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Sunday 24 July 2016

Something for nothing

Greg Clark, our new Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has said:

"I am thrilled to have been appointed to lead this new department charged with delivering a comprehensive industrial strategy, leading government’s relationship with business, furthering our world-class science base, delivering affordable, clean energy and tackling climate change."

However, as has been widely reported Mr Clark was once instrumental in promoting homeopathy, a something for nothing alternative therapy.

Greg Clark’s acceptance by scientists may not be helped by the fact that he was among 206 MPs who signed an Early Day Motion in 2007 calling on the government to support homeopathic hospitals, which it describes as “valuable national assets”.

The motion says complementary medicine “has the potential to offer clinically-effective and cost-effective solutions to common health problems faced by NHS patients, including chronic, difficult to treat conditions such as musculoskeletal and other chronic pain, eczema, depression, anxiety and insomnia, allergy, chronic fatigue and irritable bowel syndrome”.

Perhaps Mr Clark is scientifically broadminded. Is that the right word? I don't know, but in a similarly contrarian vein, how about this idea:

Imagine an enormously long tube which stretches from the surface of the earth into outer space. A phenomenally difficult technical achievement to be sure, but consider the enormous benefits.

Once built, huge quantities of outer space could be pumped down the tube to the surface and stored in enormous chambers until required. To extract energy from stored space all one has to do is feed air into the chamber via a turbine which in turn would generate electricity. Once the space has been used up, the chamber is refilled via the space tube.

Good eh? The only outstanding question is how to approach Mr Clark with the idea.

4 comments:

Sackerson said...

If you water your beer down, it becomes "stronger than you can possibly imagine." Do the same for your whisky and the tax will be less, too.

wiggiatlarge said...

Perhaps Mr Clark was "leaned on" by HRH for his original homeopathy support with the thought of being awarded an honour if all went well, the fact that it has been proved to be total bunkum would not have crossed his mind with that sort of incentive, who will ever know !

Demetrius said...

You forgot the extension of District Line of the Underground for the staff.

A K Haart said...

Sackers - reminds me of a Laurel and Hardy film where they become "drunk" on an illicit bottle of liquor which isn't liquor at all.

Wiggia - he might still try to curry favour via climate change.

Demetrius - I don't know much about that kind of tube. Can they be used to store empty space?