--- Mark Goldes wrote: > On the other hand, perhaps it was just another USO. > An Unidentified Superconducting Object:)
This is probably correct, and Mark is in the best position to judge, but the strange story behind MgB2 is not so different... it is not Room-Temperature, of course, but the material was known long ago before it was "rediscovered." and there again, we have boron popping up. > >Michael Foster writes, "This whole thing sounds fishy." On the contrary... the details make the story sound more, not less believable. >> First of all, the patent was assigned to the U.S. government and never belonged to this fellow. Exactamundo ! ... connect the dots, this should be clear the mystery... >> Second, the patent expired long ago and is in the public domain. >> H.H: In general, you just can't have it both ways. You can't hide some aspect of the method of construction or manufacture that is essential to fully obtaining the utility claimed.... This is naive. Trade secrets are routinely withheld. I have never seen a patent successfully challenged for withholding a trade secret, although it is definitely in the wording of the patent law. I suspect most patents withhold many secrets. It is just way too easy to say that the challenger was "unskilled" in the art... Jones
