Brooklyn's Mark Suppes Builds Nuclear Reactors When He's Not Working for Gucci

by Amar Toor on June 24, 2010 at 06:00 PM

We've gone on a wild goose chase in Iraq, we've spent countless hours worrying about Iran and North Korea, and, all this time, a rogue nuclear genius has been lurking in our own Brooklyn backyard.

Mark Suppes, a 32-year-old New Yorker and Web developer for Gucci, recently became the 38th amateur physicist to build a reactor capable of conducting nuclear fusion. According to the Daily News, Suppes began constructing his reactor two years ago "with $35,000 worth of parts he purchased on eBay" and an extra $4,000 worth of parts he bought with money he'd raised on an inventors' website. Fortunately, Suppes has good intentions at heart, as he is part of a growing legion of so-called 'fusioneers' -- amateur scientists working to solve the world's looming energy crisis. Watch him describe his process in a video by the BBC.

As the BBC reports, nuclear fusion has long been revered by scientists as the "holy grail" of energy production -- primarily because it's such a clean and efficient process. The major problem, of course, is that no one (including Suppes) has been able to create nuclear fusion with a process that produces more energy than it consumes. Suppes, however, remains optimistic. "I was inspired because I believed I was looking at a technology that could actually work to solve our energy problems," he explains. "And I believed it was something that I could at least begin to build."

The fact that anyone could obtain these kinds of materials on something as banal as eBay might be cause for some legitimate concern. But the greater Brooklyn area needn't worry about any real threat from their zany neighbor. Scientists tell the BBC that there is "no chance of any kind of accident" with the fusion that Suppes has orchestrated, giving us all the more reason to cheer him on as he works tirelessly to save the world -- in his spare time. [From: BBC, via: Huffington Post]

Tags: brooklyn, ebay, Energy, fusion, fusioneers, greentech, gucci, MarkSuppes, nuclear, NuclearEnergy, power, science, top

Comments

PaxusJun 25th 2010 11:48PM

Neutral

I am wiling to believe there is no chance of an accident with the type of reactor that Suppes has created. I am not willing to believe that fusion plays any role in addressing climate change or in seriously solving our energy needs.

Billions and decades have been spent on fusion and the most fundamental of problems with the technology persist, not the least of which is the tremendous amount of tritium which will be released when one actually starts up. A particularly nasty radioactive waste because it bonds in water, travels thru steel and cant be contained except on a lab scale.

There are lots of good piece debunking fusion, The one i found in a quick web search was http://www.rationalfuturist.com/writings/fusion.html

Please dont fall into the trap of thinking there is a simple energy fix right around the corner. We are dong to have to make hard choices and actually consume less, unless we want to give our kids an unlivable planet.

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Michael FarwickJul 5th 2010 2:52PM

Neutral

What a pleasure it is seeing your (Mr. Suppes') delve into the science evolving
nuclear fusion.

In 1982, after graduating (that year) from Stark State Technical College, was invited to Sandia National Labs for interview.

At Sandia, viewed four experiments: Surface Chemistry, Balistics, Solar Collector Array and Particle Beam Fussion Accelerator 1A (PBF-1A.)

Was interested in each endeavor, but the the PBF-1A interested me most.

Touring the accelerator, listening to the attending engineer, seeing a Cray computer workstation, veiwing components from previous fusion experiments,
had a major impact.

Would a handful of fusion reactors produce our nation's electrical needs .

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Gary VespermanJul 6th 2010 8:53PM

Neutral

For nearly a century, the U.S. Government has viciously and thoroughly suppressed new energy inventions which could significantly displace centralized electricity generation and petroleum-fueled transportation vehicles. For example, the U.S. Patent Office has unfairly classified secret 5000 energy-related patents. www.energysuppression.com documents nearly 100 specific cases of suppressed energy inventions.

The U.S. Government has supported hot fusion research because it makes good public relations. Hot fusion still is and apparently always will be decades away from becoming a practical energy source.

Pending energy-related legislation should be modified to reform the U.S. Patent Office and to declassify 5000 energy patents. Declassified energy patents should be reviewed for possible support by the Department of Energy.

Would you believe that guidelines for spending hundreds of millions of dollars of federal stimulus funds specifically ban spending even a few thousands of dollars on new energy inventions? Suppression of new energy inventions is still very active.

Each of the 50 states should be individually funded to creatively support energy inventions as part of a broad effort to diversify the U.S. energy mix and to revitalize the U.S. economy.

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