The Scientist, the Madman, the Thief and their Lightbulb [Paperback]

This book should be read by everyone. It describes, in a lucid, clear and level-headed style, the discoveries made by inventors and engineers over the years, in their quests to find a free and non-polluting source of energy, and why their inventions are still not out on the market. It makes for very sobering, not to say chilling and even frightening, reading. Infuriating is another word that comes to mind. In his foreword to the book, none other than Sir Arthur C. Clarke describes this as, "almost certainly the biggest scandal in the history of science."
This is not a "conspiracy theory" book. It does not describe grand conspiracies and cover-ups (although it does touch on those subjects). Tutt simply lays out the facts as they are, gathered from news stories, interviews, and the personal writings of the people involved (from both the pro and con camps). It is clear that with adequate funding and support, a source of limitless energy would be within our grasp in a matter of years. Yet very little funding is forthcoming, continued ridicule abounds, and our tortured world is still subjected to a year-by-year massive increase in pollution caused by the burning of primitive stone age fossil fuels. Not to mention the continued dependence of the Western world on the oil supplied by the fundamentalist Arab world.
There is no organized conspiracy, I certainly hope, but there is a "momentum" against change, and what is desperately needed is a paradigm shift. People with vested interests, and people whose livelihood and careers depend on the continued use of our primitive and backward energy technologies, are, independently of each other, actively working against the new technologies, and collectively they form a massive resistance that does indeed look like a great conspiracy. And in the scientific establishment we have all the "experts," whose careers and reputations depend on the continued discrediting of cold fusion and all other alternative free energy sources. The result is the world as we see it today, with its massive pollution and energy problems.
For those with no technical background, this book is heavy going at times. There is a lot of technical detail, and Tutt relies heavily, at times, on extracts from other sources, which interrupts the flow of the narrative. But the stories told are, nevertheless, interesting ones. Here is the original "mad scientist," Nikola Tesla, and his several free energy devices. Here is also the Radiant Energy Device of T. Henry Moray, and the tragic story of his futile struggle to find acceptance for his technology. Here is the mysterious N-Machine, and the Thesta-Distatica, developed by a sect of Christian fanatics somewhere up in the Swiss Alps. Here is the very tragic story of how the promise of cold fusion was destroyed, as Tutt delves into all the popular misconceptions about this important technology. And here is the story of Randell Mills and his BlackLight technology, currently in development. Tutt also describes some of the free energy scams that are continually being pulled by various con artists who usually claim that God has given them the technology, with the predictable result that long lines of evangelical Christians immediately form up to give the "inventor" their money.
I give this book the rating 4 out of 5 only because, as I said, it is not an easy read for those who are technically challenged. But the book is more than well worth reading. People with closed minds will no doubt scorn and deride, as such people always do, but for intelligent and open-minded individuals, this book gives an important insight into what is really going on in the field of free energy development. Highly recommended.

This book caught my eye in a bookstore display and I bought it based on a desire to find out what really happened with cold fusion.

It is a history of the search for free energy, but rather than a full sequential historical account it is a history told in a series of snapshot stories.

And fascinating stories they are. Keith Tutt is clearly a fan of free energy research, but while his enthusiasm is evident throughout the book, he is careful to retain a healthy level of scepticism.

The book does get quite technical in places, but skipping the technical paragraphs (or reading them and being none the wiser) does not have a detrimental effect.

If, like me, you remember that cold fusion was a big fuss about nothing - a terrible mistake by scientists that should have been more thorough - then think again. Cold fusion is alive and well and the true story of what happened is worth the price of the book alone...

This is, in a way, a strange book. It has a clear theme - the search for free energy - but the theme is delved into in a wide variety of ways. It seems to start as a pamphlet on global warming, looks into the history of science, then introduces some really weird characters, mines the patent office for curious applications, only to return at the greenhouse once more. Absolutely hilarious is the chapter on a bunch of con-artists that lured investors into free energy schemes.

Though he sticks to bare facts most of the time, ignoring the possibilities for sensationalist writing, Keith Tutt succeeds at points in invoking a detective novel like atmosphere. Did T. Henry Moray really succeed in capturing the energy from cosmic rays? Who were the people who tried to kill him? Why did the same happen to the man who took up his legacy seventy years later?

Decent research, well written, a fine read.