That's right, I'm making a topic about free energy machines, machines that you use in your house that give you FREE ENERGY! Of course, I don't mean free in the sense of not paying money, but in the sense of getting more energy out of them than you put into them
*.
Why am I making this post? Because I just had my mind blown by the realization that we already use a form of perpetual energy generators (not to be confused with perpetual motion machines, as energy generators need a net positive energy production, whereas motion machines only need net zero energy loss) in our homes and in commercial production. You can buy them off amazon.
So what are these free energy machines that I'm talking about? Primarily solar panels and wind turbines

(
we need a troll smilie face)
*And here's where the star comes in. Earlier, I said "in the sense of getting more energy out of them than
you put into them". This is different than the normal perpetual energy generator challenge where you are expected to get more energy out of them than
is put into them. So technically, while you aren't the one putting energy into solar panels and wind turbines, the universe is, and you're just harvesting this energy.
But then, isn't that what the FREE ENERGY machines and perpetual energy generators are supposed to do as well? Exploit the laws of physics in order to power your home without you having to do anything other than buy them and install them?
In that sense, humanity is also already using free/perpetual energy machines on a commercial scale. From hydroelectric dams to wind turbine farms to tidal power to geothermal heat and more, humanity has long been using energy production systems that give us far more energy out of them than we put into them. Looking at Earth from the point of view of "Earth is a closed system", we can say that all of these uses, with the exception of solar power, are a form of perpetual energy generator because all of the energy is produced from within the system and stays within the system. Instead of calling them "free energy machines" or "perpetual energy generators", however, we call them renewable energy.
I realized this as I was thinking about capillary action energy generators and my mind spontaneously made me think of a regular hydroelectric dam. I then realized that instead of using capillary action to get the energy to come up from the bottom to the top to repeat the cycle, the earth itself lets the river run into the ocean where water turns to clouds which fly over the land and rain water down upon the Earth again, and that water then flows back into the river on the "upper" side of the dam, thus continuing the cycle.
Heck, even if you turn to the idea of digging/drilling out coal and oil, such systems would be completely infeasible if we didn't get more energy out of them than we put into them. If all the oil that we get out of the ground went right back into the machines that get the oil out, there would be no industry for it. There has to be an increase in energy received compared to the energy used in order for the industry to be as booming as it is (and it is one of the world leading industries).
I've known for a while now that humans are doing pretty damn good for ourselves, it's still sinking in just how far along we are compared to where people tend to think we are. All of these "free energy machines" that people try to sell based on fuzzy concepts and pseudo-truths are only smoke screen for the truth that we already have fairly free energy machines that you can buy online or in store, today.
Yet, I've already looked at the feasibility of buying things like solar panels and wind turbines, and they're just not cost effective for our individual household as the best option (wind) would only produce ~37% of our monthly electricity usage
if it operated at full rating 24/7 (which, they don't and aren't expected to, according to the manufacturers). But that's another issue.
~Steve
Primarily, I was going to make this thread as a parody to all the free energy spam out there, but then decided to play it straight instead. Not sure if it's going to generate any discussion or anything, but it's worth noting as "the other side of the story" for those people who constantly think about the free energy spam.