>>> When I was younger, I used to think floating cities (i.e.,
>>Cloud City
>>> in "The Empire Strikes Back") were an impossibility because of the
>>> massive amount of energy needed to hold them up.  Then one day I
>>> realized that if the losses in the system were small enough
>>(high Q),
>>> you could run the thing for decades on a watch battery, as
>>long as you
>>> don't plan on raising or lowering it.

>>So far, all known (to me, at least) methods to create force
>>without using structural means require movement. And therefore 
>>energy.

> The point is that the device we are talking about claims to do this. 
> Although it does consume some energy, this is purely down to losses 
> in the system (i.e. Q < infinity), not because the device is 
> performing work to hold a mass in a fixed position.  However, IF the 
> device works, then the energy consumption may be very  acceptable 
> for many applications.

> BTW, both magnetic and electrostatic devices can create a static 
> force without using energy (or doing any useful work).

"Magnetic levitation" does this right now. Static ML is not stable 
with positively paramagnetic materials but a little trickery allows 
one to utilise some negative paramagnetic materials in the mix to do 
this wholly stably. Also a little mechanical input.

A tall tower serves the same role - and, as it achieves this feat 
using the known nuclear forces, what is being proposed here should not 
be disbelieved solely on the basis that it "feels wrong". There are, 
alas, enough other complaints about the claim that it seems doomed to 
be disproven.

I'm still waiting for the flying cars.

I used to tell people that, sadly, Dick Tracy style communicators were 
impossible due to practical limitations of radio communications. I'd 
not allowed for cell sites or LEO satellite constellations. Being sure 
to qualify the conditions under which something is seen to be 
impossible is usually wise :-)



        Russell



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