For the conspiracy theory and speculation guys out there - there are several connect-the-dots details which point the way to a breakthrough in LENR... which may run deeper than the recent Takahashi paper we have been discussing. Here are a few of the dots.
1) Toyota already has a hydrogen powered car in production NOW - the Mirai. This is despite a minimal infrastructure of H2 fueling stations in the USA. They are offering the vehicle at an affordable lease price $350 month with free fuel for 3 years. They are promoting the car to technical people, especially. Mirai means "the future" and it looks like the future of Toyota is H2, not batteries. https://ssl.toyota.com/mirai/fcv.html 2) Toyota was among the first major player to get in the battery powered hybrid vehicle niche with the Prius. (GM was never serious, following the EV!) 3) Even so, Toyota did not maximize or leverage their status as pioneer in battery powered vehicles - as did others, notably Tesla. Big mistake or part of a longer range plan? 4) Instead Toyota has invested billions into a hydrogen fuel cell powered vehicle and went straight to market 5) Unlike other car companies, Toyota has also invested in LENR (Technova) with less than spectacular success but maybe they are downplaying how far they have advanced, behind the scenes. 6) The recent paper gives out minimal real information and no data - almost as if they were obligated to provide something, but not give away too much. But the main advance could be getting way from precious metals - Pd or Pt which are a killer for a moderately priced car. The zirconia supported copper nickel of the recent paper could be the catalyst breakthrough which is also the electrode of a new fuel cell. 7) The ultimate strategy of the Mirai could then be brilliant - to be ready to immediately proceed beyond the current version with an advanced fuel cell - that is: to provide an expandable platform in which an LENR boosted fuel cell could be dropped almost immediately when it is ready even as an updated to an existing vehicle. The Mirai gives Toyota what is effectively a four or five year head start. It is of course a big stretch to suggest that Toyota/ Technova is far ahead of others - especially in terms of going to market with an improved fuel cell that incorporates LENR, but it would explain a number of things. Certainly other car companies dismissed the Prius for years ... but Toyota got the last laugh, and then backed off - which could mean they are far more prescient than they get credit for.
