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From: kort@hounx.UUCP (B.KORT)
Newsgroups: net.misc
Subject: Re: Joseph Newman's Energy Machine
Message-ID: <392@hounx.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 14-Nov-85 08:54:29 EST
Article-I.D.: hounx.392
Posted: Thu Nov 14 08:54:29 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 15-Nov-85 05:31:48 EST
References: <173@tulane.UUCP> <174@tulane.UUCP> <330@bcsaic.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Holmdel NJ
Lines: 11
Keywords: patent secret publication

According to US Patent Law, one cannot patent an idea.  One
must reduce the idea to practice, by building some prototype
which successfully employs the novel idea to perform its function.
If a proposed machine seemingly violates the laws of physics
(e.g. conservation of energy), the reduction to practice requirement
will resolve the question.  There were many clever schemes for
perpetual motion machines, which looked intriguing on paper, but
failed to operate as their inventors expected.  In most cases, the
flaw in the inventor's logic was subtle, and required a non-trivial
understanding of physics to uncover.  A few authors have compiled
some entertaining and informative reviews of such failed inventions.