In a telephonic interview with Agha Waqar Ahmed on July 29, 2012, for Sindh Express, most of my questions to him were about the physics, thermodynamics and chemistry behind his water kit. However, some questions regarding thermodynamics were not addressed as they should have been and I felt as though Waqar knew more about the ‘engineering’ behind his kit but not the ‘physics’ that went into it. Though it is not mandatory for an inventor to be a PhD, this age of fraudulent and quack inventions calls for every aspect of an invention to be examined thoroughly. Allow me to refresh ...
A car that runs on water?
In recent days, talk show hosts who really should know better have been touting a peculiar invention known as the water kit. An engineer has claimed to have found a way to use water as a fuel that can run cars. He claims to have done this by splitting the oxygen and hydrogen molecules in water, a feat which, if real, would represent one of the greatest breakthroughs in the history of science. However, we must not forget that water is not a fuel and the fact that the matter is being debated and hyped up without proper scientific investigation, displays our profound scientific illiteracy and the media’s irresponsible response to this claim.
Belief in the ability to run vehicles on water seems to now have become a matter of national pride. Nuclear scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, whose hyper patriotism seems to have swallowed the scientific nous he possesses, has treated the ‘discovery’ as if it was real without examining it scientifically. The cabinet, perhaps, in a burst of excitement at the prospect of our energy woes being solved, wants a demonstration of the water kit. A lone scientist or two have been trying to inject sanity into the debate but have been shouted down by others who see a genuine scientific breakthrough where none may exist. We have often been accused by our detractors as a people ruled by emotion rather than reason. By being gullible enough to believe that we can use water as a fuel, we are doing our best to live up to the caricature.
The problem here is that we are so insecure about our achievements on the world stage that when one of our own claims to have done something incredible, our first instinct is to believe him, defend him against all criticism and see the person as improving the image of the country. Naysayers are instantly denounced as self-loathing individuals. Meanwhile, those who have genuinely advanced scientific knowledge in their fields, like Dr Abdus Salam, are forgotten simply because of their religious beliefs. It is sad that when the Higgs boson particle was recently discovered, none of our media pundits conducted the kind of extensive talk shows on Dr Salam’s contribution to this great discovery, like the ones they have devoted to the ‘invention’ of the water kit.
The truth about Agha Waqar’s water car kit
Japan had already invented water generators in 2008 and we're claiming to have invented them in 2012. PHOTO: REUTERS
Some days ago, my friends told me about a certain episode of Hamid Mir’s programme “Capital Talk” on Geo TV. This episode was about a man called Agha Waqar – a proud Pakistani who claimed to have invented something called a ‘water car kit’.
I thought there might be some difference between the device Waqar had invented because our media had been publicising it as if it were a miracle, and so I started searching the internet for car kits that run on water. It didn’t take me very long to find a similar device selling for $80 on online shopping sites, eBay and Ali Baba.
The Japanese have invented mini generators for generating electricity through water in homes to operate small electrical appliances like laptops, small chargers, videogame consoles and so on. They claim that these generators can produce electricity by making use of any kind of water. It doesn’t have to be distilled, even tap water or tea can be used for this!
I wondered if generating electricity at home was really that easy because if it were, the media would not be praising someone who claims to have introduced an obsolete notion. It was then that I found many DIY videos and tutorials on YouTube about conveniently building hydrogen water generators at home. In fact, I even came across articles that showed a step-by-step procedure for building this generator.
Although I have great respect for Agha Waqar for at least taking initiatives for introducing this technology in Pakistan, it saddens me that our media is claiming that something the world already saw decades ago has been invented by us in 2012. Yes, the previous ventures might have failed, but how can we state with certainty that this one will work or is any different? For all we know, this venture might bear stark similarities with the ones previously invented or might even be an exact replica, and all I am saying is that people should not be mislead to believe something that may not be true.
Only time will tell whether Agha Waqar’s water-kit is a feasible idea.
However, on a more positive note, I hope that we can make some improvements in this technology and introduce it to the public for commercial use.
The water car fraud
Agha Waqar Ahmad deserves a medal from the people of Pakistan for his great service to the nation. In a few short days, he has exposed just how far Pakistan has fallen into the pit of ignorance and self-delusion. No practical joker could have demonstrated more dramatically the true nature of our country’s political leaders, popular TV anchors and famed scientists.
At first, it sounded like a joke: a self-styled engineer, trained in Khairpur’s polytechnic institute, claims to have invented a ‘water kit’ enabling any car to run on water alone. It didn’t matter that the rest of world couldn’t extract energy from water; he had done it. He promised a new Pakistan with limitless energy, no need for petrol or gas, and no more loadshedding. For an energy starved nation, it is a vision of paradise.
Agha Waqar Ahmad is now a national celebrity thanks to Religious Affairs Minister Khursheed Shah. Federal ministers Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani and Qamar Zaman Kaira have added their commendations. President Asif Ali Zardari has expressed his delight. The cabinet has met three times to discuss the water vehicle, and a fourth meeting is scheduled. Reports suggest millions may be spent on the ‘water fuel kit project’.
The media has rushed in to celebrate the new national hero. For TV anchor Talat Husain, thanks to Agha Waqar Ahmad’s invention, Pakistan’s image can go from a country ravaged by terrorism to one of boundless possibilities. Anchor Hamid Mir and Senator Parvaiz Rasheed drove around Islamabad sitting next to the inventor, wondering how to protect the man’s life from Western oil companies. Anchor Arshad Sharif was euphoric about the $14 billion Pakistan would save on oil imports.
Pakistan’s most celebrated scientists were not far behind. Asked by Anchor Sharif whether a car could run only on water, nuclear hero Dr Samar Mubarakmand replied without hesitation: “jee haan, bilkul ho sakta hai” (yes, absolutely possible). For his part, Hamid Mir asked Dr AQ Khan if there was any chance of this being a fraud. The response was clear: “Main nay apnay level per investigate kiya hai aur koi fraud waraud nahi kiya hai” (I have investigated the matter and there is no fraud involved). The head of the Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Dr Shaukat Parvaiz, went further: “hum nay bhi iss pay kam karaya tha” (we had some work done on this too).
So, what is the problem? It’s that the laws of physics, in particular a fundamental scientific principle known as the Second Law of Thermodynamics, impose inviolable constraints. Every machine constructed anywhere uses the Second Law. This is something that I learned in my first year as a student at MIT and have taught for 40 years. No serious scientist would dream of challenging the Second Law. Agha Waqar Ahmad’s ‘water kit’, if one believes science to be right, simply cannot work. What the inventor, the ministers, the anchors and scientists claim on TV is wrong.
To his credit, the only person on TV that seemed to know this elementary principle was Dr Attaur Rahman, a chemist and a former HEC chairman. I have not agreed with all his actions and views in the past, but he alone rejected the claims about the new machine. Sadly, he was not able to hold back the tide of a nation desperate for any answer to its energy woes.
The water fraud will be exposed soon enough and, like a bad posterior smell, will go away. A simple experiment will make this happen faster. Here’s how: take an emergency electricity generator, of which there are thousands in Islamabad. Its engine is similar to that in a car. Remove the fuel tank and make sure the ‘water kit’ contains only water. Then ask the inventor to connect it up and run the generator. Let there be enough sharp-eyed witnesses of intelligence and integrity.
But this episode raises bigger questions. Scientific frauds exist in other countries, but what explains their spectacular success in Pakistan? Answer: our leaders are lost in the dark, fumbling desperately for a miracle; our media is chasing spectacle, not truth; and our great scientists care more about being important than about evidence. It is easy for them all to get away with this. As a nation, we have proven unwilling to do the hard work needed to learn to reason, to be sceptical, to demand proof, to understand even basic science. It is easier to believe the world is run by magic and conspiracies, to wish and wait for Aladin’s magic lamp. We live in the age of jahilliya.
2 comments:
Well, the surprising thing about our media is that they've not been giving this person coverage for months; for this person had claimed his running engine on 100% pure water some three months ago... Now when they've started, they don't seem to curb their coverage... So, what we are lacking is balance. Of course, we must not count the chickens before they are hatched. But who will let Agha Waqar prove his point and confront the critical question before scientists. This is being done by media who are just advertising their channels through this latest rumor (let me call it so until it is proved). To me, government that is the only responsible to check out such matters pays no head to it. It is so unfortunate here. But let us not leave that person alone, and keep our fingers crossed so that we get a good news soon. Last words... even if it is true (which seems unlikely to be), it is not gonna work here in Pakistan. Poor will get poorer and the richer, the richer... So, let us be happy that the invention will be named after Pakistani; and let us not be in any illusion that change is gonna come. For here there are the big guns who'll never let change come. Not esp when they've already known about it. Change will come, and it will come its own way, its own style, and and will sweep those bloody big guns off their feel. For, there is nothing permanent but change.
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