Josef Papp

Josef Papp was an American engineer who was awarded U.S. patents related to the development of an engine, and also claimed to have invented a jet submarine. He was born in Tatabánya, Hungary (1920–1946)|Hungary] and died in Daytona [Beach, Florida].

History

Papp was issued several U.S. patents for these inventions, including his noble gas fuel mixture.
The engine continues to be considered by many scientists as a hoax. Papp's poor physics theoretic background is demonstrated in the abstracts of the patents, which had been criticized by Richard Feynman. Supposedly — no confirmation has been found in contemporary sources and — Papp presented to an audience, including Feynman, an ill-fated History of [perpetual motion machines#1951 to 1980|demonstration in 1966], in which his engine exploded, killing one man and seriously injuring two others. Feynman is said to have written an article for "LASER, Journal of the Southern Californian Skeptics" asserting that Papp was a fraudster and the explosion an attempt by Papp to avoid discovery, although he notes that Caltech settled with Papp out of court.