Guest.  Dr. Michael McCulloch;  Topics: EmDrive, inertia, physics on the edge, thrust, NASA, and more.  Please direct all comments and questions regarding specific Space Show programs & guest(s) to the Space Show blog which is part of archived program on our website, www.thespaceshow.com.   Comments and questions should be relevant to the specific Space Show program. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are a violation of our copyright and are not permitted without prior written consent, even if for your own use. We do not permit the commercial use of Space Show programs or any part thereof, nor do we permit editing, YouTube clips, or clips placed on other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted, but the quote must be cited or referenced using the proper citation format. Contact The Space Show for further information. In addition, please remember that your Amazon purchases can help support The Space Show/OGLF. See www.onegiantleapfoundation.org/amazon.htm.  

We welcomed Dr. Michael McCulloch to the show to discuss his theory on EmDrive.  Please note that there are blog posts for this show directing you to specific media reports about EmDrive and why it might work. I urge you to read these articles, including the first one which talks about Dr. McCulloch's theory.  Our guest has a book that should interest you, "Physics from the Edge : A New Cosmological Model for Inertia."  The book is available at Amazon. Remember, if you buy the book through Amazon, use one of TSS/OGLF methods to support The Space Show.  Click on our Amazon link on our home page or visit www.onegiantleapfoundation.org/amazon.htm for instructions on supporting TSS through your Amazon purchases.  In addition, our guest has a blog which we talked about near the end of the program.  Check it out at http://physicsfromtheedge.blogspot.com.   The two papers he mentioned near the end of the show can be found on his blog.  Also from his blog, you can access his Plymouth University website and much more. 

During the first segment of our 1 hour 27 minute program, Dr. McCulloch introduced us to EmDrive, the creator of EmDrive, Dr. Robert Shawyer of the UK, and the issues involved in attempting to prove that the small thrust produced is real and not an artifact of the experiment.  He described the EmDrive which is an electromagnetic drive in a megaphone shape.  He talked about problems with the law of Conservation of Momentum and responded to several listener email questions.  He also talked about the EmDrive potential for small, continuous acceleration and what that would mean for space applications including space travel.  We talked about microwaves & the NASA team working on EmDrive.  Dr. McCulloch then talked about his theory of inertia which he explained to us.  John Hunt then called from Fort Worth to talk EmDrive physics.

Our guest brought up the Hubble Horizon, Unruh radiation and much more.  Listen carefully to the discussion and explanations which are technical at times.  Acceleration toward the narrow end was explained.  John brought up The Woodward Effect and Mach's Principle. John suggested the test for EmDrive would be to fly it in space and see if acceleration over time could be measured.  Our guest mentioned two projects underway to demo EmDrive in space.  Kim sent in a blog note inquiring about any possible relationship to the Faster Than Light work and the Alcubierre technology.  Our guest as well as John said no.

Dr. McCulloch received many email questions asking if the EmDrive was scalable. He said the thrust does not actually get bigger if you make the unit bigger.  Instead, you get more energy by doing more inside the cone which he explained in detail.  He then talked about reducing the speed of light inside the drive with something like ammonia.  Don't miss this technical and interesting discussion. 

In the second part of our program, our guest told us about both his book and his blog which I mentioned earlier with links in this summary.  We talked more about his theories and galaxies.  He then told us that the physics community is expecting a reviewed NASA paper to be published anytime regarding their EmDrive research.  He suggested it might be positive and if so, he talked about how it might influence the course of research and even funding into EmDrive.  The Space Show is on watch for this paper.  If any of you see it when it is published, don't assume I will see it too. Please send the URL or news articles to me.  I've asked the same of our guest. 

Throughout both segments of our discussion, we talked about problems for scientists wanting to work on fringe or extreme physics projects.  As you will hear during our interview, it can cause real problems for the researcher and it can be a career killer.  Mainstream physics and science can as we all know, to borrow a phrase from a well known book, be a harsh mistress. 

As we were drawing close to the end of our program, Dr. McCulloch referenced two of his papers, both of which can be found on his blog.  One of the last questions was from George in Los Angels wanting to know what a possible time line might be for scaling up EmDrive if the effect can be verified.  Then we got an email from Julian in Sydney, Australia followed by Julian giving us a phone call.  Julian wanted to talk about the possible impact or relationship with impedance.  Don't miss what our guest had to say in the call with Julian.  Dr. McCulloch left us with a good closing comment.

Please post your comments/questions in the comments section for this archived program on TSS blog.  You can reach our guest through his university website or through me.