"There are a lot of variables in this process," Kubiak says to explain why many of the original attempts at replication of the pair's work met with bad results. It turns out, he says, that the quality of the metals used makes a big difference. "That wasn't understood at the time. So some pronounced it a fraud."

The researchers now working on the technique "are not tin-pot inventors working out of a garage," he says. "They're top-notch scientists, including a couple of Nobel laureates."

"Instead of arguing any more about the theoretical basis of it," he says, "we're saying 'this works, this is where we should be putting our attention.' "

"True, our theoretical grasp of all the processes in play remains imperfect, but neither can we fully explain the workings of aspirin, acupuncture or high temperature superconductivity," Kubiak says. "Unresolved questions about their mechanisms have not stopped us from enjoying their respective benefits, which are pale indeed compared to what solid state fusion offers."

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