By Peter Weiss
A group of scientists claims to have found evidence of nuclear fusion in a vase-size flask of liquid. The researchers say they created tiny bubbles that seemed to have collapsed with enough violence to force atomic nuclei to fuse.
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Skepticism about the results outweighs confidence in them. Still, if the observations reported in the March 8 Science by Rusi P. Taleyarkhan of Oak Ridge (Tenn.) National Laboratory and his colleagues are confirmed, scientists will have a new way to study fusion reactions. A far more speculative and exciting possibility is that the tabletop experiments might lead to the long-sought goal of harnessing fusion for generating power.