On Fri, May 1, 2015 at 7:57 PM, Bruce Johnson <johnson@pharmacy.arizona.edu> wrote:

Maybe the ‘M’ stands for ‘microwaves’:-)

Looks like the weird, ‘maybe violates the 3 laws’ EM drive invented by Roger Shawyer might be real after all. A NASA group has tested it in a hard vaccuum chamber and found that it does indeed produce thrust.

<http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2015/04/evaluating-nasas-futuristic-em-drive/>

Curiouser and curiouser.

After reading the article, three things really jump out for me:

1) The NASA researchers can still only speculate as to where the measured thrust is actually coming from. This appears to be a genuine case of discovering an effect ahead of its cause.

2) The much higher levels of thrust (100 times greater) come from experimental setups that use the same type of microwave emitter installed in commercial kitchen microwaves as opposed to the standard type used in U.S. research laboratories.

3) Down toward the end, mention is made (if I'm reading the relevant section correctly) of preliminary non-vacuum measurements that indicate the presence of a measurable time dilation effect around the region in which the EM drive is operating.

Now, maybe it's just me.

But somehow this feels like the setup for a Golden Age SF novel, wherein Wacky Inventor accidentally discovers warp drive while nuking his lunch . . .

Richard Aiken

"Never insult anyone by accident." Robert A. Heinlein

"A word to the wise ain't necessary -- it's the stupid ones that need the advice." - Bill Cosby

"We know a little about a lot of things; just enough to make us dangerous." Dean Winchester