Riding the Tachyon Field:
                    Experiments in Antigravity Engineering.

                         By "Poker Face", 23 July 1994
                     (C) 1994 Three Card Monte Productions
        Free Electronic Distribution Granted, All Other Rights Reserved

              .------------.
        ------|  Abstract  |-------------------------------------------
              `------------'

        This article presents, by way of background, a well known theory
        of gravitation and proposes an experimental verification of
        this theory.  If the theory is proven by this experiment, the
        experiment implies a mechanism by which a superluminal magnetic
        field can be used to direct ambient chaotic tachyons so as to
        locally negate the gravitational attraction of massive bodies.

              .-----------------.
        ------|  To the Reader  |--------------------------------------
              `-----------------'

        The following is an experiment which I have never performed, due
        to lack of resources and time.  It is a test I propose for a
        theory of gravitation which seems to have some acceptance in the
        literature and the popular press.  I encourage others to try
        this experiment, but I caution that it may give totally expected
        results that agree with existing EM theory, and nothing more.
        If this experiment does something interesting, drop me a line
        and let me know what happened.  If it fizzles, please don't put
        words in my mouth.

        This article is presented as a work of popular press.  I am an
        amateur theorist, not a professional engineer or physicist.  I
        never claimed anything.

              .-------------------------------.
        ------|  Background and Implications  |------------------------
              `-------------------------------'

        The theory that gravitation is not a field force but a result of
        pressure gradients in some undiscovered tenuous medium
        (sometimes called the "ether" or the "tachyon field") is well
        known among gravity researchers in both the professional and
        armchair-theorist arenas.  In a nutshell, this theory holds that
        the ether is a chaotic, superluminal energetic medium that is
        present everywhere in the universe.  Two given massive objects
        will shield each other from some of this chaotic motion creating
        a region of lower pressure between them.  Simple fluid dynamics
        holds that the two objects must move toward each other as the
        higher and lower pressure zones struggle toward equilibrium.

        Now, if this model of gravitation is correct, then the "secret"
        of antigravity is trivial - simply restore the tachyon pressure
        between the two objects to be repelled.

        If the pressure is exactly the same as the ambient pressure,
        then the slightest touch will set the two objects moving apart.

        If the pressure is greater between the two objects and the
        ambient pressure, then the objects will fly apart and a force
        would be needed to keep them together!

        If the pressure is reduced to below that which nature normally
        provides, then the two objects will cling together even more
        tenaciously.

        A technology which manipulates tachyon pressure to provide
        "lift" does not "fight" gravity as do conventional technologies
        such as rocketry.  Such a technology locally compromises the
        -cause- of the gravitational force, and therefore might require
        far less energy to lift a mass than a conventional mechanical
        method!

        Conversely, a technology which creates a local low-pressure zone
        in the ambient tachyon field might be used to provide -real-,
        not artificial, gravity on future spacecraft.  Not unlike the
        artificial gravity seen in most science fiction.

        And suppose a technology to "row" a spacecraft through this
        omnipresent medium - Could a faster-than-light "bubble" be
        created around a massive body allowing it to move through space
        faster than light?  The answer to that one is -way- beyond this
        article.

        If this experiment succeeds, the greatest implication of all
        would be that it would finally prove an interaction between
        electromagnetism and gravity - a great step toward a grand
        unified theory!

              .---------------------------------.
        ------|  A Superluminal Magnetic Field  |----------------------
              `---------------------------------'

        So far I've presented antigravity as a simple triviality, which
        it would be if a technology existed to manipulate the tachyon
        field.  Since the tachyon field's existence has not been
        experimentally proven, technologies which work with it are not
        forthcoming.  Without technlogies to work with it, an experiment
        would be difficult.  It's a chicken-and-egg paradox I hope to
        break with the success of an experiment such as this.

        Now, if antigravity researchers have been unable to achieve lift
        with any number of arrangements of electromagnetic fields, it
        may be concluded that the tachyon field, being superluminal,
        doesn't respond to stationary or slower-than-light
        electromagnetics.  Therefore a superluminal means must be used
        to bring the tachyons under control.  Now, we can't accelerate a
        mass to c, thanks to Einstein, but we can use discontinuous
        methods to -virtually- move energy field patterns at any
        velocity, including c and above.

        Here's a little mini-experiment to show you what I am talking
        about.  Take a flashlight into a large, darkened room and turn
        it on.  Shine the light quickly from wall to wall, all around
        the room.  See how fast you can make that spot of light move
        with hardly any effort at all?   Try it in a large area, say a
        mall parking lot after hours.  You can -really- make that spot
        whip along if you stand far away enough from the mall.  Several
        times the speed of sound with hardly a flick of the wrist is not
        unreasonable.  Now, if you were to put that flashlight on a
        spinning motor and run it at 3000 RPM from 100 feet away, that
        spot would fly past the wall faster than you could see it - it'd
        just be a dim, continuous blur.  The further away you get, the
        faster the spot moves.  Once you get to a certain distance, the
        spot is moving at c, and as you move further away the spot moves
        superluminally.(*)  Now, this spot is a -virtual- structure; no
        photon ever travels faster than c in this experiment.  But
        you've just (in theory) seen something go faster than light!
        The spot itself is massless and therefore isn't subject to
        Einstein.

        The same is true of purely energetic fields such as magnetism.
        No mass, no speed limit.  Try plugging a zero mass into
        Einstein's mass-increase formula and see what I mean.

        .-------------------------------------------------------------.
        | (*) If you really want to try to see a superluminal spot,   |
        | you'll probably have to use a bright laser, a huge and      |
        | distant target such as a mountain range, and a strong       |
        | telescope...                                                |
        `-------------------------------------------------------------'

        Now, suppose that we try something similar with magnetic fields.
        We place an array of, say, 32 identical plane coils in a coaxial
        (in-line) arrangement.  They should be spaced so that when fully
        energized, each coil's magnetic field can interact with the next
        coil but not necessarily with the whole array.  A few inches
        each should be fine.  Now, we attach all the coils in parallel
        to a soliton (pulse) generator.  This part is critical: All the
        coils must have -nearly- identical lengths of cable between the
        coil and the pulse generator.  Each coil should have a slightly
        longer cable than one of its neighbours and slightly shorter
        than the other.  This way, the first coil in the series
        energizes just slightly before the others, due to the delay
        imposed by the differing cable lengths.  Just as the first coil
        is coming up, the second coil gets the pulse, then the third and
        so forth.  The result is a continuous magnetic field along the
        array which is moving.  The speed of the field is determined by
        the delays between each firing of each coil: if the cables are
        all the same length, the coils all energize simultaneously, and
        the resultant field is stationary(**).  If the cables are only
        very slightly different, the field will move at incredible
        speed, and if the cable lengths vary widely the field will move
        slowly. Since your pulse moves at 300,000,000 meters per second,
        you'd need at least 300,000,000 meters of cable to make the field
        take a whole second to propagate the length of your array (and
        it'd be very discontinuous) so normal wiring lengths tend to be
        conducive to creating very fast-moving fields!

        If you were to use just one long helical coil, field speed
        would be c/ăd where d is the diameter of the coil form.  In
        other words, no superluminal field propagation, no diverted
        tachyons. This is likely why previous antigravity efforts with
        coils have failed.

        .-------------------------------------------------------------.
        | (**) It's an interesting paradox that, as the cable lengths |
        | come closer to being identical, field speed tends to        |
        | increase to infinity.  Yet when the cable lengths -are-     |
        | identical, field speed is zero.  The calculus needed to     |
        | resolve this paradox is beyond the scope of this article,   |
        | but although it's weird, I don't consider it a flaw in the  |
        | theory...                                                   |
        `-------------------------------------------------------------'

        You could also try a variable-speed field by having identical
        cable lengths and a programmable super-high-speed delay line
        (perhaps a wirewound low-value rheostat?) on each coil.  This
        would take some doing and perhaps computer assistance.

        To the point: We now have a technology to create a superluminal
        magnetic field - with no moving parts!  Can a superluminal
        magnetic field divert tachyons from the ambient tachyon field to
        some other trajectory?  That is what this experiment is intended
        to determine.

              .------------------.
        ------|  The Experiment  |-------------------------------------
              `------------------'

        This might not be a very practical experiment for the amateur
        researcher, and this is why I have never tried it, nor shall I
        in the forseeable future.

        EQUIPMENT:

        - A pulse generator capable of generating sinusoidal pulses at
          ludicrously high speeds (up to the GHz range would be ideal).

        - If desired, a low-noise, high-power wideband amplifier with
          bandwidth equal to or exceeding the pulse generator's speed,
          connected to the output of the generator.  Efficiency of the
          amplifier must be known (an efficiency curve graph would be
          perfect) so that consumption can be meaured to estimate the
          actual RMS power being delivered to the coil array.

        - 10 or more (30 would be great) exactly identical, perfectly
          planar plane coils(+), connected in parallel to the output of the
          pulse generator or amplifier, using delay lines or
          successively differing cable lengths, as described in the
          previous chapter.  Gauge and winding counts of the coils are
          left to the discretion of the experimenter.  Coil spacing
          should be much greater than the light distance of the maximum
          delay, or else it's going to be hard to get a superluminal
          field...

          .----------------------------------------------------------.
          | (+) In case you haven't guessed, a plane coil is a coil  |
          | that is wound to form a flat surface rather than the     |
          | traditional cylindrical, helical shape.  It should look  |
          | like a wire pancake once wound.  And, the tolerances     |
          | mentioned above are wishful.  If you can't get the coils |
          | so exactly perfect that it takes a micrometer to detect  |
          | flaws, don't sweat it, just allow for a higher margin of |
          | error when you're plotting your graphs.                  |
          `----------------------------------------------------------'

        - A high-precision laboratory balance big enough to hold the
          entire plane coil array, and with a large enough range to
          weigh it.  I told you this experiment may be impractical...

        - An ammeter to monitor the power consumption of the amplifier

        METHOD:

        Place the coaxial plane coil array on the balance vertically, so
        that the coil which energizes first is on top.  Connect to the
        output of the pulse generator, and activate.  Remember that the
        current through each coil will be lower the more coils there
        are, so don't hesitate to pull out the amplifier.

        Operate the coil array at varying pulse widths, pulse repetition
        rates, pulse amplitudes (using the amplifier if necessary) and,
        if possible, field speeds.  Note the weight of the array at each
        different setting and plot to a graph.

        The experiment may be repeated using a coil array with different
        specifications, e.g. different coil sizes, different coil
        counts, different spacings etc.

        EXPECTED OBSERVATIONS:

        If the theory is correct, the superluminal field should direct
        tachyons from the ambient tachyon field at the top of the array
        to the bottom, creating an increased tachyon field pressure
        between the array and the earth, resulting in a lower apparent
        weight.  Measured weight should decrease with increasing field
        amplitude.  Other field variables may also affect weight. These
        should be apparent from the graph.  If indeed there is a
        gravitational effect, it should be possible to postulate a
        formula from the graphs and predict the behavior of coil arrays
        with given specifications and signal conditions.

        The gravitational "force" is, cosmologically speaking, very
        weak.  The author acknowledges that this experiment might
        possibly not work at low energy levels, as the tachyon flux
        through the array may need to be very high to produce measurable
        results.  If no results are found, a high-energy variant of the
        experiment using voltage multipliers and high power amplifiers
        may be necessary.

        Another variant of this experiment would be to use "scalar"
        windings, perhaps a bifilar plane coil constructed of a
        2-conductor "zip cord" type of material.  The nature of such
        windings and their construction techniques are beyond the scope
        of this article.

        Yet another variant would be to try operating the coils at
        resonance (try full and half wave frequencies) with a sinewave
        generator in an LC arrangement, or even operating the whole
        array at a systemic resonance.

        If (by some miracle) the array hovers (i.e. apparent weight
        reaches exactly zero) use the amplifier power consumption meter
        to determine the power required to sustain this lift.  Calculate
        the force required to levitate the array at un-energized mass
        and from that the power required.  Is this value greater than
        the power delivered to the array?  How energy-efficient is the
        array?  This is why you need to know how efficient the amplifier
        is.
        
              .-----------------------.
        ------|  For Further Reading  |-------------------------------
              `-----------------------'

        If this article interests you, you should read _How_To_Build_A_
        _Flying_Saucer_ by T.B.Pawlicki (Prentice Hall, 1981) and its
        sequel, _How_You_Can_Explore_Higher_Dimensions_Of_Space_
        _And_Time (Prentice Hall, 1984).  The former has a much better
        explanation of faster-than-light magnetic fields than I have
        been able to give here, and both books offer a lot of truly
        radical but well-thought-out theory that, frankly, will blow
        your mind when you first read them. They are also very
        entertaining and well worth every penny at the bookstore.

             .-------------------------.
        -----|  Contacting the Author  |------------------------------
             `-------------------------'

        I have chosen to write this under a nom-de-plume due to the fact
        that being involved in amateur radical science is a guaranteed
        way to dispose of any credibility one may have.  If, by some
        stroke of luck, it turns out experimentally that there's a grain
        of truth in this article I'll come forth with my real identity.
        Until then, I can be reached on Tommy's Holiday Camp BBS, under
        the name "Poker Face".  The BBS number is (604) 361-4549 and the
        Fidonet address is 1:340/26.

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