> Also, the author of the PDF is trying to make this sound like a serious research project with governmental support, when it is nothing of the kind -- there are no "governments/universities/organizations"…
What about on page 4?:
"(U) Brazil, perhaps the most surprising entry on the publications chart, conducts research into
measurements of Casimir force between different types of conducting plates that have varying
designs. It is noteworthy that many of the researchers working in and with Brazil are Russian or
originally from Russia. The Brazilian research also mirrors Russian research (i.e., studying the
Casimir force using different setups of conducting plates). Both Brazil and Russia appear to be
focused, at a basic-science level, on maximizing the energy obtainable from the Casimir force. A.N.
Petrosyan, of the Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, and Yu.E. Lozovik, of the Institute of
Spectroscopy of Russian Academy of Science, are conducting research into ZPE to create massless
particles in a cavity, but the value of this research is questionable.
(U) Research in France and a collaborative effort between the United Kingdom (UK) and Iran
comprise two of the most promising recent ventures in ZPE, as it pertains to MEMS and NEMS. The
French are researching the possibilities of using the Casimir force to drive nanoscale ratchets in the
hope of creating novel contactless translational actuation for NEMS or to move tiny objects in a liquid.
The UK-Iran effort has similar goals and focuses on a rack-and-pinion powered by Casimir forces to
enable contactless translation to avoid wear of the components. This work has demonstrated devices
that hold up to high velocities and is a good example of valuable work in ZPE for use in practical
applications.
(U) Germany has solid research programs in theoretical calculations, modeling, and experimental
measurements of Casimir forces in various conducting-plate and cavity configurations. Germany's
research appears aimed more at basic science than in engineering for applications.
(U) India is studying the use of the Casimir effect for MEMS devices, such as calculations of effects
for different hypothetical designs, but the work is more theoretical than experimental or for practical"
>And notice the attribution for the above quotation -- "an analyst at Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)" -- but the article doesn't identify the person, a no-no in any technical or scientific publication.
To me it doesn't seem like a technical or scientific publication at all, just reporting on what is going on in the field and who's doing research, where the contact information for the people that composed/involved is listed at the end of the PDF (page 7-8). The report is even cited in the wikipedia article you quote.
>> Also, the author of the PDF is trying to make this sound like a serious research project with governmental support, when it is nothing of the kind -- there are no "governments/universities/organizations"…
> What about on page 4?:
> "(U) Brazil, perhaps the most surprising entry on the publications chart ...
Easy to answer -- there are none of the usual trappings of research, quantitative measurements, names and locations of facilities, literature references. Also look at all the qualifiers within the quotation: "... but the value of this research is questionable ... but the work is more theoretical than experimental or for practical application ...". Not the wording of a scientific effort.
> To me it doesn't seem like a technical or scientific publication at all ...
That's because it isn't, which supports the claim that it's pseudoscience.
> The report is even cited in the wikipedia article you quote.
You mean the article that labeled this topic pseudoscience and used the subject article as part of its evidence for that conclusion?
To summarize, this is not how science works. All this talk about governmental agencies, universities and so forth, has nothing to do with real science, which relies only on evidence, not eminence. There's no evidence, and the idea contradicts the most trivial reading of physical theory.
What about on page 4?:
"(U) Brazil, perhaps the most surprising entry on the publications chart, conducts research into measurements of Casimir force between different types of conducting plates that have varying designs. It is noteworthy that many of the researchers working in and with Brazil are Russian or originally from Russia. The Brazilian research also mirrors Russian research (i.e., studying the Casimir force using different setups of conducting plates). Both Brazil and Russia appear to be focused, at a basic-science level, on maximizing the energy obtainable from the Casimir force. A.N. Petrosyan, of the Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, and Yu.E. Lozovik, of the Institute of Spectroscopy of Russian Academy of Science, are conducting research into ZPE to create massless particles in a cavity, but the value of this research is questionable. (U) Research in France and a collaborative effort between the United Kingdom (UK) and Iran comprise two of the most promising recent ventures in ZPE, as it pertains to MEMS and NEMS. The French are researching the possibilities of using the Casimir force to drive nanoscale ratchets in the hope of creating novel contactless translational actuation for NEMS or to move tiny objects in a liquid. The UK-Iran effort has similar goals and focuses on a rack-and-pinion powered by Casimir forces to enable contactless translation to avoid wear of the components. This work has demonstrated devices that hold up to high velocities and is a good example of valuable work in ZPE for use in practical applications. (U) Germany has solid research programs in theoretical calculations, modeling, and experimental measurements of Casimir forces in various conducting-plate and cavity configurations. Germany's research appears aimed more at basic science than in engineering for applications. (U) India is studying the use of the Casimir effect for MEMS devices, such as calculations of effects for different hypothetical designs, but the work is more theoretical than experimental or for practical"
>And notice the attribution for the above quotation -- "an analyst at Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)" -- but the article doesn't identify the person, a no-no in any technical or scientific publication.
To me it doesn't seem like a technical or scientific publication at all, just reporting on what is going on in the field and who's doing research, where the contact information for the people that composed/involved is listed at the end of the PDF (page 7-8). The report is even cited in the wikipedia article you quote.