Technology Marches On: Fusion In Five Years?

[SSWarlock]

Normally, I'd say "yeah, right" but this is Lockheed Martin corporation saying this. Let's keep our fingers crossed!

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-29710811

 

[Condottiere]

That's the same company that's way overdue on the F-35 deployment and is still trying to fix problems as they start rolling out production aircraft from the factory floor?

 

[phavoc]

That's the same company that's way overdue on the F-35 deployment and is still trying to fix problems as they start rolling out production aircraft from the factory floor?

True. But this is the division they bought that brought us the SR-71, F-117 and F-22 (to mention a few). The legacy of Kelly Johnson lives on, at least for a while longer before the beancounters kill it off.

 

[Rick]

What will kill off stealth is the fact that a stealth detection system is cheaper and easier to produce than a stealth aircraft. Simple economics.

 

[Tom Kalbfus]

What will kill off stealth is the fact that a stealth detection system is cheaper and easier to produce than a stealth aircraft. Simple economics.

What does this have to do with fusion? If Lockheed has fusion in 5 years, they don't need government contracts, they just have to build a fusion reactor and if it works, they can sell it!

 

[dragoner]

Normally, I'd say "yeah, right" but this is Lockheed Martin corporation saying this. Let's keep our fingers crossed!

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-29710811

Yes, it is wait and see, but they do have an impressive track record.

"You have to be ready for somebody to change your mind, you have to be," said Prof Steve Cowley, the director of the Culham effort.

"I don't know in this case. It might be that they have some good ideas, but partly because they are doing it commercially they are not going to tell us, so it can't be subject to the normal scientific peer review.

"If they do have some innovative ideas they'd be fools to tell us."

This was funny, and true.

 

[ShawnDriscoll]

Where's my jetpack.

 

[Tom Kalbfus]

Normally, I'd say "yeah, right" but this is Lockheed Martin corporation saying this. Let's keep our fingers crossed!

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-29710811

Yes, it is wait and see, but they do have an impressive track record.

"You have to be ready for somebody to change your mind, you have to be," said Prof Steve Cowley, the director of the Culham effort.

"I don't know in this case. It might be that they have some good ideas, but partly because they are doing it commercially they are not going to tell us, so it can't be subject to the normal scientific peer review.

"If they do have some innovative ideas they'd be fools to tell us."

This was funny, and true.

Sooner or later the truth is going to come out, whatever it is, and I think Lockheed would look a lot better if they were right than if they were wrong, they have their company's reputation at stake, and if they lied about something like this, why would the government give them any more contracts?

 

[Tom Kalbfus]

Where's my jetpack.

Here are three:

 

[Reynard]

Where's my cold fusion?!

 

[Tom Kalbfus]

Where's my cold fusion?!

After fusion its not cold anymore!

 

[Condottiere]

 

[Tom Kalbfus]

How come no one's proposed a flubber drive? What tech level is the invention of flubber. I kind of like the old flubber movie, not the remake!

 

[Reynard]

Flubber was originally Tech Lever 6 along with atomic rocket motors.

Oh, as to cold fusion, "Cold fusion is a hypothetical type of nuclear reaction that would occur at, or near, room temperature, compared with temperatures in the millions of degrees that are required for "hot" fusion, which takes place naturally within stars."