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In this section,
we list a variety of resources, both in print and online, that may
be of use to those investigating technological applications of the
zero-point field to several areas, including also issues that are
related to this topic, perhaps sometimes loosely. As clearly appears
from all the discussions offered at the InterStellar Technologies
Corporation site, the general subject of the zero-point field represents
a cross-roads of fundamental physics, advanced engineering, space
exploration, history of science and philosophy as well as speculation,
debate, and outright contention.
Given the breadth
and depth of professional research on Casimir force research alone,
it is impossible to aim for completeness and timeliness in any specific
subfield. Emphasis in this section has been placed upon providing
a fish-eye view of the topic and its possible ramifications. Our
goal is not necessarily to provide its users with the title of the
latest professional paper on a particularly technical aspect of
Casimir force research, but rather to further a deeper intellectual
understanding of the reasons any financial resources at all are
being directed at studying "nothingness." In doing so,
we hope to highlight the continuity of thought leading from early
philosophical speculation all the way to aggressive commercialization
and a very bright future for this field.
A word of comment
is due concerning the debate on the possible use of the zero-point
field as an energy resource, for which some references and links
are provided below. This debate, which has raged for several years
now, and which has seen scientists on both sides of the fence fiercely
involved in defending their deeply held views, shows science at
work at its best. Both those who believe that zero-point energy
can be "extracted" to produce the solution to all of humankind's
problems and those who hold that Casimir forces are simply an exotic,
and very useless, manifestation of a mostly negligible effect have
endeavored to produce papers in the refereed literature that are
notable for their own scientific strengths.
Independently
of the verdict history renders on this fascinating question, the
debate itself has become a phenomenon worthy of study by the layperson,
the philosopher, and the social scientist alike. Besides exposing
an intellectually stimulating issue, the zero-point energy debate
stage highlights a cross section of world scientists, inventors,
and of very human hopes for the future destiny of our civilization
that is, by itself, an unparalleled commentary on the vitality of
the relations between contemporary science and society.
The Vacuum in General
Two wonderful and very well referenced books about the history and
philosophy of the vacuum, at the level of the general, motivated
reader, are:
Genz, Henning,
Nothingness, (Perseus Books, Reading, Massachusetts, 1999)
Barrow, John
D., The Book of Nothing, (Pantheon Books, New York, 2000)
Puthoff, Harold,
Can the Vacuum be Engineered for Spaceflight Applications? Overview
of Theory and Experiments, available at http://www.webcom.com/kelleher/articles/spaceflight.html
(it includes a brief history of the term "vacuum engineering,"
introduced by Nobel Laureate T. D. Lee (1988) in his book Particle
Physics and Introduction to Field Theory).
New
Concepts in Propulsion
NASA's Breakthrough Propulsion Project: http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/bpp/
Millis, Marc, Warp Drive. When? http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/PAO/warp.htm
Millis, Marc, The Big Mystery: InterStellar Travel: http://msnbc.com/news/207618.asp?cp1=1
The Zero-Point Field Debate
Yam, Philip,
Exploiting Zero-Point Energy, Scientific American, December 1997,
pp. 82-85. (available online at http://www.padrak.com/ine/ZPESCIAM.html)
Boyer, Timothy H., The Classical Vacuum, Scientific American, Aug.
1985, pp 70-78. (available online at http://www.padrak.com/ine/ZPESCIAM2.html)
Puthoff, Harold, Quantum fluctuations of Empty Space: A New Rosetta
Stone in Physics?, available online at http://www.padrak.com/ine/QUANTFLUX.html
Parks, Bob, Extract energy from the zero-point fluctuations of the
vacuum?, What's New?, available online at http://www.aps.org/WN/WN94/wn031194.html
See also the
following sites:
The Institute
for New Energy: http://www.padrak.com/ine/
The California Institute for Physics and Astrophysics: http://www.calphysics.org/index.html
Dr. Robert L. Forward's Home Page: http://www.whidbey.com/forward/
The American Physical Society: http://www.aps.org/
National Institute for Discovery Science: http://www.nidsci.org/index.html
Education
Telescopes in
Education (TIE): http://tie.jpl.nasa.gov/tie/index.html
Jet Propulsion
Laboratory Education: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/education/index.html
Core Knowledge:
http://www.coreknowledge.org/CKproto2/about/index.htm
The APS Physics
Central: http://www.physicscentral.com/
(see the very interesting excerpt from Leon M. Lederman's the God
Particle at http://www.physicscentral.com/writers/writers-01-3.html
)
MEMS Virtual
Learning Cybercenter at Cornell University (very complete and including
the text of Richard P. Feynman's famous December 26th, 1959 speech,
There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom):
http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/akt1/memsmain.html
National Nanotechnology
Initiative Education: http://www.nano.gov/education.htm
Bibliographies
on the Casimir effect
Lamoreaux, S.
K., American Journal of Physics, Casimir Effect Resource Letter,
67, 850 (1999)
Bordag, M.,
Mohideen, U., and Mostepanenko, V. M., New Developments in the Casimir
Effect, submitted to Elsevier Preprint, available online at the
Los Alamos arXiv web site http://www.arxiv.org/
as quant-ph/0106045 (scroll to quantum-ph).
Babb, James
F., http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/~babb/
Microtechnology
and Nanotechnology Resources
Press release of the MEMS experiments involving the Casimir force
at Lucent Technologies (with other references): http://www.lucent.com/press/0201/010209.bla.html
The National
Nanotechnology Initiative: http://www.nano.gov/
Book
Resources
Although InterStellar
Technologies Corporation has absolutely no financial interest in
any of the companies featured below and we offer no guarantee about
their services, we have found these sites useful for both bibliographical
research and for our own acquisitions:
http://www.allbookstores.com/
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