n 1979, Hutchison claims to have discovered a number of unusual phenomena, while trying to duplicate experiments done by Nikola Tesla. He refers to several of these phenomena jointly under the name "the Hutchison effect", including:

1. levitation of heavy objects.
2. fusion of dissimilar materials such as metal and wood, while lacking any displacement.
3. the anomalous heating of metals without burning adjacent material.
4. the spontaneous fracturing of metals.
5. changes in the crystalline structure and physical properties of metals.
6. disappearance of metal samples.

Hutchison has maintained a number of websites over the years, in which he posts videos and pictures of the purported effect, including short low-quality clips of objects flying around or rising from the ground, and metallic objects moving without being touched.[1][2] He has offered mail-order VHS tapes of the effect for $100 each,[3] though videos are now sold exclusively through Gryphon Productions.[4]

Supporters like Mark Solis, his former webmaster, maintain that none of these effects can be the result of known physical phenomena, such as electromagnetism.[5] Hutchison and his supporters surmise that these phenomena arise from zero-point energy or the Casimir effect.

It has been said[attribution needed] that researchers at NASA and the Max Planck Institute have attempted to reproduce some of Hutchison's experiments, but that so far none has succeeded. Indeed, NASA's Marc Millis remarks that Hutchison himself appears unable to reproduce his own experiments. Hutchison claims that this is due to the destruction of his lab by the military, or because he has been otherwise prevented legally by the government from repeating his experiments.

Canadian inventor and fringe physicist Mel Winfield says that it was solely through his theories that The Hutchison Effect came into being. He has published evidence including signed contracts, letters, and communications from John Hutchison himself on his website.