-fr... I am wondering, how did you discover West's past a year ago? Did someone pass you a tip? Was it someone involved in the water cases? Or someone else? And I am wondering, what exactly did those water cases involve? Flag <#> 1 person liked this. Like Reply Reply * Eric Steig [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-203799921> <#> I think it would be helpful if people didn't cry 'foul' the second an idea is shown to be wrong. Having been the victim of specious attacks on my character, for making the unforgivable mistake of publishing something that goes against the grain (see RealClimate on the Comet Hypothesis O'Ddonnelgate, I'm pretty sympathetic to Kennett et al., and quite disappointed to see quotes from my colleagues speculating about fraud. I have myself been very skeptical of the 'comet - Younger Dryas' hypothesis (see ), but on the basis of factual evidence, not on the basis of speculation about people's character or supposed motivations. Flag <#> 1 person liked this. Like Reply Reply * Rich Murray [Moderator] 1 month ago <#comment-224023997> <#> 3 reports re NW Venezuela Andes black mat at 12.9 Ka, WC Mahaney et al, 2009-2011, free full texts: CosmicTusk.com : Rich Murray 2011.04.29 http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2... Friday, April 29, 2011 [ at end of each long page, click on Older Posts ] http://groups.yahoo.com/group/... [ you may have to Copy and Paste URLs into your browser ] _______________________________________________ http://www.scribd.com/doc/5416... Geomorphology 116 (2010) 48–57 Evidence from the northwestern Venezuelan Andes for extraterrestrial impact: The black mat enigma W.C. Mahaney a,⁎, V. Kalm b, D.H. Krinsley c, P. Tricart d, S. Schwartz d, J. Dohm e,f, K.J. Kim g, B. Kapran a, M.W. Milner a, R. Beukens h, S. Boccia i, R.G.V. Hancock j, K.M. Hart k, B. Kelleher k a Quaternary Surveys, 26 Thornhill Ave., Thornhill, Ontario, Canada L4J 1J4 b Institute of Ecology & Earth Sciences, Tartu University, Tartu, EE51014, Estonia c Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, 97403-1272, USA d Laboratoire de Geodynamique des Chaînes Alpines, University of Grenoble, Observatoire des Sciences de l'Univers, 38041, Grenoble, France e Department of Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona, Tucson, Az., 85721, USA f The Museum, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan g Geological Research Division (Prospective Geoscience Research Department), Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 92 Gwahang-no, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-350, Republic of Korea h IsoTrace Lab, Dept of Physics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 1A7 i Department of Materials Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3E4 j Department of Medical Physics and Applied Radiation Sciences and Department of Anthropology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8S 4K1 k School of Chemical Sciences, Dublin City University, Ballymun Road, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, Ireland a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t Article history: Received 11 January 2009 Received in revised form 9 October 2009 Accepted 14 October 2009 Available online 24 October 2009 Keywords: Asteroid impact Black mat Younger Dryas Paleoclimate A carbon-rich black layer encrusted on a sandy pebbly bed of outwash in the northern Venezuelan Andes, previously considered the result of an alpine grass fire, is now recognized as a ‘black mat’ candidate correlative with ClovisAge sites inNorth America, falling within the range of ‘blackmat’ dated sites (~12.9 ka cal BP). As such, the bed at site MUM7B, which dates to <11.8 ka 14C years BP (raw dates) and appears to be contemporaneous with the Younger Dryas (YD) cooling event, marks a possibly much more extensive occurrence than previously identified. No fossils (megafauna) or tool assemblages were observed at this newly identified candidate site (3800 a.m.s.l.), as in the case of the North American sites. Here, evidence is presented for an extraterrestrial impact event at ~12.9 ka. The impact-related Andean bed, located ~20 cmabove 13.7-13.3 ka cal BP alluvial and glaciolacustrine deposits, falls within the sediment characteristics and age range of ‘black mat’ dated sites (~12.9 ka cal BP) in North America. Site sediment characteristics include: carbon, glassy spherules, magnetic microspherules, carbon mat ‘welded’ onto coarse granular material, occasional presence of platinum group metals (Rh and Ru), planar deformation features (pdfs) in fine silt-size fragmental grains of quartz, as well as orthoclase, and monazite (with an abundance of Rare Earth Elements -- REEs). If the candidate site is ‘black mat’, correlative with the ‘black mat’ sites of North America, such an extensive occurrence may support the hypothesized airburst/impact over the Laurentide Glacier, which led to a reversal of Allerød warming and the onset of YD cooling and readvance of glaciers. While this finding does not confirm such, it merits further investigation,which includes the reconnaissance for additional sites in South America. Furthermore, if confirmed, such an extensive occurrence may corroborate an impact origin. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. [ also, two more recent papers on this site by this team... ] Flag <#> Like Reply Reply * tom sharp [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-217150941> <#> A clovis shaman once thought his chips and flakes from spear points foretold his people's future. His mysticism was relished for thousands of years until he failed to predict the rains that caused the flood at the end of the ice age. Many clovis people died on the river banks where they lived when the water took them. The shamans blamed the clovis points for their demise. The clovis points and their predictions were then outlawed and abandoned so the Gods would not punish them again. evidence: 1. rivers flood. 2. no clovis points found after 12ky ago. See how easy it is to make an hypothesis and provide evidence. This is made up using a little knowledge of archaeology. Archaeology is barely a science. Most is based on ideas and very little evidence. For example. The evidence that an advanced civilization existed prior to ours is ignored. So ask yourself one question. Do we know how the Giza Pyramids were built? Do we know how they cut their stones or bored their holes into rock. NO. Hell NO. WE do NOT. So isn't it obvious that this technology has been lost? If we have no logical idea how the pyramids were built and since we cannot duplicate it today, isn't it logical to state that the builders of the pyramids were more advanced than their predecessors? Science today ignores facts. Scientists selectively choose what data to interpret and ignore data that doesn't fit their preconceived ideas because the new ideas are buried and the author's are ridiculed and admonished for performing correct science. Flag <#> Like Reply Reply * senua [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-210754570> <#> Gene Shoemaker was disbelieved for years when he first proposed that craters on earth were formed by impacts of asteroids and comets. The Snowball Earth theory was rubbished but is now gradually being excepted. Plate tectonics was dismissed at one time but is now mainstream. Perhaps what is needed here is a bit more open mindedness and less name calling. Flag <#> Like Reply Reply * Katherine Martínez Gálvez [Moderator] 2 months ago <#comment-206689667> <#> LOL Flag <#> Like Reply Reply Reactions * <#> David_Dobbs 2 months ago From twitter RT @Globecarolynyj: Crazy story about a controversial theory about comets -- and a scientist who is hiding his identity - http://ow.ly/54RT6 via @johnhawks * <#> Globecarolynyj 2 months ago From twitter Crazy story about a controversial theory about comets -- and a scientist who is hiding his identity - http://ow.ly/54RT6 via @johnhawks * <#> JacquelynGill 2 months ago From twitter I've been involved in some of the work refuting this hypothesis: Younger Dryas 'Comet Theory Comes Crashing to Earth': http://bit.ly/ko3z5p * <#> johnhawks 2 months ago From twitter Amazed by this story about the Clovis "comet" http://bit.ly/jlP8Cm False identity! Fraud! Says 1: "I would run screaming" * <#> CoraxSays 2 months ago From twitter Comet Theory Comes Crashing To Earth... http://bit.ly/lnmFTc * <#> Renovationsf 2 months ago From twitter SPACE: Comet Theory Comes Crashing to Earth - http://tinyurl.com/3wvl9zk * <#> ANB_ 2 months ago From twitter Reading: "Comet Theory Comes Crashing to Earth | Miller-McCune"( http://twitthis.com/99y79h ) * <#> berkshire_ideas 2 months ago From twitter A very interesting account of the seedier side of hypothetical science. http://t.co/fJK50bO * <#> skcom71 2 months ago From twitter RT @NobleIdeas: RT @alexwitze: Coauthor of controversial Younger Dryas impact idea had been convicted in CA, changed legal name http://t.co/jVTYPII * <#> faraway67 2 months ago From twitter Elegant, but probably wrong: Comet Theory Comes Crashing to Earth http://bit.ly/ilhsWw #history #archeology #longreads * Show more reactions Trackback URL search follow us on: join our newsletter: E-mail from the source Mortgage Interest Deduction on the Chopping Block? 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