Abd ul-Rahman Lomax wrote: >> Zimmerman must realize that many of the people doing these experiments are distinguished professors and the like, with deep knowledge of physics. > > Actually, he probably didn't realize it.
That is a chilling thought. It means he has made many comments over the years and devoted a lot of attention to the subject, but he has never bothered to read the papers. It does not upset me when journalists and ordinary folks make this sort of amateur mistakes, and neglect to do their homework. You don't expect them to know the ABCs. But it bothers me when a full-time professional make a terrible blunder. As I said before, this is like seeing a doctor forgot to wash his hands before an operation -- or a doctor in the mass media say people should not get H1N1 vaccinations because there is some risk associated with them. Of course professionals in all fields and all eras in history have made terrible blunders such as the Titanic disaster and the 2008 financial collapse. But in a healthy society, such events provoke public outrage, Congressional investigations, and reforms. The Wikipedia cold fusion article and most mass media articles are a mish-mash of rumors, amateur misinterpretations and ignorant mistakes. That is regrettable but nothing to get worked up about. If such articles were written by professionals it would be a travesty. Some of the 2004 DoE evaluations are travesties, especially #15. I wrote that, "it has no place in a serious scientific discussion, and it should be stricken from the record." - Jed
