GE, Honeywell, Raytheon, etc?

Discuss ways to make polywell research more widely known or better understood. Includes education and outreach.

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JohnP
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GE, Honeywell, Raytheon, etc?

Post by JohnP »

Does anyone know if any of the big electrical / engineering outfits are keeping an eye on Polywell research? I'm sure they get sh*tloads of R&D proposals across their desks every day, and they have their own priorities & realities to contend with, but I'm curious if they're taking a serious interest in BFR.

Also, if Polywell bears out, they should already have experienced staff that can deal with the various demands of this technology, right? I mean, in a world that's getting more FPGA every day, the big outfits should still have people that do high power vacuum tubes, nuclear engineering, etc. I think Bussard said something about that in the Google video.

drmike
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Post by drmike »

Money can change things rapidly. If polywell works, then the money will flow and lots and lots of people will get in on the act. The time scale will be pretty short too. If it doesn't work, there's no point in paying attention to it.

If it looks like a long shot, it'll be a nice research project in a few places for a long time. Until it's proven that it can make a profit, there won't be big money in it.

StevePoling
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Money changes things indeed

Post by StevePoling »

My daughter at U Mich just shrugs and goes "meh" when I rave about polywell: All but the smartest nuclear engineering students are put off by fusion. And why not, we've been hearing that fusion is just twenty years away for the last four decades.

Conversely, if polywell works, you can bet everyone's attitude will radically change.

MSimon
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Re: GE, Honeywell, Raytheon, etc?

Post by MSimon »

JohnP wrote:Does anyone know if any of the big electrical / engineering outfits are keeping an eye on Polywell research? I'm sure they get sh*tloads of R&D proposals across their desks every day, and they have their own priorities & realities to contend with, but I'm curious if they're taking a serious interest in BFR.

Also, if Polywell bears out, they should already have experienced staff that can deal with the various demands of this technology, right? I mean, in a world that's getting more FPGA every day, the big outfits should still have people that do high power vacuum tubes, nuclear engineering, etc. I think Bussard said something about that in the Google video.
There are companies interested. I'm not at liberty to say who.
Engineering is the art of making what you want from what you can get at a profit.

dch24
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Re: GE, Honeywell, Raytheon, etc?

Post by dch24 »

MSimon wrote:There are companies interested. I'm not at liberty to say who.
I think the realities even at big companies are pretty tough. R&D budgets are for specific research objectives, with concrete, monetary outcomes.

The fact that there are big companies paying attention (thanks, MSimon!) means a lot. It means that hard-nosed businessmen and scientists (probably, people who bridge both sides) believe in this thing.

And that I'll take as a compliment.

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