In this space, visitors are invited to post any comments, questions, or skeptical observations about Philo T. Farnsworth's contributions to the field of Nuclear Fusion research.Subject: Re: Philanthropy (Venture Capitalist Investment)
Date: Sep 14, 11:24 am
Poster: Jim LuxOn Sep 14, 11:24 am, Jim Lux wrote:
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>>What you really want to find is a philanthropist.. someone who is willing to put up some amount of cash for "the betterment of mankind", without any expectation of a profit return.
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>Not unlike the initial efforts to find funding for a certain inventor named Farnsworth, back in the 1920s... he eventually found funding with mainstream "VC" types, though it was 20+ years before his research produced any kind of direct revenue.
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>Still, the philanthropy approach might be a viable one for the short term. We'd have to set up a non-profit, then hire somebody like Al Gore to pound the phones...
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>Maybe this is what I should do next...??
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>Anybody know Paul Allen?
Indeed... consider that a lot of science was done to assuage guilt or to build a big monument.. Yerkes, Lick, etc....
So... the real question is. If you wanted to "tinker" in a lab effectively, what would it cost?
Say 3 workers at $150-200K/yr each(with overheads), 100-200K for equipment, spend a couple of years on it.. You're only looking at $1-2 Million, which IS "chump change" to some, especially if they get to call it the "Jones Fusor".
Market your research as a means of getting a "tombstone". Your patron can go to the parties and respond to the guy who just got a Ferrari F40.. "You spent a mil on just a car??? Everyone has cars.. I have a team of guys building a fusion reactor in my garage, neener, neener..."