"Tabletop" Fusion Researcher Committed Scientific Misconduct

Geoffrey.landis writes "A Purdue University panel investigated allegations against nuclear engineering professor Rusi Taleyarkhan, finding that he had in fact committed scientific misconduct in his work. Taleyarkhan had published papers in which he reported seeing evidence of nuclear fusion in the collapse of tiny bubbles in a liquid subjected to ultrasonic excitation — a finding that would be groundbreaking, if true, but one that apparently could not be replicated by other researchers. The allegations against Taleyarkhan were made in March of 2006. A local Indiana paper gives the full list of allegations against Taleyarkhan, and the resolution of each by the panel. The full report (PDF) is also available. Of the nine specific allegations, only two were found to comprise scientific misconduct. The committee 'could not find any other instances of scientists being able to replicate Taleyarkhan's results without Taleyarkhan having direct involvement with the experiments,' but notes that this comes 'just short of questioning whether Taleyarkhan's results were fraudulent.'" We've discussed this gentleman's work and the scrutiny it has received several times, and members of the scientific community seem to have given him the benefit of the doubt in many cases.

Comments

Fraud...

[ZwJGR]

Better late than never, this guy has been either bullshitting or been genuinely incompetent for years.
When I first heard about his whole ultrasonic bubble excitation fusion experiment, I honestly thought: WTF? This was quite a while ago, and all the evidence was against him then as well.

It is people like these who give research scientists a bad name...

OMG..

[SuperDre]

this is ofcourse still up for heavy debate.. the conclusion is based on some statements that because other scientists can't replicate it without the help of the professor it would be misconduct.. Maybe all the other scientists just don't understand the 'problem'.. because you don't know how something works (even with full documentation) doesn't mean it is impossible.. If this guy had a trackrecord of 'misconduct' then it would propably be something else, but he hasn't...

Re:OMG..

[langelgjm]

Maybe all the other scientists just don't understand the 'problem'.. because you don't know how something works (even with full documentation) doesn't mean it is impossible..

You're quite right. I don't know the details of this specific case, but generally speaking, replication isn't as simple as it may seem. Even given full documentation and information, there is often an element of intangible know-how that goes along with an experiment - "tacit knowledge." I'd suggest reading the chapter on the TEA laser in H.M. Collin's Changing Order for anyone interested in learning about the difficulties involved in replication.

How disappointing.

[jcr]

I really want to see one of these fusion processes work. It would make a radical change in our society, by removing any reason for the US government to care what happens in the middle east.

-jcr

Re:How disappointing.

[wild_quinine]

I really want to see one of these fusion processes work. It would make a radical change in our society, by removing any reason for the US government to care what happens in the middle east.

I really want to see one of these processes work, but it's massively shortsighted to care on the basis of what happens in the middle east. We're talking about the next step in world energy here, not the end of one government's petty feud with a geographical area.

Re:How disappointing.

[WhatAmIDoingHere]

If we didn't need oil, we wouldn't have troops in the ME. If we didn't have troops in the ME to begin with, 9/11 would never have happened.

You're ignoring the cause of the problem, which is that we stick our noses into everyone's business.

Re:How disappointing.

[kestasjk]

To be honest there's no real reason to think fusion would be cheaper than coal, and nuclear fusion isn't much different to nuclear fission in most practical regards. It would be more like an improved form of nuclear fission than a revolutionary new technology.

Fusion (in the most viable tokamak form) does produce radioactive waste products because of all the neutron flux, but (like lots of forms of fission) the waste isn't dangerous in the long-term. I also haven't seen any real data on how much fusion would cost on a practical level.

So I don't see why fusion should be treated as anything more than a possible improvement to fission in the future; why aren't we going for fission as the technology to free us from the Middle East in the meantime?
That's what the US did last time there was an oil crisis, and it worked out well, but this time our reactors are much better and safer for the experience.

Re:How disappointing.

[rubycodez]

the locations don't change the fundamental reasons for Bin Laden's hatred of the U.S: actions by U.S. in Lebanon, support of Israel, support of what he considers amoral leaders in the middle east.

Bin Laden, unlike G W Bush, has no reason to lie about his motives regarding terror.

Re:How disappointing.

[westlake]

You're ignoring the cause of the problem, which is that we stick our noses into everyone's business.
>.

The root cause is deeper and simpler.

Bin Ladin dreams of a pan-Islamic medieval caliphate.

This isn't Islamic civilization in its creative prime. It is a redaction of that culture embalmed and hermetically sealed.

He hates the West because the West has been successful - and the success of the West has never been one-dimensional. The West exports culture as effortlessly as it exports food and new technologies.

The West changes and evolves at an extraordinary pace.

It is no coincidence that Ben Laden sought refuge among a tribal culture that is as far removed from a man like Saladin as it is to us.

Re:Railroading

[peragrin]

did you even read the summary? No one has been able to duplicate his work. ever. while it is interesting and someone should study the work for other possible effects overall it has been a massive failure.

Re:You don't need future tech

[CycoChuck]

We can get off Middle East oil IF the environmental wackos would let the US actually drill its own oil. Just because we can come up with other things to power our cars, it doesn't mean we don't need oil. Oil is used in just about everything in our lives, from the Tupperware container you store leftovers in to the triple antibiotic you use on cuts and scrapes.

Re:The fun that can be had with causality games

[Sj0]

Wow. "The United States has made some poor foreign policy decisions in the past." is how you euphemise 50 years of assassination, war, murder, and propping up murderous regimes while tearing down democracies with the hidden talons of the CIA.

You're too well indoctrinated. I doubt you could take responsibility for something if you wanted to.