Talk-Polywell.org

It seems the fusion companies are all getting twitter accounts which is good because it facilitates news updates. Helion just started theirs.
https://twitter.com/Helion_Energy

I am trying to understand where Helion is, what their next step is (current prototype test goal), and when their next prototype is planned for?

Helion and MSNW LLC have had Twitter accounts for years as does David Kirtley. They also have a Facebook account and MSNW LLC has a Youtube account:
https://www.youtube.com/user/FusionDrivenRocket

They have not been very active on social media lately (except for the rare occasional post) ever since they got their next steps fully funded through ARPA-E and private investors.
As a side note, if Trump really kills ARPA-E, this is going to be a major blow for small fusion research groups in the US. Funding for small fusion projects in the US has been crap (pardon my french) and ARPA-E has been at least funding some of them.

Thanks Skipjack, yes, 8 tweets in 4 1/2 years. I will never use Facebook. How old is the latest Youtube upload? And their website is good as compared to EMC2. Sad, but a reflection of funding. Funny thing is that I can't tell if they are doing anything anymore.

mvanwink5 wrote:Thanks Skipjack, yes, 8 tweets in 4 1/2 years. I will never use Facebook. How old is the latest Youtube upload? And their website is good as compared to EMC2. Sad, but a reflection of funding. Funny thing is that I can't tell if they are doing anything anymore.

Oh yes, Helion is doing things
I posted a picture of the latest prototype a bit higher up. Helion is just focusing on development, now that they have a steady stream of funding. At this point, too much publicity hurts more than it helps.

Skipjack wrote: As a side note, if Trump really kills ARPA-E, this is going to be a major blow for small fusion research groups in the US. Funding for small fusion projects in the US has been crap (pardon my french) and ARPA-E has been at least funding some of them.

Astonishingly, the budget deal actually increases ARPA-E spending (at least a little). Not sure if there are any potential hurdles remaining, but I haven't heard of Trump threatening a veto... go science!

Anyone here actually communicated with Trump about Dark Horse Fusion projects and how close they are? Or this is just whining?

You mean, did he propose to slash half of ARPA-E's funding? Yes, yes he did.

Maui wrote:You mean, did he propose to slash half of ARPA-E's funding? Yes, yes he did.

IIRC, he proposed to cancel ARPA-E all together.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/won ... 03ffeeb7f9

Others, like the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), are being eyed for elimination due to a belief that the private sector can handle those functions better.

Which as we know, is not true.

I dunno, business climate and tax laws change, investment in America might become worthwhile again. Also repatriation of trillions from overseas I have heard has been an impediment to investments in the US. So don't overlook such details.

mvanwink5 wrote:I dunno, business climate and tax laws change, investment in America might become worthwhile again. Also repatriation of trillions from overseas I have heard has been an impediment to investments in the US. So don't overlook such details.

I will believe it, when I see it. So far, I have no hope.

Say there was a big corporate tax break and repatriation of trillions... this would certainly help the US economy (possibly at the severe expense of our kids?), but I suspect not so much help high-risk ventures like fusion. If someone is looking for a high-risk, big-payoff investment, the individual tax climate of the host country is not going to dent the equation too much... say in the small chance of a big win, is it really going to affect a decision to invest if the win would be a 10,000% profit vs maybe a 11,000% profit after taxes? Doubt it.

It would make a much bigger difference for industries where the risk is low and the profit more incremental (wind and solar for instance).

Gov research is often key to creating the technology that can launch new industries (computing and the Internet, for example).

With the vast potential benefit of fusion power or any other cheap and US-based energy, it's somewhat stomach churning that we prop up the legacy cash-cow oil business with almost $5B in annual tax breaks while $350M for ARPA-E is considered a pleasant surprise.

The $5 bn figure seems to be politicians peddling a view by picking at the tax treatment of oil and gas and calling various things subsidies and tax breaks. In these days of partisan non-facts, it has no credibility. Every company has allowable costs for tax purposes. The belief that this amounts to oil and gas subsidy hinges on the ignorance of the audience.

Industry sources say that (in 2012(?)) the oils and gas industry had a net tax rate of 44% compared to 26% for other industrials, and paid $85 million a DAY to the treasury (www.api.org). This is doubtless a partial view as well, but sounds like hard fact it would be difficult to lie about, contrary to the above.

Hi there, RERT! Been a while....

Yes, many industries do have special breaks and subsidies that apply to them, so I suppose oil is not terribly special in that regard. Still doesn't make it right or or make it not a subsidy.

I bet the effective tax rate is (besides being a dubious cherry picking of data) related much more to the amount of profit regularly generated in the oil industry.

Regardless, wish US was spending more than $350M on new energy research

Hi Maui! Yes, you'd think the US could manage the equivalent of a cup of coffee each per YEAR on fusion research. Put like that, I think my Saturday is going to end with a stiff drink....

Few politicians have any science background, and zero have any ability to grasp plasma science. Even the so called science journalists have no grasp and look for safe reporting opinions from institutional physicists who have safe careers in the bureaucracy of massive projects like ITER that offer full 40 year careers in one gig.

The politicians only want to look like they are supporting the latest boutique trends in science that are PC. Even the Dark Horse fusion companies genuflect to ITER in fear of vicious attacks behind doors, and hope at best to gather some escaped crumbs off the floor.

The reality is that no one with an oak desk or wears white bed sheets wants near term fusion. $Trillions at stake. That is what my tinfoil hatted protected brain imagines.