NUMBER OF LINES: 999 001=Usr:0 Null User 06/30/87 20:34 Msg:0 Call:0 Lines:19 1$If you are in need of help, you need but ask... 2$************************* INSTALLED: 20 APR 89 *************************** 3$Welcome to BWMS II (BackWater Message System II) Mike Day System operator 4$************************************************************************** 5$GENERAL DISCLAIMER: BWMS II IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INFORMATION 6$ PLACED ON THIS SYSTEM. 7$BWMS II was created as an electronic bill board. BWMS II is a privately 8$owned and operated system which is currently open for use by the general 9$public. No restrictions are placed on the use of the system. As the 10$system is privately owned, I retain the right to remove any and all 11$messages which I may find offensive. Because of the limited size of the 12$system, it will be periodically purged of messages (only 999 lines of data 13$can be saved). To leave a message, type 'ENTER'. Use ctrl/C to get out 14$the ENTER mode. The message is automatically stored. If after entering 15$the message you find you made a mistake, use the replace command to 16$replace the line. To exit from the system, type 'BYE' then hang up. 17$Type 'HELP' to see other commands that are available on the system. 18$************************************************************************** 19$ 002=Usr:1 CISTOP MIKEY 04/20/89 16:36 Msg:3644 Call:20522 Lines:2 20 Remember: 186,000mps; It's not just a good idea, it's the law! 21 ************************************************************************** 003=Usr:1 CISTOP MIKEY 04/20/89 17:09 Msg:3647 Call:20526 Lines:512 22 Path: percival!littlei!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!apple!bloom-beacon! 23 ai-lab!cracraft 24 From: cracraft@wheaties.ai.mit.edu (Stuart Cracraft) 25 Newsgroups: alt.fusion 26 Subject: Pons and Fleischmann paper (at last!) 27 Message-ID: <1755@gluteus.ai.mit.edu> 28 Date: 18 Apr 89 04:12:03 GMT 29 Organization: Toshiba U.S. Research & Development (714-583-xxxx) 30 Lines: 542 31 32 Electrochemically Induced Nuclear Fusion of Deuterium 33 34 Martin Fleischmann 35 Department of Chemistry 36 The University 37 Southhampton, Hants. S09 5NH 38 ENGLAND 39 40 Stanley Pons* 41 Department of Chemistry 42 University of Utah 43 Salt Lake city, UT 84112 USA 44 45 Submitted to Journal of Electroanalytical Chemistry March 11, 46 1989; in final form March 20, 1989 47 48 * To whom correspondence should be addressed. 49 50 INTRODUCTION 51 52 The strange behavior of electrogenerated hydrogen dissolved in 53 palladium has been studied for well over 100 years and, latterly 54 these studies have been extended to deuterium and tritium [1]. 55 For discharge of deuterium from alkaline solutions of heavy water 56 we have to consider the reaction steps: 57 58 - - 59 D O + e -> D + OD (i) 60 2 ads 61 62 - - 63 D + D O + e -> D + OD (ii) 64 ads 2 2 65 66 . 67 . 68 D -> D (iii) 69 ads lattice 70 . 71 . 72 . 73 D + D -> D (iv) 74 ads ads 2 75 76 It is known that at potentials negative to +50 mV on the 77 reversible hydrogen scale the lattice is in the beta-phase, 78 hydrogen is in the form of protons (as shown by the migration in 79 an electric field) and is highly mobile (D = 10E-7 cm*cm/s for 80 the alpha-phase at 300K). 81 82 The overall reaction path of D2 evolution consists of steps (i) 83 and (ii) [2] so that the chemical potential of dissolved D+ is 84 normally determined by the relative rates of these two steps. 85 The establishment of negative overpotentials on the outgoing 86 interface of palladium membrane electrodes for hydrogen discharge 87 at the ingoing interface [3] (determined by the balance of all the 88 steps i) to (iv)) demonstrates that the chemical potential can be 89 raised to high values. Our own experiments with palladium 90 diffusion tubes indicate that values as high as 0.8 eV can 91 readily be achieved [4] (values as high as 2eV may be achievable). 92 The astronomical magnitude of this value can readily be 93 appreciated; attempts to attain this level via the compression of 94 D2 (step (iv)) would require pressures in excess of 10E24 95 atmospheres. In spite of this high compression, D2 is not 96 formed; i.e. the s-character of the electron density around the 97 nuclei is very low and the electrons form part of the band 98 structure of the overall system. A feature which is of special 99 interest and which prompted the present investigation is the very 100 high H/D separation factor for absorbed hydrogen and deuterium 101 (see Figs. 4 and 6 of Ref [2]). This can only be explained if 102 the H+ and D+ in the lattice behave as classical oscillators 103 (possibly as delocalised species) i.e. they must be in very 104 shallow potential wells. In view of the very high compression 105 and mobility of the dissolved species there must therefore be a 106 significant number of close collisions and one can pose the 107 question: would nuclear fusion of D+ such as 108 109 2 2 3 1 110 D + D -> T(1.01 MeV) + H(3.02 MeV) (v) 111 or 112 2 2 3 113 D + D -> He(0.82 MeV) + n(2.45 MeV) (vi) 114 115 be feasible under these conditions? 116 117 EXPERIMENTAL 118 119 In the work reported here D+ was compressed galvanostatically 120 into sheet, rod and cube samples of Pd from 0.1 M LiOD in 99.5% 121 D2O + 0.5% H2O solutions. Electrode potentials were measured 122 with respect to a Pd-D reference electrode charged to the alpha- 123 beta-phase equilibrium. We report here experiments of several 124 kinds: 125 126 1) Calorimetric measurements of heat balances at low current 127 densities (=1.6 mA/cm*cm) were made using a 2mm x 8cm x 8cm Pd 128 sheet cathode surrounded by a large Pt sheet counter electrode. 129 Measurements were carried out in Dewar cells maintained in a 130 large constant temperature water bath (300K), the temperature 131 inside the cell and of the water bath being monitored with 132 Beckman thermometers. The Heavy Water Equivalent of the Dewar 133 and contents and the rate of Newton's law of cooling losses were 134 determined by addition of hot D2O and by following the cooling 135 curves. 136 137 2) Calorimetric measurements at higher current densities 138 were carried out using 1, 2 and 4mm diameter x 10 cm long Pd rods 139 surrounded by a Pt wire anode wound on a cage of glass rods. The 140 Dewars were fitted with resistance heaters for the determination 141 of Newton's law of cooling losses; temperatures were measured 142 using calibrated thermistors. Experiments with rods up to 2 cm 143 in diameter will be reported elsewhere [5]. Stirring in these 144 experiments (and in those listed under 1)) was achieved, where 145 necessary, by gas sparging using electrolytically generated D2. 146 Measurements at the highest current density reported here 147 (512 mA/cm*cm) were carried out using rods of 1.25 cm length; the 148 results given in Table 1 have been rescaled to those for rods of 149 10 cm length. 150 151 3) The spectrum of gamma-rays emitted from the water bath due to 152 the (n,gamma) reaction 153 154 1 2 155 H + n(2.45 MeV) -> D + gamma(2.5 MeV) (vii) 156 157 was determined using a sodium iodide crystal scintillation 158 detector and a Nuclear Data ND-6 High Energy Spectrum analyzer. 159 The spectrum was taken above the water immediately surrounding an 160 0.8 x 10 cm Pd-rod cathode charged to equilibrium; it was 161 corrected for background by subtracting the spectrum over a sink 162 (containing identical shielding materials) 10 m from the water 163 bath. 164 165 The neutron flux from a cell containing a 0.4 x 10 cm Pd-rod 166 electrode was measured using an Harwell Neutron Dose Equivalent 167 Rate Monitor, Type 95/0945-5. The counting efficiency of this 168 Bonner-sphere type instrument for 2.5 MeV neutrons was estimated 169 to be 2.4 x 10E-4 and was further reduced by a factor of 100 due 170 to the unfavorable configuration (the rod opposite the BF filled 171 3 172 detector). The background count was determined by making 173 measurements 50m from the laboratory containing the experiments; 174 both locations were in the basement of a new building which is 175 overlain by 5 floors of concrete. In view of the low counting 176 efficiency, counting was carried out for 50 hours. Measurements 177 on a 0.4 x 10 cm rod electrode run at 64 mA/(cm*cm) gave a 178 neutron count 3 times above that of the background. 179 180 4) The rate of generation/accumulation of tritium was 181 measured using similar cells (test tubes sealed with Parafilm) 182 containing 1 mm diameter x 10 cm Pd rod electrodes. Measurements 183 on the D/T separation factor alone were made using an identical 184 cell containing a 1 mm diameter x 10 cm Pt electrode (this 185 measurement served as a blank as the H/D separation factors on Pd 186 and Pt are known to be closely similar). 1 ml samples of the 187 electrolyte were withdrawn at 2 day intervals, neutralised with 188 potassium hydrogen phthalate and the T-content was determined 189 using Ready Gel liquid scintillation "cocktail" and a Beckman LS 190 5000 TD counting system. The counting efficiency was determined 191 to be about 45% using standard samples of T-containing solutions. 192 The beta-decay scintillation spectrum was determined using the 193 counting system. 194 195 In these experiments standard additions of 1 ml of the electrolyte 196 were made following sampling. Losses of D2O due to electrolysis 197 in these and all the other experiments recorded here were made up 198 using D2O alone. A record of the volume of D2O additions was 199 made for all the experiments. 200 201 In all of the experiments reported here all connections were 202 fitted into Kel-F caps and the caps were sealed to the glass 203 cells using Parafilm. 204 205 Results for the mass spectroscopy of the evolved gases and full 206 experimental details for all the measurements will be given 207 elsewhere [5]. 208 209 RESULTS 210 211 1) and 2) 212 213 In the calorimetric experiments we can set lower and upper bounds 214 on the rates of Joule heating depending on whether reactions (i), 215 (ii) , and (iv) are balanced by 216 217 - - 218 4OD -> D O + O + 4e (viii) 219 2 2 220 221 at the anode or by the reverse of reactions (i), (ii), and (iv). 222 In the former case the Joule heating is simply the cell current 223 multiplied by (cell voltage - 1.54 V) where 1.54 V is the cell 224 voltage at which reactions (i), (ii), and (iv) balanced by (viii) 225 are thermoneutral: irreversibilities in the electrode reactions 226 and ohmic resistance losses have identical effects on the Joule 227 heating. However, if reactions (i), (ii), and (iv) are reversed 228 at the anode and, equally, if the reverse of reactions (viii) 229 contributes to the cathode processes, then we get an upper bound 230 to the Joule heating which is simply the cell current multiplied 231 by the cell voltage. 232 233 We have confirmed in long duration experiments that the rates of 234 addition of D2O to the cells required to maintain constant 235 volumes are those for reactions (i), (ii), and (iv) balanced by 236 reaction (viii). Furthermore, subtraction of the ohmic potential 237 losses in solution for the cell containing the large Pt-anode 238 shows that the electrolysis of D2O is the dominant process, i.e. 239 we have to assume that the Joule heating is close to the lower 240 bound. 241 242 Table 1 gives the results for experiments designed to cover the 243 effects of electrolyte geometry, electrode size, current density 244 (or overpotential) method of operation, etc. The nature and 245 large magnitude of the effects can be appreciated from the 246 following observations: 247 248 a) excess enthalpy generation is markedly dependent on the 249 applied current density (i.e. magnitude of the shift in the 250 chemical potential) and is proportional to the volume of the 251 electrodes; i.e. we are dealing with a phenomenon in the bulk of 252 the Pd-electrodes. 253 254 b) enthalpy generation can exceed 10 watts/(cm*cm*cm) of the 255 palladium electrode; this is maintained for experimental times in 256 excess of 120 hours during which typically heat in excess of 257 4MJ/(cm*cm*cm) of electrode volume was liberated. It is 258 inconceivable that this could be due to anything but nuclear 259 processes. 260 261 c) in research on thermonuclear fusion, the effects are 262 expressed as a percentage of the breakeven where 100% breakeven 263 implies that the thermal output equals the input (neglecting the 264 power required to drive the equipment). In electrochemical 265 experiments we have additionally to take into account whether 266 breakeven should be based on the Joule heat or total energy 267 supplied to the cell. Furthermore, in the latter case the energy 268 supplied depends on the nature of the anode reaction. Table 2 269 lists three such figures of merit and it can be seen that we can 270 already make reasonable projections to 1000%. Some of the 271 factors important to scale-up are already apparent from Tables 1 272 and 2. 273 274 d) the effects have been determined using D2O alone. 275 Projections to the use of appropriate D2O/DTO/T2O mixtures (as is 276 commonly done in fusion research) might therefore be expected to 277 yield thermal excesses in the range 10E3 - 10E4 % (even in the 278 absence of spin polarisation) with enthalpy releases in excess of 279 10 kW/(cm*cm*cm). We have to report here that under the 280 conditions of the last experiment even using D2O alone, a 281 substantial portion of the cathode fused (melting point 1554 282 degrees C) part of it vapourised and the cell and contents and a 283 part of the fume cupboard housing the experiment were destroyed. 284 285 TABLE 1. Generation of excess enthalpy in Pd-cathodes as a 286 function of current density and electrode size. 287 288 Cube Sheet Rod Rod Rod electrode type 289 290 1x1x1 cm 0.2x8x8cm 0.4x10cm 0.2x10cm 0.1x10cm dimensions 291 292 125 0.8 8 8 8 current density (mA/cm*cm) 293 294 WARNING 0.153 .153 .036 .0075 excess rate of heating 295 (watts/cm*cm*cm) 296 IGNITION? 297 (see text) 0 .122 .115 .095 excess specific rate of 298 heating (watts/cm*cm*cm) 299 300 250 1.2 64 64 64 current density (mA/cm*cm) 301 302 .027 1.751 .493 .079 excess rate of heating 303 (watt) 304 305 .0021 1.39 1.57 1.01 excess specific rate of 306 heating (watts/cm*cm*cm) 307 308 1.6 512 512 512 current density * 309 (mA/cm*cm) * 310 311 0.79 26.8 3.02 .654 excess rate of heading 312 (watt) * 313 314 .0061 21.4 9.61 8.33 excess specific rate of 315 heating (watts/cm*cm*cm) 316 317 * Measured on electrodes of length 1.25 cm and rescaled to 10 cm. 318 319 TABLE 2. Generation of excess enthalpy in Pd rod cathodes 320 expressed as a percentage of breakeven values. 321 322 0.4x10cm 0.2x10cm 0.1x10cm dimensions 323 8 8 8 current density (mA/cm*cm) 324 111 62 23 excess heating * (% of breakeven) * 325 53 27 12 excess heating** (% of breakeven) ** 326 1224 286 60 excess heating*** (% of breakeven) *** 327 64 64 64 current density (mA/cm*cm) 328 66 46 19 excess heating * (% of breakeven) * 329 45 29 11 excess heating** (% of breakeven) ** 330 438 247 79 excess heating*** (% of breakeven) *** 331 512 512 512 current density (mA/cm*cm) 332 59 14 5 excess heating * (% of breakeven) * 333 48 11 5 excess heating** (% of breakeven) ** 334 839 189 81 excess heating*** (% of breakeven) *** 335 336 * % of breakeven based on Joule heat supplied to 337 cell and anode reaction 338 339 - - 340 4OD -> 2D O + O + 4e 341 2 2 342 343 ** % of breakeven based on total energy supplied to 344 cell and anode reaction 345 346 - - 347 4OD -> 2D O + O + 4e 348 2 2 349 350 *** % of breakeven based on total energy supplied to 351 cell and for an electrode reaction 352 353 - - 354 D + 2OD -> 2D O + 4e 355 2 2 356 357 with a cell potential of 0.5V. 358 359 2 2 360 All %'s based on D + D reactions, i.e. no projection 361 to [next line lost in scanning] 362 363 3) Fig. 1A illustrates the gamma-ray spectra which have been 364 recorded in regions above the water bath adjacent to the 365 electrolytic cells and this spectrum confirms that 2.45 MeV 366 neutrons are indeed generated in the electrodes by reaction (vi). 367 These gamma-rays are generated by the reaction (vii). We note 368 that the intensities of the spectra are weak and, in agreement 369 with this, the neutron flux calculated from the measurements with 370 the dosimeter is of the order 4 x 10E4 1/s for a 0.4 x 10 cm rod 371 electrode polarised at 64 mA/(cm*cm). 372 373 Figure 1A 374 375 gamma-ray spectrum recorded above the water bath containing the 376 rod cathodes. Measurements carried out with a sodium iodide 377 crystal scintillation detector and a Nuclear Data ND-6 High 378 Energy Spectrum Analyzer. The background in this region (taken 379 over a water bath 5 m from the experiment containing identical 380 shielding materials) is level at about 400 counts; spectrum 381 accumulation time: 48 hours. 382 383 4) In agreement with this low neutron flux, the accumulation 384 in the electrolyte also indicates a low rate for reaction (v) 385 (which has been found to be somewhat faster than (vi) in high 386 energy physics experiments). The time dependent fraction of 387 tritium in the solvent can be shown to follow(?) 388 389 (1): 390 -(1 + lambda * delta )*Rt 391 D,T 392 alpha = gamma * exp --------------------------- 393 T T lambda * S * N 394 D,T 395 . 396 397 delta 398 D,T 399 + ((1 + lambda)gamma + beta/R) * --------------------- * -+ 400 T (1 + lambda*delta ) | 401 D,T | 402 | 403 +-------------------------------------------+ 404 | 405 | -(1 + lambda * delta )Rt 406 | D,T 407 +--> * (1 - exp --------------------------) 408 lambda*S * N 409 D,T 410 411 where: 412 413 gamma is the fraction of T in the electrolyte/solvent feeds, 414 T 415 416 lambda * R (atoms T/s, here 4x10E11 atoms/s) is the sampling rate 417 which has been assumed to be continuous in time, 418 419 N is the total number of atoms of D in the Dewar (14.6x10E23), 420 421 S is the D/T separation factor, 422 D,T 423 424 beta is the rate of the nuclear reaction (v) (events/s), and 425 426 R is the rate of electrolysis expressed as atoms D 1/s 427 (here 1.24x10E14(?) atoms/s) 428 429 It can be seen that the final value alpha for the cell containing 430 T 431 the Pt-cathode (for which we assume beta = 0) is: 432 A 433 434 . 435 delta 436 D,T 437 alpha = ((1 + lambda)*gamma + beta/R) * ---------------------- (1) 438 T T (1 + lambda * delta ) 439 D,T 440 441 Blank experiments using Pt-cathodes (which have very similar 442 separation factors to Pd) indicate little accumulation of DTO so 443 that S is close to unity under the conditions of our 444 D,T 445 experiments. DTO accumulates in the cells containing Pd cathodes 446 to the extent of about 100dpm/ml of electrolyte and Fig. 1B 447 demonstrates that the species accumulated is indeed tritium. Use 448 of equation (2) then indicates that reaction (v) takes place to 449 the extent of 1-2 x 10E4 atoms/s which is consistent with the 450 measurements of the neutron flux, bearing in mind the difference 451 in radii. On the other hand the data on enthalpy generation 452 would require rates for reactions (v) and (vi) in the range 10E11- 453 10E14 atoms/s. It is evident that reactions (v) and (vi) are 454 only a small part of the overall reaction scheme and that other 455 nuclear processes must be involved. 456 457 (see figure on trailing pages) 458 459 Figure 1B 460 461 beta-ray disintegration scintillation spectrum measured with a 462 Bockman LS5000TD counter-spectrometer. 463 464 DISCUSSION 465 466 We realise that the results reported here raise more questions 467 than they provide answers and that much further work is required 468 on this topic. The observation of the generation of neutrons and 469 of tritium from electrochemically compressed D+ in Pd cathode is 470 in itself a very surprising result and, evidently, it is 471 necessary to reconsider the quantum mechanics of electrons and 472 deuterons in such host lattices. In particular we must ask: is 473 it possible to achieve a fusion rate of 10E-19 1/s for reactions 474 (v) and (vi) for clusters of deuterons (presumably located in the 475 octahedral lattice positions) at typical energies of 1eV? 476 Experiments on isotopically substituted hydrides of well defined 477 structures might well answer this question. 478 479 The most surprising feature of our results however, is that 480 reactions (v) and (vi) are only a small part of the overall 481 reaction scheme and that the bulk of the energy release is due to 482 an hitherto unknown nuclear process or processes (presumably 483 again due to clusters of deuterons). We draw attention again to 484 the very large magnitude of the effects in the confinement 485 parameter diagram, fig. 2. We note that the values of the 486 confinement parameter are extremely high compared to conventional 487 research on fusion (high particle densities, lifetimes of 10E2 - 488 10E4 years) while the chemical potential is very low compared to 489 the equivalent parameter, (T), in those experiments. It is 490 evident that diagrams of this kind require extension in the third 491 dimension for electrochemical experiments since the results are 492 so markedly dependent on electrode volume (increase of current 493 density displaces the points in a vertical direction). We draw 494 attention again to the fact that the experiments already carried 495 out are close to the breakeven point; further work to extend the 496 electrode dimension (and to establish the nature of the processes 497 responsible for the enthalpy release) is in progress. Finally, we 498 urge the use of extreme caution in such experiments: a plausible 499 interpretation of the experiment using the Pd-cube electrode is 500 in terms of ignition. Projection of the values in Tables 1 and 2 501 to more extreme conditions indicate that this may indeed be 502 feasible. 503 504 Figure 2 505 2 2 506 Confinement parameter-chemical potential-size diagram for D + D 507 2 3 508 fusion reaction in Pd-cathodes, projection to the D + T 509 reaction. 510 511 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 512 513 We wish to thank Johnson Matthey PLC for the loan of precious 514 metals for this project. 515 516 LITERATURE REFERENCES 517 518 1. W. M. Mueller, J. T. Blacklodge, G. G. Libowitz, "Metal 519 Hydrides", Academic Press, New York (1968); G. Bambakadis, Ed., 520 "Metal Hydrides", Plenum Press (1981). 521 522 2. B. Dandapani and M. Fleischmann, Journal of Electroanalytical 523 Chemistry, 12 (1972) 323.2.39 524 525 3. A. N. Frumkin and N. A. Aladzhalova, Acta Physicochim. 526 U.R.S.S., 2 (1940) 1.9 527 528 4. Unpublished results 529 530 5. M. Fleischmann, M. Hawkins, and B. Pons, to be published. 531 532 533 ************************************************************************* 004=Usr:84 Michael Miller j 04/20/89 18:50 Msg:3648 Call:20529 Lines:22 534 535 &*&*&*&*'s 536 The paper above has the potential to change the world. (I'm 537 commenting on it, I didn't do the uploading.) 538 539 So many of the things we take for granted today did not exist 20 years 540 ago. Many of the things we will be using in 20 years do not exist today. 541 Cold Fusion combined with the possibility of room temputure super-conductors 542 are the greatest scientific discoveries of this decade. 543 544 If things work out as it appears they will, the face of the world 545 will be changed radicly. 546 547 I remember hearing that somebody said 'may you live in interesting 548 times.' and meaning it as a curse. It is sad that anybody would be that 549 blind to the potential of the progress and the future it can bring. 550 551 So, comments? 552 553 An Astral Dreamer 554 &*&*&*&*'s 555 005=Usr:219 Friar Mossback 04/20/89 19:12 Msg:3649 Call:20530 Lines:9 556 [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] 557 I hope it is all true. 558 559 The paper that appeared to all in the Inn roused even sleepy old Friar. 560 A force greater than Magik itself had been foretold in the past, and the 561 paper that we read said it might be coming soon. This would be the end 562 of life as we know it. It would become better. 563 Where is that mole fellow, he might enjoy hereing about this too! 564 [][][][][][][][][][][][][] Friar [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][] 006=Usr:465 Gregg Harris 04/20/89 19:42 Msg:3650 Call:20531 Lines:59 565 )(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*)(*&)(*&&)(*&)(*& 566 567 Doom, Dispare, Distruction. 568 569 "When will my jailor release me?" asked the Mole to himself. 570 571 "NOW" boomed a voice around him. 572 573 the voice had come from a short aelf, a full 6" shorter then the others. 574 the aelf, later introduced as rodrigues, opened the thick jail door 575 with a strange square key and lead the Mole into a small room next to his 576 previous prison. 577 578 "So, your the Mole. What were you doing down here?" asked rodrigues. 579 580 "Me? I heard a noise coming from the floor of my room, so I dug down 581 to investigate." 582 583 "Well! A curious type are you. We have ways to deal with curious 'types." 584 said rodrigues. 585 586 "So can I go now?" asked the Mole. 587 588 "GO! YOU WANT TO GO! " 589 "SURE We'll let you go, go to the other side you will!" 590 "Right into their hands, Tell them our floor plans. help them plan their 591 attack" 592 "Sure, We'll let you go" 593 594 "Just asking." whispered the Mole. 595 596 "What did you say? whispering into a mic no doubt." 597 "Manuel, get in here!" 598 An aelf walked into the room and saluted. 599 "Private Manuel reporting for duty" 600 601 "Private, search this prisoner." ordered Rodrigues. 602 603 The aelf frisked the mole, pulling out from the numerous folds of 604 skin; two cans of dehydrated worms for long journeys, a can of 605 Fosters', claw ointment to keep those clas nice and sharp, and 606 the last months edition of playmole with pictures cut out for 607 reading material. 608 609 "Obviously packed for a long journey, now aren't we mr. mole" said 610 rodrigues sarcastically. 611 612 "Oh, yea. We moles don't have any real permanent homes to speak 613 of, so we always carry the bare neccesities with us at all times. 614 makes livin' real cheap." said the Mole. 615 616 "Humpf! Manuel, stuff this overgrown rodent into the cell. i'll 617 deal with him later." said rodrigues. 618 619 As Manuel started to shove the Mole back to the cage the mole said 620 "Well, can't I at least keep the magazine.." 621 622 The Mole 623 )((*&)(*&&)(*&)(*&()*&&)(*&)(*&(*&()*)(*& 007=Usr:84 Michael Miller j 04/20/89 21:46 Msg:3651 Call:20535 Lines:28 624 . 625 626 "What do you mean when you say your quiting College? You must 627 be nearly done by now." 628 "No, I've got the better part of another year to go." 629 "Its only one more year then, why not get it done with?" 630 "Because, I'm sick of the whole thing. Most of the Profesors don't 631 care, the subjects I'm interested in are always taught by people who 632 really should find another field to work in... And, because I want to." 633 "Aren't you being selfish? How hard can it really be? You just go 634 to class and you do your homework and in three terms you'll be done." 635 "But I can't do that anymore. I've been grinding myself down for 636 three and 1/2 years now, and there just isn't much left. I need to grow, 637 and I'm being stunted." 638 "Think about your future, do you know what this will do for your 639 earning power?" 640 "I have thought about it. I know someday I'll have to go back if I 641 Really want to accomplish the goals I've set for myself. But right now 642 I can earn fairly good money, and I'm still young. I'll have time later." 643 "Thats what my father thought, he never did go back." 644 "But he had a family, and a full time job..." 645 "And you won't in a few years?" 646 "I just don't want to talk about it ok?" 647 "You can't get away from it you know. I am you after all." 648 649 650 . 651 008=Usr:4 Milchar 04/21/89 01:07 Msg:3652 Call:20541 Lines:44 652 ::: BGN CYBER-LINK: ID F78B:9EA1:C88D CODED: SEMAPHORE ::: 653 The muted drone of a flycar interrupted Sem's fitful doze. He 654 jerked awake, a wild terror posessing him for a few moments. The 655 flycar passed on, not knowing or perhaps not caring to know about the 656 havoc it had wrought. Tremors wreaked Sem's thin body. Sleep 657 was his enemy, the little Death that tried to posess him. Sem fumbled 658 for his roll of blood-red derms that lay upon the very top of his 659 console, yearning for the reprieve they would lend him. 660 His body shook as he peeled the thin backing and applied the 661 time-release packet to his inner wrist. There it would deal out minute 662 quantities of the energy he desired. 663 The derm hit him with a rush of power. Every fiber of his body 664 sang with the drug's sweet song. It was very special stuff, made up 665 in a private chem-shop in Atlanta and coded to Sem's DNA. It cost half 666 of what Sem made on his job, but it was worth the price-- any price. 667 It gave Sem his edge. If a console jockey got wind of critical data 668 just ten minutes before anyone else, he could be rich for life. Sem 669 was good. Very good. He'd topped out the C-space aptitude test in 670 school- a talent that would have been worthless in another day and age, 671 but enabled Sem to live any way he wished. 672 Calmed now, Sem turned to his console. It was as unique as 673 Sem was, a towering monster of circuits, solder, and fiber-optic cable. 674 His keyboard resembled that of an organ, and his 'trodes hung from a 675 large hook on his left. It was custom-made, all of it. Factory 676 prototypes from all over the world meshed in a titanium-steel frame to 677 produce the most powerful ICE-cutter ever built. Sem felt like a god 678 at its controls, able to alter history with a few well-timed commands. 679 He carefully placed the 'trodes upon his head and adjusted 680 them for comfort. Nothing could be allowed to intrude upon his 681 concentration, once he was in the C-space matrix. In there, it could 682 be infect or be infected. Virus programs could cripple a console, 683 reduce its effectiveness, render it useless. It would be unable to 684 protect the operator from lethal feedback programs. Too many things 685 could go wrong on a "sick" console, which explained the dozens of 686 quality rigs on the black market that had been involved in one run 687 too many. Buying one was like playing Russian roulette. Never paid 688 to stay with one longer than you had to. Eventually all the luck ran 689 out-- or so superstition went. Jockeys that believed changed rigs 690 often, avoiding the end of the luck in each one. 691 Sem avoided the superstitious. He had faith in his console. 692 It wouldn't fail him. 693 Especially not on the most important run of his life... 694 ::: END CYBER-LINK: RUN TIME 00:10:45 CODED: SEMAPHORE ::: 695 ::: ADVERT: buy Silicon vallEy stoCk and pRoducE a forTune ::: 009=Usr:71 David Shult 04/21/89 12:19 Msg:3653 Call:20545 Lines:71 696 696969696969 697 APn 04/21 0451 Tanker Spill 698 By PAUL JENKINS Associated Press Writer 699 NAKED ISLAND, Alaska (AP) -- For a few seconds, Interior Secretary Manuel 700 Lujan Jr. tottered this way and that on an oil-slickened rock. A worker laborin 701 to rid the shore of gooey oil stepped in and saved him from an embarrassing 702 fall. 703 While Lujan and two congressman were touring a section of the Prince William 704 Sound shoreline Thursday, a giant Soviet oil skimmer was testing its booms at 705 Resurrection Bay some 80 miles west in the Gulf of Alaska. 706 The Coast Guard plainly was delighted with the promise of progress brought b 707 the 425-foot Vaidogubsky, and gains made by a 120-foot Mr. Clean III, a skimmer 708 from Santa Barbara, Calif. 709 "This was a major step, having those two skimmers out there," said Coast 710 Guard Lt. Gary Stock, who was monitoring the cleanup in Anchorage. 711 Exxon spokesman Henry Beathard in Valdez estimated that more than 2 million 712 gallons of the 10.1 million-gallon spill was recoverable from the surface of th 713 gulf and Prince William Sound. The spill occurred March 24 after the tanker 714 Exxon Valdez hit Bligh Reef. 715 Lujan, Reps. Don Young, R-Alaska, and Curt Weldon, R-Pa., and a sizable 716 entourage flew from Valdez on Thursday by helicopter to Naked Island, a remote 717 beach 45 miles to the southwest. 718 The group got a look at the only area in Prince William Sound where shorelin 719 cleanup operations have started. Exxon estimates it has cleaned 2,100 feet of 720 the more than 300 miles of oil-splotched shore. 721 As Lujan inspected the cleanup effort, oil glistened off rocks or stood in 722 gleaming puddles in the bright sun. A black stain along the driftwood-strewn 723 beach marked the high-tide line. The smell of crude was strong. 724 From a distance, the shore was a palette of oil-smeared workers clad in hard 725 hats and bright orange, yellow and black rainwear. They used fire hoses to blas 726 oil off a 75-yard stretch of rocky beach as the sun played through the mist, 727 casting rainbows. 728 Landing craft laden with heavy equipment hugged the shore, and an oil skimme 729 dipped up the runoff from the beach facing McPherson Passage. 730 Lujan, wearing an orange float suit, picked his way to the end of the beach 731 nearest his aircraft, and in moments was posing with a fire hose for 732 photographs. 733 Before it was over, several of the secretary's traveling companions had 734 joined him. Laughing, they enthusiastically blasted the oily mess with such 735 force that it carried over a boom and into the water workers were trying to 736 protect. That sparked an obscenity laced tirade from people on a barge nearby. 737 Retreating, Lujan said, "It looks like this is going to be a big job to clea 738 up." 739 But he said it was too early for him to know what he would tell President 740 Bush come Monday. 741 Lujan and the congressmen were briefed early Thursday by the U.S. Coast Guar 742 in Valdez, then by Exxon officials. 743 Weldon, a member of the House's Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee, sai 744 he was unimpressed. 745 "There were a lot of people covering their rear ends," he said. 746 Weldon noted the two briefings covered essentially the same ground, "but the 747 were completely, diametrically opposed." 748 He said the question that must be answered is why -- if there were a 749 contingency plan -- it was not implemented almost immediately after the spill. 750 Young credited the beach workers with making some headway. 751 "They're making progress, that's the big thing," he said. 752 Vice President Dan Quayle will stop in Anchorage and Valdez on May 4-5 as he 753 returns from a Pacific Rim excursion and will tour spill sites, U.S. Sen. Frank 754 Murkowski, R-Alaska, said. 755 756 So when will Bush and his people 757 and EXXON take the oil spill seriously? So how much higher will gasoline price 758 s go before there is a consumer revolt? How much are you doing to express your 759 dissatisfaction with the handling of the environment? 760 761 B O Y C O T T E X X O N---BOYCOTT EXXON---B O Y C O T T E X X O N 762 763 764 696969696969696969 765 766 010=Usr:131 THE VISION 04/21/89 15:34 Msg:3654 Call:20551 Lines:3 767 Fastest fill on a disk I've ever seen. 768 --THE VISION 769 011=Usr:84 Michael Miller j 04/21/89 17:35 Msg:3655 Call:20556 Lines:15 770 &*&*&*&*'s 771 Turbo Pascal 5 is really nice. Not only the language, but all the support 772 stuff as well. Some of the things you can do are really neat. 773 774 It seems that the tools have finally caught up with the IBM's 775 kamilian nature. You can tell what sort of space you've got on the 776 screnn, and lots of other neat stuff. Plus it is nearly trivial to 777 write a TSR. (Though I don't know how hard it once was, I'm writting my 778 first right now.) 779 780 Now, If we could only get rid of that 640k limet. 781 782 An Astral Dreamer 783 &*&*&*&*'s 784 012=Usr:131 THE VISION 04/21/89 17:57 Msg:3656 Call:20557 Lines:9 785 __T_H_E__V_I_S_I_O_N___ 786 787 Lurking up a storm... 788 789 Hey AD how's it going? 790 791 _*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_ 792 793 013=Usr:465 Gregg Harris 04/21/89 18:59 Msg:3657 Call:20558 Lines:9 794 )(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&(*& 795 Lurk mode. 796 797 Der svingee on der svango. 798 799 Huh? 800 801 The Lurking Mole. 802 )(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(*& 014=Usr:465 Gregg Harris 04/21/89 21:16 Msg:3658 Call:20561 Lines:7 803 )(*&)(*&)*&)(*&)(*&)(*&)(**&)(&)(*&(& 804 SSSHHH. I'm huntin' luwrkwers. hehehe. 805 806 There's one now. bang bang. 807 808 The Mole 809 )(*&)(*&((*)*&((*)&()**&)(*&((*)&&()** 015=Usr:33 Mike Stanfill 04/21/89 21:50 Msg:3659 Call:20563 Lines:5 810 /*/*/*/*/*/*/* 811 be vewwy vewwy awied... I'm hunting wurkers too... huhuhuhuhuhuh 812 Hey, you! Yeah, you! Wurker! Post somefing now owr I'w bwow youwr 813 bwains out! Youuuu scwewy wurkers.... 814 /*/*/*/*/*/*/* -swob (A Self-Willed OBjec{ and self-appointed LurkBuster) 016=Usr*53 prince dragon 04/21/89 22:43 Msg:3660 Call:20565 Lines:4 815 .-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-. 816 Oh good we are all in a *LURKER war* HHHMmmmmm 817 (that was in post mode) 818 .-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.prince dragon aks dragon@agora 017=Usr:84 Michqel ]iller j 04/21/89 23:09 Msg:3661 Call:20567 Lines:52 819 &*&*&*&*'s 820 I'm fine Vision. Going through a spat of the blues, but I'll survive. 821 822 An Astral Dreamer 823 &*&*&*&*'s 824 825 . 826 The new console was in. On the outside it was shiny and blue, but 827 in was what was on the inside that counted. Kit wistled while reading 828 the specs. He'd heard about this model some months back, and had been 829 waiting for it ever since. 830 Berry sat on the couch watching Kit. After listening to Kit whistle 831 and sigh for several minutes he decided it was time to break in. 832 "Yo! ,Kit. I need my money." 833 "Money? Oh yeah, Payday. Do you want it in the ussual place?" 834 "Sure, I've got a shipment comyng yn tommorow..." 835 Kit grew more distant. "Fine, I'll take care of it somtime before 836 tonight." 837 "Look man, don't be playing those mind games with me. You think I 838 like my life?" 839 "Look, relax. I didn't mean to upset you.0I just don't like to 840 hear about you and your drugs." 841 "Hey man, we all got to get by somehow. Take you away from the 842 net for more then a week and you'd be a basket case. Can't even go 843 outside. Atleast I don't have those proble}c." 844 Kit walked over to one of the chairs that sat by the small table 845 in his dining area and sat down. "It's all got to come down you know." 846 "Sh*t, your not going off on that kick again are you?" 847 "What Kick? I'm just telling you straight and true that all the C*ap 848 we put up with has got to end." 849 "I'd really thought you were over that. Man, can't you understand that 850 the human race just doesn't give a d*mn anymore? We're on the road to 851 extinction in dxe fqst lane." 852 "Hey, its not to late." 853 "It was to frigging late when we climbed down out of the trees. Something 854 just wasn't right. We've been working overtime since then to kill ourselves 855 off." 856 "I just can't believe that." 857 "Fine, don't face the facts. But don't be suprised when you get ground 858 under either." 859 "If I go down I'm going to take a lot of people with me." 860 "You just get to sounding older everyday. If your going to boar 861 me gith this Sh*t, atleast have the decency to do it quitly." 862 Kit sighed. "I'm all talk and no do." 863 "Glad to see you realize that. You used to be really great to." 864 "Yeah, well maybe I'm ready to start again." 865 "Its about time. Just remember though,Cerius wants you. Your still 866 his man." 867 "Yeah? Well I guess its about time I showed him what I'm going to be 868 doing for him from now on." 869 . 870 018=Usr:4 Milchar 04/21/89 23:47 Msg:366"0Cal|:20568 Lines:1 871 ++++++++ brief Milchlurk. Wow, talk about a fast disk. +++++++++++++++++++ 019=Usr:131 THE VISION 04/22/89 12:50 Msg:3663 Call:20576 Lines:11 872 ________T_H_E__V_I_S_I_O_N_L_U_R_K_E_R_______ 873 874 OH OH! I've been shot!! Ahhhhhhhhh! 875 876 HEY AD! 877 878 Glad to hear you are doing pretty 879 good. Well, not more to say so later! 880 881 _*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_ 882 020=Usr:84 Michael Mil|er j 04/22/89 13:32 Msg:3664 Call:20577 Lines:11 883 &*&*&*&*'s 884 I've been busy revising Patricks story. I'm going to be uploading the 885 latest (And probably last electronic.) Version to Enky, and possibly 886 alt.prose on usenet. 887 888 I've been thinking about the rest of the story, I may begin the next 889 part sometime soon. You'll see it here first! (Big deal Ah? :-) ) 890 891 An Astral Dreamer 892 &*&*&*&*'s 893 021=Usr:465 Gregg Harris 04/22/89 18:04 Msg:3665 Call:20%85 \ines:9 894 (*&)(*&&()**&&)((*&)((**)((*&)(*&)(*(*(&)(*&)((&((& 895 a hundred lines to finish this disk. com'on ever' body kill this disk off. 896 897 And now a word from our sponser. Aaaaiiigggghhhh!!!! 898 899 And a minute passed, and yet qnotxer minute passed ....... 900 901 The Languid Mole (Not knowing what Languid means) 902 )(*)(*&)(*&)((*&)(*&)(*&()*&()*&)*&()*&()(*(*&)(*& 022=Usr:84 Michael Miller j 04/22/89 19:01 Msg:3666 Call:20587 Lines:8 903 &*&*&*&*'s 904 Well, I sent the story off to alt.prose. And what happens? I find out that 905 there is atleast one glaring error. After writting something and then 906 reading it 15 times it gets a bit harder to notice these things. 907 908 An Astral Dreamer 909 &*&*&*&*'s 9!0 023=Usr:33 Mike Stanfill 04/22/89 19:31 Msg:3667 Call:20589 Lines:13 911 /*/*/*/*/*/*/* 912 Lines Remaining: 89 Disable LURKMODE 913 Hey what's the record for a disk fill around here? Are we even close? 914 I'd write more, but my "monitor"0is getting so bad I can hardly see what 915 I'm typing. Someday I'll learn to buy a decent monitor BEFORE I've had 916 the computer for several years. Sigh. MultiSync, here I come! 917 [related drivel deleted for lack of existence] 918 /*/*/*/*/*/*/* swob (A Self Willed OBject) 919 920 p.s. Smile, you could have been crushed by a giant meteorite 921 the other day! 922 923 /*/*/*/*/*/*/* 024=Usr:233 molusk the crab 04/22/89 22:05 Msg:3668 Call:20593 Lines:7 924 *:******************************* 925 76 lines to fill on this disk, 926 75 lines to fill. Write something 927 down and then wrap around, 928 73 lines to fill. 929 ********************************* 930 025=Usr:84 Michael Miller j 04/23/89 01:06 Msg:3669 Call:20598 Lines:10 931 &*&*&*&*'s 932 I heard about that meteor. Very rare event from what I've been able to find 933 out. Should be several million years more before we have to worry about 934 it. 935 936 Sigh, what am I doing awake at !qm a~yway? 937 938 An Astral Dreamer (Who did not always do his borders this way.) 939 &*&*&*&*'s 940 026=Usr:84 Michael Miller j 04/23/89 12:33 Msg:3670 Call:20605 Lines:6 941 &*&*&*&*'s 942 Mighty quit around here today. 943 944 An Astbal Dreamer (Don't be afraid to fill the disk.) 945 &*&*&*&*'s 946 027=Usr:228 Phoenix Polymorp 04/23/89 21:26 Msg:3671 Call:20611 Lines:2 947 Phoenix just lurking around.................. 948 ^P 028=Usr:53 prince dragon 04/23/89 22:35 Msg:3&72 Call:20612 Lines:3 949 .-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.prince dragon 950 a lurking we will go alurking we will go etc.. 951 .-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.-=-.1000days to go 029=Usr:33 Mike Stanfill 04/23/89 23:02 Msg:3673 Call:20613 Lines:11 952 /*/*/*/*/*/*/* 953 47 lines to go! Do I get a prize if I fill the rest? Too Bad! I ain't got 954 46 lines of stuff to say. Well, not important stuff anyway. 955 Hey, Astral, what *does* your border mean? Looks kinda like some 956 obfuscated S co~struct (address-of-contents-of-address-of-contents-of-...). 957 But then again by the same (exceedingly subtle compiler joke alert!) token, 958 mine is like a *really* important comment... hmmm.... I kinda like that! 959 And I thought it just looked nice! 960 */*/*/*/*/*/*/ swob (A Self-Willed OBject) 961 Ampersands, comments and splats, oh my! 962 */*/*/*/*/*/*/ 030=Usr:84 Michael Miller j 04/24/89 00:16 Msg:3674 Call:20615 Lines:32 963 &*&*&*&*'s 964 My border? Well, it started out looki~g like this '&*&*&*'s' and evolved into 965 what you see it as now over a couple of months. (I'm working hard to become a 966 backwater historian, have read all of 87,88 and 89 so far. Now its time to 967 go back to the real early days.) 968 969 As for what the boarder means... Well, I guess it just sort of went with my 970 handle. 971 972 A Historical note follows. 973 The first Inn was destroyed when backwater one was taken off line. When 974 backwater two came up (Nearly two years ag.) Q new slate was decreed. 975 Unfortunetly, things have meandered since then. The Inn was resurected las 976 {_t year, perhaps accidentally by Friar, who mentioned an etherial tavern. It w 977 as pick up on by Hagbard Celine first, and then one Trokyn Krka(sp?) followed 978 by Kurfur and myself. And no doubt others. A multi-author story started and 979 we meandered on for awhile before friar and Trokin dissapered. 980 981 I have been toying with a rather revised Inn in some of my story untries. 982 At the time I wrote them I did not know that the origional had been destroyed. 983 (It was at that time that many great names passed from the scene, Bard, the 984 psi master, voyeur, Green eyes, and others. 985 986 There has been qltogether to little story telling going on these last two 987 years, though things have been fairly decently here these last few months. I 988 sort of wonder why we never see CM make entries anymore... 989 990 Enough of my meanderings, I've filled e~ougx of this disk. It is time for me to 991 depart and leave the last few lines for others. 992 993 An Astral Dreamer 994 &*&*&*&*'s 031=Usr:71 David Shult 04/24/89 01:00 Msg:3675 Call:20616 Lines:4 995 BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON-- 996 -BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON- 997 --BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON 998 ---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXON---BOYCOTT EXXO 032=Usr:13 voyeur 04/24/89 01:51 Msg:3676 Call:20618 Lines:1 999 ::::::::O O:::01:54::::::voyeur - on the bottom:::::::04/24:::::::O O::::::::::