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Zooming Through the Looking Glass
The next several months could redefine the future of transportation in the 21st century.
The startup company Hyperloop Technologies — which takes its name from Elon Musk’s proposed invention but has no direct connection to him — announced today that it will build a test track for the ultra-fast transportation service in North Las Vegas, Nevada…The company plans to test its custom designed electric motor to speeds of up to 540 km/hour (about 335 mph) on a 1 km (about 0.62 miles) long track.
—, “The Hyperloop Will Begin Testing in Nevada in 2016”
Airfares continue to increase and flying attire and attitude have become far too casual, trains have limited rail systems and nobody wants to use (or at least admit) that they’ve traveled on a Greyhound bus. Like energy, alternatives to traveling from Point A to Point B are actively being explored. The Hyperloop is just the latest example that proves innovation is where the brightest future resides.
The consequence of living in a minute-to-minute (even second-to-second) society has undeniably reached the transportation sector. People crave immediacy.
Here is a video illustration of future travel that would break the (speed) limits as we know them today.
Ladies and gentlemen: The Hyperloop.
If the forthcoming tests during the first part of next year are positive for this Jetsons-like method of conveyance, the public’s reaction and inquiry will be aimed directly at Hyperloop’s team at 100 miles per hour.
Well, technically 335 miles per hour.
Flying out of a Garage
If you can, pick the window seat.
Florian Seiffert on Flickr (“Düsseldorf in the morning”)
Flying on an airplane is not what is used to be and this is true in a myriad of ways, specifically regarding comfort and cost. Back in 2012, Joe Brancatelli of Seat 2B-fame in The Business Journals publication discovered a fascinating (yet frustrating) trend of modern air travel that’s taken-off and continues to rise.
“In 2001, fuel was 10 percent of the airline industry’s operating costs. Today, energy consumes about 35 percent of their budgets…”
Is there a solution on the horizon?
Who knows?
Hopefully there is…Nonetheless, perhaps the most devastating reality of higher fuel costs is the constraints it puts on adventure-minded individuals all around the globe who yearn to immerse themselves in new cities and cultures for memories that will last a lifetime (regardless of age). It’s a surreal experience to witness others living in a completely different way than ourselves…and in many of these cases, people are smiling, content and just grateful for what they have.
To see it is incredible, enlightening and inspiring.
And the fun to be had on such excursions is unforgettable, wherever the destination.
Connectivity has undeniably taken on its own language within the digitally overwhelming social media universe, but what about aimlessly walking foreign streets one afternoon and meeting a local baker or taking in a show in a beautiful theater or witnessing an impromptu dance competition with kids in the activity center of a worn down neighborhood in the Indonesian hillside?
To paraphrase Thomas Friedman, the world has never been flatter. However, most of the world (financially) seems to be in a static state of uncertainty. Imagine the possibilities if we were to open up more affordable lanes of travel again by discovering a cheaper fuel alternative? That would be a connection (pardon the pun) that could provide more chances to travel more randomly on a whim.
It is mid-boggling to look at round-trip flights just from Columbus, Ohio to NYC and see air fares that start at $300-$400. I mean, I’m not looking to leave tomorrow or fly on a water bed. It can be unbelievable…the fares, that is.
There is a television commercial that highlights how some of the greatest innovations of the 20th century started in American garages. It’s time for the next era of consumer aviation to spread its wings out wide. Maybe someone is sketching out the answer to the fuel cost problem on a tool table right now?
Hey, crazier things have happened.
The cost of (not) flying reaches far beyond the pump and into the unknown.
Hopefully (thanks to someone with crazy ingenuity), we’ll know soon.
Happy Monday!
I guarantee that if you see a police officer today (especially one directing traffic), you’ll think of this! Hopefully it makes your Monday a little better!
Have a Great Week!
Jimmy's Daily Planet 