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6 of 7 found the following review helpful:
A History as Grand as its Subject Jan 09, 2007
By D. Fafarman
"davefxx"
Tom Stolper, a long-time member of the Hydrino Study Group,
has written a superb scholarly history of the development of Dr.
Randell Mills' physical, chemical, and cosmological theories. The
extent of the research Mr. Stolper has done is epic -- he worked
extremely hard at putting this together. He presents what amounts
to a full retrospective of 20th Century physics, and a summary of
where it currently stands. His perspective is both technological and
cultural (with perhaps a stronger claim to authority in the latter)
-- for example, there's a section titled "Tribalism and Socialization".
The book is full of fascinating anecdotes.
I personally have been following this saga for nearly two decades. I
attended the historic 1999 American Chemical Society conference
mentioned in the book. I also read the 3rd edition of Mills' magnum
opus and followed some of the derivations (though not in depth).
Both Mills and Stolper suffered a lot of grief in connection with the
cold fusion fiasco of 1989. To the extent that I have a criticism of
Stolper's book, it is that he has allowed his acquired distaste for
cold fusion to over-influence his observations. Mills has good reason
to continue to distance himself from cold fusion, but Stolper, in his
capacity as chronicler, needs to be a little more objective. (Like
Stolper, I too am pro-Mills -- so I don't see that in itself as a
problem.)
Here are a few brief passages to give you the flavor of the work; this
first one is rather poignant:
"Lorentz was the dean of physicists in the early 20th century, much
admired by Einstein, but raised in the classical tradition, and unhappy
about the way that quantum theory contradicted so much of it .. just as
unhappy about ... the model of the hydrogen atom as Mills was. Lorentz
found himself saying on one day that an electron following a curved
path radiated energy, and on the next day saying, in the same lecture
hall, that the electron orbiting the hydrogen atom didn't. The many
contradictions ... weighed heavily on him ... in 1924 he told Abraham
Joffe, 'I have lost the conviction that my work has led to objective
truth, and I don't know why I have lived. I only regret that I didn't
die five years ago, when everything still appeared clear to me.'"
These quotes show Stolper's special grasp of group dynamics insight:
"Ignoring Mills and supporting Podkletnov was a classic example of how
large outfits evaluate risks. They want incremental innovations that
sustain existing programs, not major innovations that disrupt them. If
Podkletnov-type antigravity work succeeded, then NASA would still be
doing rocketry, and everything at NASA would go on much as before,
though its work load would be a little lighter (pun intended). If Mills-type
anti-gravity work succeeded, then NASA would enter upon its golden age,
but at the price of organizational upheaval."
"Political reporters and foreign correspondents can go and check the
assertions of top officials for themselves. Science writers can't do that
with quantum theory or relativity theory or most other topics in science.
They have to choose whom to believe, and nine hundred and ninety-nine
times out of a thousand, the established authorities in science provide
the best guidance. The Mills affair was worse than unusual. It was
unprecedented in living memory, and situations without precedent are
always hard to deal with."
This one is rather droll :-):
"According to (Jonathan) Phillips, the bias against Mills' ideas was so
strong that the Journal of Physics D wouldn't even send the line-broadening
manuscript out for review in 2003, because, an editor said, the journal
feared that reviewers would recommend publication."
In Stolper's closing remarks:
"Science is a candle in the dark, just as Carl Sagan said. It must be
guarded and tended, because its flame is not yet as bright or steady as
most scientists think or as the leaders of science would have us believe.
The winds of obscurantism are still strong, and the surrounding darkness
is vast indeed. Mills has lit a new candle, one that may in time become
a beacon. The efforts of those who would hide its light under a bushel or
snuff it out entirely need to be countered."
1 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Excellent Apr 12, 2008
By Johnny
An excellent book chalk full of very detailed information about Randy Mills and Blacklight Power which I haven't seen anywhere else. References to many facts and events are meticulously provided in footnotes throughout the entire book.
I recommend anyone who is interested in Randy and BLP grab a copy of this book and fill themselves in on a number interesting facts, twists and turns they probably didn't know about.
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