Academia - with Caution

I pass on an article published in 'The Australian' newspaper of 18th May 2013 written by Assoc. Prof. Greg Melleuish of the Uni.of Wollongong on the NSW central coast, Australia . He has admirably expressed some ideas which have gnawed at me for some years. The article is headed 'Too many academics are driven to abstraction by their addiction to models.' Sub-headed 'Emotional zeal coupled with self interest fuels an obsession with man-made climate change.' While I have no objection to climate change debate, I have a problem with it becoming an object of religious zeal, brooking no contrary view.

Quote " In some ways the growing intellectual power of the Left over the past fifty years, in Australia as in other parts of the world, can be seen as the dominance of the radical enlightenment over the moderate enlightenment. One feature of this dominance has been the rejection of ideas that come from Anglosphere societies in favour of those that come from continental Europe, be they French literary theorists or German philosophers. The moderate enlightenment always sought to reconcile the great body of ideas, beliefs and ways of doing things that we have inherited from the past with the new discoveries of the sciences.

The radical enlightenment from the 17th century until today, has little or no time for tradition and wants to make the world anew on the basis of abstract, and usually untried theories. Moreover, they believe it is possible to inflict those theories on the world through an act of will.

We should fear this growing dominance of the abstract over the concrete and of an adversarial culture over one that seeks to reconcile ideas and the practical realities of the world. Intellectuals and intellectual life of this type will do little for the future of Australia. These intellectuals are instinctively Platonists and gnostics; they perceive themselves to have access to ideas that are superior because unlike the rest of us they have seen the light while we see only shadows. Their ideas need to be imposed on the real world.

When one looks at the contemporary humanities faculties of our universities, one sees that they are increasingly addicted to theory and to making the world bend to their theories. It is this combination of abstraction and a faith in the capacity of the will to impose these abstrctions on the world that makes these intellectuals such a threat to the contemporary world.

Just how frightening the situation is can be seen in two current issues that have important practical consequences for Australia. These are man-made climate change and the desire for the current government to regulate the flow of ideas. In both cases academics have played, and continue to play, a crucial role and it must be said that their role has not been on the side of the angels.

The first is naked self-interest. Modern academia is about publishing papers and winning grants as a means of self advancement. They have discovered that with climate change they are on a real winner. They can claim that the government needs to fund them so that they can find ways of overcoming the effects of climate change, even reverse it. It becomes the 'magic pudding' of research. Enough can never be done. There is always a need for more research, for more grants.The more that is done on climate change, the more that needs to be done. As a research topic it appears to be one that can be milked forever.

The second is that as a topic it is an expression of the academic desire to reduce the world to a series of models that can be manipulated to predict the future. Climate change relies heavily on computer modelling, on the assumption if one feeds in enough information, one can create a model that actually depicts reality.

The Soviets believed in this fantasy. They sought to build a super-computer that would be able to create a model, thereby allowing the state to predict the demand for every item used by its people. The model came unstuck on platform shoes. In the 1970s platform shoes came into popularity so the Soviets set about planning to produce these shoes. The only problem was that by the time they had them ready, the fashion had changed.

We live in a world that is both complex and contingent. It is a delusion to believe that we can create a model that depicts reality in such a way that we can control the future. When we attempt to do so we simply remain in the abstract world of the model and become its slave.

The third is a form of moral panic that seems to have overcome many academics. A major discovery of the past 100 years is that education and devotion to intellectual matters does not make modern human beings  more rational. Academics, like other people, are prone to scares and panics, and hence to using their intellects in defence of irrational projects.

In Germany the Nazis conquered the students before the rest of the country. The two intellectual giants, Martin Hiedegger and Carl Schmitt, came out in support of the Nazis. It could be argued that it is their addiction to abstract models that makes academics more prone to emotional manipulation, as they do not often possess a well-developed sense of balance between their rational and emotional natures. The more one is addicted to abstract models, the less defence one has against one's irrational urges.

What we can see in academic support for climate change is an emotional zeal combined with a highly developed form of abstract thought that is not very healthy, especially when it is combined with a strong sense of self-interest. What is argued is that academic abstraction makes academics more prone to millennial aspirations and the belief that they can save the world.

In his recent book on millennialism, Richard Landes argues that millennial movements become more extreme the more they fail, and it will certainly be the case that this is what happens with the climate change lobby. Empirical evidence will have little effect on their views and they will cling to the faith for as long as possible. As this faith is founded upon their models, they will come more and more to rely on the models and ignore the real world. And they will become more determined to impose their their views on any recalcitrant unbeliever.

The zeal with which academics pursue their defence of climate change is a reminder that many of them are more interested in imposing their views on the wider population than they are in allowing for the freedom of speech and expression.

Academics, like many other intellectuals, have a very high opinion of themselves and their rightness. Humility is not a virtue in their world. If you are right and you have good intentions, then surely you should not only be heard but should also prevail. In fact, you probably believe that you have a duty to prevail and to drown out the views of those who lack your qualifications and capacity to employ models. They are just inferiors who need to be brought into line.

Such an attitude has long defined how climate change alarmists see their critics and the wider society. Such people should be like their (academics') students who are there simply to listen and absorb, not to answer back. Unfortunately, this attitude seems now to have spread to government circles in Australia, which, under the direction of Julia Gillard and the Greens, are not interested in listening to criticism of their plans but instead think only of ways of preventing their critics from being heard. They have decided; it is the task of the rest of us to obey.

The government and their academic allies use a number of tactics to achieve this goal.

One is to delegitimise anyone who is not considered to be an 'expert' in the field. It has been used to attack climate change sceptics by claiming that they do not publish in the peer reviewed journals that are controlled by the climate change alarmists.

The view that only the 'experts' have a right to speak is anti-democratic. It assumes that the wider population is a bunch of bogans. ....

Two is to complain about the 'extremism' of those with whom one does not agree. ....

Three is to complain about lack of balance. If a publication decides to argue strongly for a position that is not officially approved then it is being unbalanced......" Unquote.

Sorry to be a such a balloon buster, but the Assoc. Prof. has summed it up pretty well.
Academic disrepute arises from (1) funding imperatives, (2) reputation imperatives, (3) resistance to change.




 

Time and Light Speed

Emerging Conundrums, Micro and Macro

Modern science has ascertained that some subatomic particle spin has a rotational velocity up to 1.37 times the speed of light, which does not concur with the scientifically accepted limitation of light speed, c. Similarly, the fact that our galaxy, which is about 100,000 light years across, has a rotational unity, suggesting that the connection between one side and the other is made by some governing agent which exceeds the speed of light. The solution to those conundrums may be related to dimension and its possible effect on relativistic light speed as observed from the 4th dimension. The Theory of Dimensional Relativity offers a logical solution to these conundrums through the substitution of the constant,c by the constant, c/t. The derivation of c/t is shown in the blog titled the Theory of Dimensional Relativity.

Time and Light Speed - Quantum Entanglement

We have a mindset wedded to cause and effect, and therefore have trouble comprehending the concept of quantum entanglement where there is no cause-effect progression. That with two widely separated particles one can have an effect on the other before it has been caused, such as a transmission being received before it was sent. Experimental evidence indicates that this is indeed the case. (The intention to transmit is

apparently enough to have an effect on the entangled particle if we must look at it in this cause-

effect manner.) This might suggest that quantum entanglement is independent of time and therefore of the speed of light. The strangeness of quantum mechanics to our normal perception of reality is underlined by our difficulty in perceiving outside the parameters of time. The Uncertainty Principle, the observation affecting the outcome, reversed cause and effect are all more easily understood if time is not considered as part of the issue. One might conclude that these quantum sized particles are not necessarily part of the same dimension in which we exist and therefore not subject to the same rules of time or light speed. The time / light speed of a higher dimension, such as the 5th dimension, as observed from the 4th dimension would make the experimental observations possible. Time is an inter-dimensional variable, not an absolute quantity.

 

Dimensional Disparity - Consciousness

It seems possible that our own 'consciousness' which can move back or forward in time at will, like quantum particles, may operate independently of, or from, another dimension, whereas our physical bodies are confined to the 4th dimension and are subject to the arrow of time and all that it implies. 

   It seems that our natural sense of 'self ', which almost universally means more to us than just our body, implies we exist in more than the body's dimension. That knowledge, although unproven, seems common to all humanity, and probably underlies most spirituality and religious belief.

It suggests that a change in energy potential from this or another dimension may affect our

ability to comprehend, create, solve and expand the mind, a process which history indicates can

move in both directions, as in ages of 'enlightenment' where knowledge is gained and 'dark ages' where knowledge is lost. That concept possibly underlies the art of astrology. Knowledge of the last 'golden age' has been lost and only vaguely perceived through legends such as that of Atlantis and Lemuria found in a number of unrelated cultures, although this is far from certain. Some archeological finds are more convincing evidence of lost knowledge, such as the ruins of Gunung Padang about 120 km south east of Jakarta dated as early as 16,000 years old, about which we know nothing. The knowledge of civilizations in equatorial regions during the last ice age have been largely lost to us.

Another area where we may be provided with a new paradigm by the Theory is that of the physics of the mind, an area often avoided because of the fear of ridicule and a lack of a point at which to form an hypothesis which can then be tested. Acceptance of 'virtual energy' as part of the explanation of the intangible aspect of the mind, such as 'thought' will enable a start to be made. The Theory provides an explanation of 'virtual energy' with the replacement of the constant, c, by the constant c/t and the probability of photons from a higher dimension which exceed the speed of light in the 4th dimension.

 

Energy - How Far Have We Really Progressed ?

Energy – How Far Have We Really Progressed ?

Michael J. Bull 2013

It is sometimes of benefit to look back in time at the development of our energy systems to gain some perspective on how well we have progressed, or not, and perhaps gain some insight as to where we need to concentrate our efforts in research and development.

Where Have We Come From?

During the first half of the 18^th century, apart from animal power, the energy available to turn a shaft to do work came from a water wheel, which is power from gravity using a large amount of mass in liquid form, or, from a wind powered wheel which is solar radiation moving a large amount of mass in gaseous form. Both require special site conditions and are ultimately powered by the sun.

The Industrial Revolution, beginning in about 1750, saw a change which allowed the power to turn a shaft become more portable, in the form of the Watt and Boulton steam engine, which was commercially available from 1776. The fuel for the steam engine was portable, in the form of solar radiation energy chemically bound up in hydro-carbon compounds such as wood and coal. As the steam engine was modified and improved, the engine itself became more portable and was utilized in mobile devices such as locomotives, ships and tractors. The steam engine and its associated technology such as the Stirling engine can be classified as external combustion engines. They have an efficiency of around 20%, which means that about 20% of the energy from the fuel input is converted to mechanical energy to do work, and the other 80% is lost to the environment as heat and friction.

About a century after the steam engine came the gasoline and diesel internal combustion engines. These were generally lighter and more portable and opened the way for the automobile, aeroplane and many other devices which added to our comfort and convenience. Their fuel is of a more concentrated and energetic source of hydro-carbon compounds and spawned the huge oil industry, which now supports much of our energy needs. The internal combustion engine is about 50% efficient at best, about half of the energy from the fuel being lost to the environment.

Both the external and internal combustion engines are ultimately powered by their fuels which are actually only fossilized material whose energy comes from solar radiation. They are both heat engines and can never be 100% efficient, as is evident from the Carnot cycle in thermodynamics.

During the same period which saw the development of the external and internal combustion engines, physicists such as Lorenz, Maxwell, Faraday, Thomson and Tesla were developing the theory and practical uses of electro-magnetism. Faraday invented the first electric motor, the direct current (dc) homo-polar motor, and it was much later that Tesla invented the alternating current (AC) induction motor. Modern electric motors have an efficiency in excess of 80%. They are not subject to the Carnot cycle of thermodynamics, and can theoretically have an efficiency of 100%. The electric dynamo was developed along with the electric motor, it is almost an identical machine. At the beginning of the 20^th century the more technically advanced nations developed a system of distribution of electrical energy so that it could be commercially exploited for profit by providing the population with electricity within their homes and businesses. The distribution systems are based on AC power for technical reasons and have not much changed over the 20^th century, except to become larger with increasing population, and more challenging to manage.

Electro-magnetic energy is ideally suited to our needs as it is concentrated, easy to distribute and is safe. It is easily converted to another form such as heat or mechanical and can be manipulated for use in complex electronic equipment. The electrical and electronics industries are amongst the largest on Earth, and continue to develop into better and more complex uses.

What has Changed?

What has not changed is how we generate electro-magnetic energy. We are still using steam engines! They are now called steam turbines, but are essentially the same machine. Most are fueled from coal, as they were in 1776. Some are fueled from gas or oil and the nuclear power plants still heat water for the steam engine to turn the dynamo. Our hydro-electric power stations still use gravity powered water as in 1750. Our wind turbines work the same as in 1750 except the shaft they turn is connected to a dynamo. They are both more efficient, bur essentially the same. The same remark applies to the steam turbines and internal combustion engines. Geothermal plants still heat water to power a steam engine and dynamo, although the fuel is free.

What is new is the conversion of solar radiation directly into electricity using the photo-electric effect pioneered by Einstein, for which he was awarded a Nobel Prize. Solar radiation is of the same concentration, or intensity, as electro-magnetic energy and so does not require huge masses impelled by the weaker gravitational field, or endless mechanical energy via a dynamo. The drawback is that solar radiation is spread over a large area on Earth, so that solar cells also need to cover large areas to trap the radiation and convert it to electrical energy. The expense of creating a large enough area of solar cells to power the planet both day and night is prohibitive at present.

The transmission of electricity is rapidly becoming a weak link in our energy system as it grows. We need a new paradigm here, as well as a way to transmit electrical energy to a mobile user.

Solar Electricity on a Grand Scale

It would be ideal to have an area about half the size of the planet generating electricity continuously from solar radiation so that there would be no need to store it during hours of darkness, and a wireless distribution system, or, alternatively each consumer with wireless access to the source. Surprisingly, those options are probably within our reach. The sun continuously creates an electrically positive pole in the ionosphere. The negative pole is the Earth itself. The voltage between the two poles is of the order of 100,000 volts most of the time. Evidence of this is sometimes seen as the auroras or as lightning from high storm cloud. The voltage is there to a greater or lesser degree around the Earth, depending on the relative position of the sun. The question is how to bring that positive charge down to ground level where it can be rectified and manipulated to suit our present distribution network or any new network we may devise. The other challenge is the wireless transmission of energy. This has also been pioneered by Einstein's contemporary physicist Nikola Tesla. In the very late 19^th century at Colorado Springs in the USA, Tesla succeeded in transmitting about 5 kw of electrical energy from a generator to a bank of light bulbs at a distance of 16 km through the Earth without wires. The experiment is said to have worked by utilizing the frequency compatible with the Earth as conductor. Tesla said that frequency was the key to the solution of many electrical challenges. As the inventor of the AC electrical system he should be taken seriously. This work needs further study and experimentation.

From Wikipedia

'Tesla's diary contains explanations of his experiments concerning the ionosphere and the ground's telluric currents via transverse waves and longitudinal waves.[115] He researched ways to transmit energy wirelessly over long distances (via transverse waves, to a lesser extent, and, more readily, longitudinal waves). He transmitted extremely low frequencies through the ground as well as between the earth's surface and the Kennelly–Heaviside layer. Tesla received U.S. Patent 645,576 for wireless transceivers that developed standing waves by this method. In his experiments, he made mathematical calculations and computations based on his experiments and discovered that the resonant frequency of the earth was approximately 8 hertz (Hz)[116] (later confirmed by researchers in the 1950s—named the Schumann resonance).[117] Tesla sent electrostatic forces through natural media across a conductor situated in the changing magnetic flux and transferred electrical energy to a wireless receiver.' Wikipedia.

Earthbound Impediments

Vested interests are powerful impediments to new technology, for example the oil, gas and coal industries would lobby against change, as would their bankers, employees, governments and other stakeholders. R and D funding would need to be sourced perhaps from the electronics and IT sectors who may have the funds and motivation to control a new source of energy. The science may not be all that difficult.