[extropy-chat] Re: Casimir Torque Project

[ben]

The Casimir force, as far as i understand (i'm no physicist, so this may 
be way off), is analogous to the force that pushes ships into harbour 
walls, with virtual particles being equivalent to the waves in the water.

If this is a good analogy, wouldn't a proof of concept of Adrian's 
device be a macro-scale version, sitting in the sea (or a slightly 
smaller one in a bathtub, with a suitable wave generator)? If the 
concept is sound, and the analogy is sound, this might be a useful 
'alternative energy' device even if for some reason a zero-point energy 
device can't work.

(Maybe this could put to rest any doubts about it being a perpetual 
motion machine, too)

ben