Quote:
Originally Posted by zilfondel
Actually, we have built things along this line of complexity and precision. Actually, much moreso: the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland.
17 miles underground for $9 billion, with tolerances of what, nanometers? Ok probably not, but still. It does require a guideway system, essentially a tunnel-within-a-tunnel.
The LHC cost $529 million/mile, so a 4,000 km system built to the same tolerances would cost ~$2.1 trillion. Surprisingly affordable for a nation such as the United States or the EU, as it is a fraction of GDP.
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Yes, and you didn't quote the other part I said. I said this is an issue with scale. You do realize the practicality of meeting such tolerances decreases as vehicles grow larger and more complex..especially with their contents as do the guideways. One thing we will always share in common with our past is that failures trigger from very very very small things. No genius has ever designed the perfect train, car, or airplane from failing despite that they've been around for a very long time. All of these vehicles are more forgiving of our design and construction defects, yet we still can't make them perfect. This proposed system would need to be perfect. Failure at those speeds could be catastrophic.
I want to be clear I believe Elon Musk should do whatever is possible to make this thing a close reality, but I hardly think this is achievable within our lifetimes excluding economic or political conditions. We simply don't have the right materials, automation and skill to put something like this together in the near future. To top it off, transportation developments are not static in innovation. People will continue to make faster, cleaner, smarter cars and planes. Some new creations will be used, others won't.