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@10.0.2.15>
Organization: South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
Distribution: world
:
Jay Thomas (jthomas@pluto.njcc.com) wrote:
: In article <30ffb912.29715481@pubnews.demon.co.uk>,
: malcolm@pigsty.demon.co.uk (Malcolm McMahon) wrote:
: 
: > On Fri, 19 Jan 1996 14:29:14 GMT, moonfish@sn.no wrote:
: > 
: > >I just saw in the news that CERN had managed to produce anti-matter,
: > >and that the energi potential of this is kind of imense. Maybe this is
: > >the thing for the future? 
: > >
: > 
: > No, it has potential as a high density energy storage system but it
: > costs far more energy to make than you can hope to get back.
: > 
: Theoretically speaking... there is nothing to prevent you from making
: antimatter w/o using energy. Simply "converting" ordinary matter into
: antimatter is a zero energy proposition. The energy comes from
: anhilliation of matter, not from the energy invested. Current techniques
: in producing antimatter, in fact, almost all possible techniques we know
: about now, require large amounts of energy. But...
: 
: > It would also be such a dangerous system I doubt we'd want in on a
: > planet we cared anything about. Probably useful for spaceships on of
: > these days.
: 
: Probably not too far from now too... not good to play w/ within a couple
: light minutes of earth though...:-) or at least i wouldn't recommend it...

Actually, anti-matter has been produced for many years... not in atomic 
form, actually just as anti-protons.  It would be a good fuel if 
production efficiency could be increased, and it is likely that it can 
be.  Anti-matter, as a fuel, would work like this.... methane would be 
used as a repellant... it would be mixed with a very small amount of 
anti-matter, causing radiation and heat.  This causes the gas to expand 
and jet out the back, as in ordinary rockets.  Not really so dangerous 
that you have to be a great distance away.... a rocket could even 
theoretically be launched from Earth orbit with this system...

I recommend Robert L. Forward's "Indistinguishable From Magic" as a 
source for more information on this and other cool stuff. =)


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