To kick off his talk, he cited a recent article (July 25, 2004) in the Los Angeles Times that stated that our only hope for solving the energy crisis is to be willing to consider ?extreme possibilities.? With that introduction, he then cited numerous instances in which mainstream journals of science have been dabbling in a discussion of zero point energy.

He discussed how the vacuum used to be considered empty, but now it has been shown that the vacuum contains an enormous amount of energy. Even when you remove all sources of energy and cool a region to very close to absolute zero (the zero point), there is useable energy present in abundance. He said that this is why Helium stays liquid at fractions of a degree Kelvin. Dr. Valone described an experiment by Koltick that shows the effect of virtual particle “dressing” that shrouds an electron. The Quantum Vacuum text by Milonni, he says, estimates the ZPE energy density at 220 erg/cc in optical regions. These measurements were able to be made because of science?s ability to study matter at the nanoscopic level. He also reported that gravity and inertia are proven to be effects of ZPE, by none other than Dr. Hal Puthoff at the Institute for Advanced Studies at Austin.

Dr. Valone described the Casimir Effect, and how it can be used to tap ZPE. This is the slight attraction seen in metal plates when placed very close (atomic distances) to each other. The attraction can be shown to come from ZPE. Valone cites evidence that the ZPE is not conserved, and does not follow the normal laws of energy conservation. He also showed documented research that sometimes the Casimir Force is repulsive due to magnetic or thermal conditions. In some cases, the force changes sign as the temperature increased. This can lead to ways to manipulate and control ZPE.

In his presentation, Dr. Valone cited several mainstream science journals that are now publishing works by ZPE researchers (Some examples: Phys. Review Letters #92, 2004; Aviation Week March 1 2004; Science v. 299 issue 5608: 2003 p. 862.) He talked about Robert L. Forward?s early work proposing to extract energy from the Casimir Effect and how he made an electron storage battery instead. He said that now that we have the ability to work with nanotechnology, we have the tools to extract energy from the zero point field.

In the opening stages Arthur C. Clarke explained how there were four stages in the way scientists react to the development of anything of a revolutionary nature. “Free energy” was now working its way through these four stages of reaction, which were:

a: “It’s nonsense,”
b: “It is not important,”
c: “I always said it was a good idea,” and
d: “I thought of it first.”

The scene moved to Rome, Georgia where Jim Griggs of Hydrodynamics, Inc. demonstrated the assembly and operation of a “hydrosonic water pump” which operated over-unity by producing hot water or steam with energy in excess of the electrical energy input to the pump motor. “Over-unity” was confirmed by satisfied customers, including the Albany Fire Station, where engineers from the “local university” and the “local power company” had been called in to verify the over-100% efficiency.