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Science & Beyond B7 OCTOBER 31 – NOVEMBER 6, 2013 BY LEONARDO VINTINI EPOCH TIMES STAFF Seismic technologies, environ- mental purifiers and even the ability to change an organism’s molecular structure: The world of Pier Luigi Ighina is of a science never before propagated, in which reality and mysticism seem to join in a way that is both charming and unnerving. It is impossible to speak about this unusual inventor and thinker without naming his teacher and colleague, the cel- ebrated Guglielmo Marconi – best known for developing radio, but also responsible for many other curious innovations. Mr Ighina worked with Mr Marconi until his death in 1937 and later carried on his teacher’s efforts through the secrets he shared with him. While Mr Ighina never invented anything as well known as the radio, his talent brought forth machines with perhaps even more astounding abilities that few would imagine, much less believe, were possible. As a student of magnetic fields, Mr Ighina developed a great num- ber of inventions throughout his life based on atomic vibrations. He also worked with the interaction of fields between the Earth and Sun, and apparently harnessed this energy to regenerate diseased cells. Mr Ighina’s numerous inven- tions include a bed of “passive resonance”, an earthquake neu- traliser and a strange device he dubbed “Elios”, which is said to purify any food matter that comes within its small field of activity. But perhaps none of these strange inventions brought as much interest to Mr Ighina as the magnetic stroboscope. He was delighted in its capacity to sur- prise and amaze curious onlook- ers on cloudy days. In 1998, internationally renowned journalist Maurizio Costanzo went to interview Mr Ighina and witnessed a strange propeller spinning above his humble dwelling in Imola, Italy. Mr Costanzo describes how a hole in the clouds steadily opened and grew as the minutes passed. Later, Mr Ighina admitted that the most satisfying component of his unusual invention was the innocent smiles of children as they watched the clouds dissipate, as if by magic. The magnetic stroboscope – which could be compared to Wilhelm Reich’s “Cloudbuster” – could deliver a magnificent per- formance. And yet the landmark of Mr Ighina’s work would have to be his discovery of something never before recognised by sci- ence – a small, elusive, yet fun- damental particle he named “the atomic magnet”. From peaches to apples In over 40 years of study, Mr Ighina put his all into the task of classifying the particle vibrations that had been discovered in each atom found in nature. While observing the level of light absorption of these minis- cule particles, Mr Ighina became convinced that scientists had made a mistake in conceiving the fun- damental structure of atoms. He maintained that it was impossible to study a particle in perpetual motion without observing a false image. Owing to this, Mr Ighina devised a mechanism that could isolated a sin- gle atom by trapping it within walls of different atoms with decreasing rates of light absorption. It was dur- ing these investigations – for which he employed a microscope of his own design capable of magnifica- tion of up to 1.6 billion times – that Mr Ighina discovered the magnetic atom, an extremely energetic par- ticle present in all organic matter. After years of arduous lab work, Mr Ighina discovered something profound about the nature of mat- ter – that atoms do not oscillate, but vibrate. This revelation led to one of his more curious and brilliant inven- tions – the magnetic field oscillator. He discovered that if he managed to change the vibratory state of a group of particles, the material itself could transform. What followed was a series of fan- tastic experiments in which the field oscillator played a leading role. On one occasion, Mr Ighina set up his apparatus before a peach tree. He then altered the atomic vibration of the tree so that it gradually became the same as that of an apple tree. He noted that after 16 days, the peaches had mutated, almost completely, into apples. After this experience, Mr Ighina ventured to investigate the reach of his invention on animals. He altered the vibrational state of the tail of a rat to change it, in four days, into the tail of a cat. Even though the rat died after such treatment – perhaps its body was incapable of enduring such a rapid molecular change – it prompted Mr Ighina to try an experiment even more revelatory: Through studying the corresponding vibration rate of a healthy rabbit’s bone, he excited the atoms of another rabbit’s fractured feet until they were healed in record time. In this way, Mr Ighina understood that sick and cancerous cells of any individual were possible to cure through a simple, gradual alternation in their vibrational index, if correctly calculated. In short, Mr Ighina claims to have designed a machine that performed marvels. However, in spite of his long list of inventions and mythi- cal anecdotes, Mr Ighina was never recognised as an orthodox scientist by the academic community. Rather, he was either ignored or ridiculed for his daring work. But some of his colleagues did recognise his genius. “The fact that it is not believed takes place because there are not the necessary tools to understand how it happens,” nuclear scientist Guiliano Preparata said, defending Mr Ighina’s work. While Mr Ighina’s work was not given its due by the scientific com- munity, he was recognised by a few fellow scientists as a pioneer and a great contributor to Italian heritage. Today, not only have foundations, streets and conferences been found- ed in his name, but following his death, Mr Ighina’s legacy has helped to awaken even greater interest in his fascinating work. Mr Ighina left this world on Jan 8, 2004, taking with him an important yet misunderstood legacy in which science meets magic. However, he left behind a wealth of mysterious ideas and incomprehensible arte- facts that inspire further study. Final interview In his last interview with Italian TV show Saturday Evening in Novem- ber 1998, Mr Ighina said: “The year 2000 is coming. I haven’t much time, but I’m ahead 30 years. Sci- entists are far behind. If they pay attention to me, if they hear me just a little, it could help solve the problems of the world. “I’m 91 years old and for so long I study the magnetism and many phenomena of physics that are still not fully understood. The century that is about to begin could change the science. “I don’t know if you are ready to listen to this thing, but it is so beautiful. The Sun is life’s cen- tre. Inside the Sun, in his centre, we discovered a heart, a beating heart that pulses with the same rhythms of the human body, a magnetic heart. You are free to believe or not what I write. If you believe it, you’ve understood the secret of the world. If you don’t believe, for me it’s the same.” BY ZACHARY STIEBER EPOCH TIMES STAFF Near-space balloon rides are being prepared by the company World View for people who don’t want to pay the steep price for rides high above the Earth. “Seeing the Earth hanging in the ink-black void of space will help people realise our connec- tion to our home planet and to the universe around us,” World View CEO Jane Poynter said, in a statement. “It is also our goal to open up a whole new realm for exercising human curiosity, scientific research and education.” The rides cost $US75,000 ($A78,000) each and take people 30km, or around 100,000 feet, up into the Earth’s atmosphere. “It is also our goal to open up a whole new realm for exercis- ing human curiosity, scientific research and education,” said Ms Poynter. “We look forward to pioneering this new, accessible and affordable spaceflight regime, and to sharing the breathtaking, once-in-a-lifetime experience with people from around the globe.” The ride is a lot cheaper com- pared to the current ticket price of a ride on Virgin’s SpaceShipTwo, which is $US250,000 ($A260,000). Virgin’s spaceship is slated to take people up to around 110km high. The point of the balloon trip is more about seeing a great view than actually getting into space. “You can be sitting up there hav- ing your beverage of choice watch- ing this extraordinary spectacle of the Earth below you and the blackness of space,” Ms Poynter told Discovery News. “It really is very gentle. You can be up at altitude for hours, for days for research if you need to be,” said Ms Poynter. “I think we have the opportunity to give a really, really incredible experience to people – and for a lot less than most of what’s out on the market right now.” World View says that it should be ready for passenger flights as early as 2016. Tickets are expected to start selling in a few months. The firm is eyeing the launching site Spaceport America in New Mexico for its first flights, the same place that Virgin’s flights are to launch from. Space balloons to soar 30km above Earth WORLD VIEW ENTERPRISES Space balloons may offer tourists a way to experience the view from 30km up, three times higher than the normal cruising altitude of a jumbo jet. IGHINA.66GHZ.COM VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS SVPVRIL.COM Above: The magnetic atom photographed by Mr Ighina with his microscope in the year 1940, shown at 1 billion times zoom. The picture shows five canals of absorbing atoms used to stop the magnetic atom’s motion. Right: Mr Ighina with one of his magnetic inventions, the ‘ERIM’. The strange inventions of Pier Luigi Ighina “The fact that it is not believed takes place because there are not the necessary tools to understand how it happens.” – Nuclear scientist Guiliano Preparata Mysteries of magnetism
