We like to think, as human beings, if we can only keep an open mind, that anything is possible. That if we put our minds to it, buckle down and do our research and apply ourselves 100%, we can not only understand what’s going on as well as any expert, but that we ourselves can make valuable contributions to whatever field we’re interested in. We think this about ourselves when it comes to energy, the environment, health and medicine, and even physics and mathematics.
Yet simultaneously, we’re also aware of the years — if not decades — of study that’s typically required in order to become a legitimate expert in any one of those fields. We know it’s difficult, even for the smartest and most talented among us, to make groundbreaking discoveries in a field we’ve spent our entire lives working on.
But there’s this romantic notion we all hang onto, nonetheless, that if some talented maverick with a novel perspective comes along, even without the proper background, they (or possible we, ourselves) can change the course of history forever.
This is the story we tell ourselves about a genius like Albert Einstein, whose general theory of relativity turns 100 this year. It’s the story we tell ourselves about Tesla, Edison, Faraday, Newton and more. We all know the danger of following the crowd, of a herd mentality, and of accepting what’s presently known in science as absolute, indisputable truth. And that’s why, when it comes to the biggest lies and hoaxes of all, it’s often the most intelligent among us who are the most gullible.
Have you heard of Cold Fusion, or the possibility of controlled nuclear transmutation at temperatures of only a few thousand degrees, rather than a few million?
Perhaps you’ve heard of “NASA’s impossible space engine,” the EM Drive, and how it provides thrust with no exhaust or emission, in an apparent violation of the laws of physics?
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