Free energy suppression
Encyclopedia
Free energy suppression is a conspiracy theory
claim that explains why advanced technology
that would reshape current energy paradigms is being suppressed
by certain special interest groups. These groups are usually claimed to be associated with the oil, coal, nuclear, or natural gas industry, to whom current energy generation technology
is profitable, or government agencies who view such as potentially detrimental to the national or world economic system.
. Generally, it is used to refer to purported transformative technologies which have the potential to dramatically reduce personal energy costs with relatively little capital investment.
There have been numerous free energy claims over the years. Many, such as those implying perpetual motion
or those based on extracting zero-point energy
, are viewed as impossible according to accepted physical laws. Others, such as cold fusion
, while not fundamentally impossible, are not accepted as established by the scientific community. Conspiracy advocates therefore claim that the scientific community has controlled and suppressed research into alternative avenues of energy production via the institutions of peer review
.
In addition, some claim that devices capable of extracting significant and usable power from pre-existing energy reservoirs for little or no cost exist but are being suppressed by government
s and special interest groups (such as the fossil fuel
and nuclear industry), and that suppression has been going on for some time. According to energy suppression conspiracy advocates, the main motive behind this is the preservation of the economic status quo and sustained increase of fuel prices. Variations on the energy suppression conspiracy state that free energy cannot be allowed in a capitalist
system because the economic system would break down if it were introduced.
Proponents of this conspiracy theory
also claim that certain renewable technologies (such as solar cells and biofuel
s) and other efficient technologies (as electric vehicles) are being suppressed or weakened by government
s and special interest groups.
Free energy research is typically considered to be pseudo-scientific
or unrealistic by the scientific community. Conspiracy theorists allege that this is a deliberate attempt by conspirators to suppress this research. There are various other factors which can prevent funding of some alternative energy development, such as "time and information" and capital costs. Groups behind "the conspiracy" have been said to include various national governments, international automakers, and the petroleum industry. An article in Nexus magazine
claims
. He authored the book Fire from Ice, which details the 1989 report of table-top cold fusion from Stanley Pons
and Martin Fleischmann
at the University of Utah
. The book claims the team did produce "greater-than-unity" output energy in an experiment, which supposedly was successfully replicated on several occasions. Mallove claims that the results were suppressed through an organized campaign of ridicule from mainstream physicists.
He was fatally beaten May 14, 2004 in Norwich
, Connecticut
by an unknown assailant. His violent death was suspected by some to be related to the nature of his work, while the police officially suspected robbery
as the motive.
In 2005, two previously-convicted criminals were arrested in connection with the killing. The case proceeded slowly, and the charges against the two men were dismissed on November 6, 2008, due to there being no forensic evidence linking them to the murder.
Other researchers in the field of cold fusion
have claimed to be subjected to suppression via academic pressure as well as via lack of funding.
Stanley Meyer produced nine patents, around 1990, relating to his "water powered" car. He was subsequently sued by two investors and the court found Meyer guilty of "gross and egregious fraud", ordering him to repay the investors their $25,000.
Meyer died suddenly in 1998. According to his brother, he claimed to have been poisoned; however, an autopsy showed that he died of a cerebral aneurysm
. Meyer's supporters continue to claim that he was assassinated by 'Big Oil', Arab death squads, Belgian assassins, or the US Government in order to suppress his inventions. However, Meyer's patents are readily available online.
Conspiracy theory
A conspiracy theory explains an event as being the result of an alleged plot by a covert group or organization or, more broadly, the idea that important political, social or economic events are the products of secret plots that are largely unknown to the general public.-Usage:The term "conspiracy...
claim that explains why advanced technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
that would reshape current energy paradigms is being suppressed
Suppression of dissent
Suppression of dissent occurs when an individual or group which is more powerful than another tries to directly or indirectly censor, persecute or otherwise oppress the other party, rather than engage with and constructively respond to or accommodate the other party's arguments or viewpoint...
by certain special interest groups. These groups are usually claimed to be associated with the oil, coal, nuclear, or natural gas industry, to whom current energy generation technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
is profitable, or government agencies who view such as potentially detrimental to the national or world economic system.
Description
In this context, the term "free energy" is not well-defined, and should not be confused with thermodynamic free energyThermodynamic free energy
The thermodynamic free energy is the amount of work that a thermodynamic system can perform. The concept is useful in the thermodynamics of chemical or thermal processes in engineering and science. The free energy is the internal energy of a system less the amount of energy that cannot be used to...
. Generally, it is used to refer to purported transformative technologies which have the potential to dramatically reduce personal energy costs with relatively little capital investment.
There have been numerous free energy claims over the years. Many, such as those implying perpetual motion
Perpetual motion
Perpetual motion describes hypothetical machines that operate or produce useful work indefinitely and, more generally, hypothetical machines that produce more work or energy than they consume, whether they might operate indefinitely or not....
or those based on extracting zero-point energy
Zero-point energy
Zero-point energy is the lowest possible energy that a quantum mechanical physical system may have; it is the energy of its ground state. All quantum mechanical systems undergo fluctuations even in their ground state and have an associated zero-point energy, a consequence of their wave-like nature...
, are viewed as impossible according to accepted physical laws. Others, such as cold fusion
Cold fusion
Cold fusion, also called low-energy nuclear reaction , refers to the hypothesis that nuclear fusion might explain the results of a group of experiments conducted at ordinary temperatures . Both the experimental results and the hypothesis are disputed...
, while not fundamentally impossible, are not accepted as established by the scientific community. Conspiracy advocates therefore claim that the scientific community has controlled and suppressed research into alternative avenues of energy production via the institutions of peer review
Peer review
Peer review is a process of self-regulation by a profession or a process of evaluation involving qualified individuals within the relevant field. Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards, improve performance and provide credibility...
.
In addition, some claim that devices capable of extracting significant and usable power from pre-existing energy reservoirs for little or no cost exist but are being suppressed by government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
s and special interest groups (such as the fossil fuel
Fossil fuel
Fossil fuels are fuels formed by natural processes such as anaerobic decomposition of buried dead organisms. The age of the organisms and their resulting fossil fuels is typically millions of years, and sometimes exceeds 650 million years...
and nuclear industry), and that suppression has been going on for some time. According to energy suppression conspiracy advocates, the main motive behind this is the preservation of the economic status quo and sustained increase of fuel prices. Variations on the energy suppression conspiracy state that free energy cannot be allowed in a capitalist
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
system because the economic system would break down if it were introduced.
Proponents of this conspiracy theory
Conspiracy theory
A conspiracy theory explains an event as being the result of an alleged plot by a covert group or organization or, more broadly, the idea that important political, social or economic events are the products of secret plots that are largely unknown to the general public.-Usage:The term "conspiracy...
also claim that certain renewable technologies (such as solar cells and biofuel
Biofuel
Biofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...
s) and other efficient technologies (as electric vehicles) are being suppressed or weakened by government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
s and special interest groups.
Free energy research is typically considered to be pseudo-scientific
Pseudoscience
Pseudoscience is a claim, belief, or practice which is presented as scientific, but which does not adhere to a valid scientific method, lacks supporting evidence or plausibility, cannot be reliably tested, or otherwise lacks scientific status...
or unrealistic by the scientific community. Conspiracy theorists allege that this is a deliberate attempt by conspirators to suppress this research. There are various other factors which can prevent funding of some alternative energy development, such as "time and information" and capital costs. Groups behind "the conspiracy" have been said to include various national governments, international automakers, and the petroleum industry. An article in Nexus magazine
Nexus magazine
Nexus is a bi-monthly alternative news magazine. It covers geopolitics and conspiracy theories; health issues, including alternative medicine; future science; the unexplained, including UFOs; Big Brother; and historical revisionism. The magazine also publishes articles about freedom of speech and...
claims
- The spread of working free-energy technologies has been prevented by wealthy elite governments, deluded inventors and con men, as well as a non-demanding public.
Examples
There have been numerous claims of "suppression" as an explanation for why free energy technologies are not available to the public. Some examples include:Thomas Bearden
Bearden is the inventor of a purported over-unity device called the Motionless Electromagnetic Generator (MEG). In addition to the MEG, Bearden has written extensively on a number of free energy technologies which he claims have been available for some time and he also claims these alleged technologies have been actively suppressed by government or private interests, including "the Japanese", J.P. Morgan, and "a nuclear power plant consortium".Eugene Mallove
Eugene Mallove was a notable proponent and supporter of research into cold fusionCold fusion
Cold fusion, also called low-energy nuclear reaction , refers to the hypothesis that nuclear fusion might explain the results of a group of experiments conducted at ordinary temperatures . Both the experimental results and the hypothesis are disputed...
. He authored the book Fire from Ice, which details the 1989 report of table-top cold fusion from Stanley Pons
Stanley Pons
Bobby Stanley Pons is an American-French electrochemist known for his work with Martin Fleischmann on cold fusion in the 1980s and '90s.-Early life:...
and Martin Fleischmann
Martin Fleischmann
Martin Fleischmann is a British chemist noted for his work in electrochemistry. He came to wider public prominence following his controversial publication of work with colleague Stanley Pons on cold fusion using palladium in the 1980s and '90s.-Early life:Born in Karlovy Vary, Czechoslovakia,...
at the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
. The book claims the team did produce "greater-than-unity" output energy in an experiment, which supposedly was successfully replicated on several occasions. Mallove claims that the results were suppressed through an organized campaign of ridicule from mainstream physicists.
He was fatally beaten May 14, 2004 in Norwich
Norwich, Connecticut
Regular steamship service between New York and Boston helped Norwich to prosper as a shipping center through the early part of the 20th century. During the Civil War, Norwich once again rallied and saw the growth of its textile, armaments, and specialty item manufacturing...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
by an unknown assailant. His violent death was suspected by some to be related to the nature of his work, while the police officially suspected robbery
Robbery
Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take something of value by force or threat of force or by putting the victim in fear. At common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person of that property, by means of force or fear....
as the motive.
In 2005, two previously-convicted criminals were arrested in connection with the killing. The case proceeded slowly, and the charges against the two men were dismissed on November 6, 2008, due to there being no forensic evidence linking them to the murder.
Other researchers in the field of cold fusion
Cold fusion
Cold fusion, also called low-energy nuclear reaction , refers to the hypothesis that nuclear fusion might explain the results of a group of experiments conducted at ordinary temperatures . Both the experimental results and the hypothesis are disputed...
have claimed to be subjected to suppression via academic pressure as well as via lack of funding.
Stanley Meyer
Meyer died suddenly in 1998. According to his brother, he claimed to have been poisoned; however, an autopsy showed that he died of a cerebral aneurysm
Cerebral aneurysm
A cerebral or brain aneurysm is a cerebrovascular disorder in which weakness in the wall of a cerebral artery or vein causes a localized dilation or ballooning of the blood vessel.- Signs and symptoms :...
. Meyer's supporters continue to claim that he was assassinated by 'Big Oil', Arab death squads, Belgian assassins, or the US Government in order to suppress his inventions. However, Meyer's patents are readily available online.