Fusor.Net Policies and Procedures

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Paul_Schatzkin
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Fusor.Net Policies and Procedures

Post by Paul_Schatzkin »

Over the weekend I had a discussion with one of the other admins about a post that recently appeared that solicited support for a "crowd funded" fusion (polywell, actually) project. I did not think particularly well of the solicitation in this space, but let it stand to see what the reaction was. After further discussion the thread was eliminated from the public forums.

While we are at it, I have added a clause to the "rules" that govern the use of this site. Those rules really only show up when a new user registers, so I thought it would be useful to have them posted in a place where they are more readily viewable. I am going to post the contents of that page here and make it a "sticky" post at the top of this section.

The Rules:
(updated 151214)

By registering for membership in this site, you agree to adhere to the following terms and conditions:
  1. The first rule of membership in these forums is:
    You must create your account using your real, full, first AND last names as the LogIn/UserID for your account.

    If your name is John Smith, your UserID (i.e. login handle) must be John Smith, or John_Smith. This is the name that will appear in the forum listings. “JSmith” or “JohnS” or “JS997” or “handles” like “MrFusion” or “ProtonBoy” are NOT permitted.

    New accounts that do not adhere to this simple rule will be summarily deleted without any further consideration. Any questions? OK, rolling right along…

  2. New members are required to introduce themselves with a first post in the "Please Introduce Yourself" forum prior to posting elsewhere on the site.

  3. The following types of content, and any links to such content, are prohibited and subject to immediate deletion: obscene, vulgar, or sexually-oriented material; ad-hominem attacks; legal threats; displays or endorsements of unlawful activity; commercial advertising of any kind; solicitation of funding for individual projects or initiatives of any sort.

  4. All content posted must be one’s own, or attributed to the creator and used with permission.
If you have any issues with these protocols (particular #1), you are welcome to contact the site admins: admin@fusor.net

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Origins and Purpose:

The forums of Fusor.net constitute an "open source," grass-roots resource for amateur scientists seeking practical, "hands-on" information about the design, construction and operation of devices capable of producing actual nuclear fusion.

Our primary interest is in the approach to fusion known as "inertial electrostatic " (IEC), as it is observed in the device known now as the "Farnsworth Hirsch Fusor" -- which was first developed in laboratories operated by the ITT Corporation in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

This site is not 100% fusor related, but the bulk of the information that has been compiled here (starting in 1998) is devoted to the fusor due to its ease of construction and low cost. The various forums found here are designed to touch upon specific portions of the processes, technologies and scientific areas that an amateur might encounter in their quest to achieve fusion.

Posting Guidelines:

-Membership and participation in the discussions in this site is open to the public. It is also free.

-Registered members of this site are expected to conduct themselves in a civil and scientific manner. Content is regularly monitored but is not restricted or moderated; posts are published to the site as soon as they are entered.

-Posts to these forums should add value to the community, rather than aggrandizing their authors.

-Repetitive questions from new members can be a particular nuisance; new members are therefore expected to read the “FAQ” posts in each forum section and use the search feature to learn the ropes before posing questions that have previously been answered. Solicitation of advice for school homework or professional projects is generally unwelcome

-Welcome contributions include: data and observations that accompany reasonable conclusions. Photos of apparatus and phenomena and graphical depictions of data are strongly encouraged.

-Unwelcome contributions include: debates of pseudoscience which typically take the form of long, discursive, jargon-filled “word salads”; oblique, impenetrable references to ideas that members intend to keep secret; claims of apparatus or performance unaccompanied by verifiable methodology.

-Brevity is a virtue. If your post exceeds 500 words, it could probably benefit from some judicious editing. If it’s approaching a thousand words, it may well qualify as the aformentioned “word salad” -- and probably will not be read.

-Advice tendered in these forums is expected to derive from personal experience or reliable, (and cited) sources. If a contributor’s assertions of diverge from widely-accepted general references, an explanation will be expected.

-The contributors to these forums are self-directed learners with the ability to effectively use Internet search engines, encyclopedias, and other common “references of first recourse” to find information. Always exhaust those resources before asking questions here.

-New members are expected to familiarize themselves with the “lay of the land” before joining the conversation. Posts should be on-topic and should be published within the logical subject forum; replies should adhere closely to each thread’s original subject matter.

-Communications directed to particular individuals (e.g. responses to Trading Post ads, requests for equipment manuals) should be sent via private message rather than by publicly replying to old posts.

-Inflammatory and noisy subjects belong elsewhere. Science and energy policy, climate change, and institutional fusion programs are examples of subjects that may reasonably be touched on from time to time in on-topic discussions, but as topics in themselves, are more appropriately discussed elsewhere.

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Administration

The operation of this site is supervised by an "Administrative Council” of senior members who preside over the content and conduct of this site, its forums and its members. This Administrative Council is the final arbiter regarding all issues regarding the operation of the site, including but not limited to the and the granting, revocation, and/or restoration of any user's privileges.

The goal of the Admin Council is to keep the website free of flaming, off-topic, or long, wandering posts, and to avert any personal attacks or threats by any member toward any other member. In order to maintain a sense of decorum, the Council will always endeavor to address potential conflicts directly, privately or within the context of posts that appear in the wrong forum, drift off topic, are improperly labeled, etc. The Council reserves the right to relocate any post to another section, to freeze a member's account, or, ultimately, to permanently eject any member deemed to have violated any of the guidelines posted here.

Again, any questions regarding the use and protocols of this site can be addressed to: admin@fusor.net
Paul Schatzkin, aka "The Perfesser" – Founder and Host of Fusor.net
Author of The Boy Who Invented Television: 2023 Edition – https://amz.run/6ag1
"Fusion is not 20 years in the future; it is 60 years in the past and we missed it."
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Richard Hull
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Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2001 9:44 am
Real name: Richard Hull

Re: Fusor.Net Policies and Procedures

Post by Richard Hull »

I have been, and will continue to, delete any first posting that a member red flags or that I locate due to any failure to meet all the criteria noted in Paul's rules in the first post in this thread! The rules are here for a reason.

1. Full name
2. First post must be in introduction forum

These are minimum must do efforts on a first posting.

All persons should pay particularly close attention to rule #3 in Paul's original posting

Richard Hull
Progress may have been a good thing once, but it just went on too long. - Yogi Berra
Fusion is the energy of the future....and it always will be
The more complex the idea put forward by the poor amateur, the more likely it will never see embodiment
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