Trains of the future - Pop Sci Archive slide show of past concepts
Jerry Schneider
were thrilling at the time to some. Only one was a small vehicle
concept (out of 10).
http://www.popsci.com/cars/gallery/2010-11/archive-gallery-thrilling-trains
Bruce Attah
the DoT was betting heavily on LIM-powered air-cushioned vehicles. It
has pictures of some of these, as well as Airtrans, and a Transrapid
prototype that uses an inverted-T guideway. It has a couple of
paragraphs on PRT, and says this:
"TACV development is still at a fairly early state -- it will probably
arrive in the late 1970s or early 1980s. MAGLEV is at an even earlier
stage -- look for it in the late 1980s. And because of the formidable
problems of integrating PRT systems into present urban transit systems
(or into city buildings themselves) it's unlikely that PRT will come
into widespread use before the 1980s."
According to the article,the Shinkansen's top speed was 125 mph at
that time, and maintenance was a pain.
It also says "Really high-speed ground systems -- above 200 mph --
demand unconventional suspension and contact systems; wheels on tracks
just don't work well at these speeds."
Link: http://books.google.com/books?id=VvyLShXydNgC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA91
Item 8 is from 1961, and is about Eric Laithwaite's early experiments
with the use of LIM for vehicle propulsion. The linked article
contains the remark that: "Wheels probably won't be used anyway; they
would cause trouble at 200 m.p.h. A strong possibility is a wheel-less
air-supported train"
http://books.google.com/books?id=VSEDAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PA77
WALTER BREWER
"They" didn't get it then and "they" still don't get it now;
Transportation is not an end product, it is one major means to achieve
productivity, and social mobility.
People want, and productivity needs on demand personal transportation.
Walt Brewer
Link: http://books.google.com/books?id=VvyLShXydNgC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA91
http://books.google.com/books?id=VSEDAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PA77
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"transport-innovators" group.
To post to this group, send email to transport-...@googlegroups.com.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
transport-innova...@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/transport-innovators?hl=en.
Brad Templeton
mean it is mobility of course, but we also in many cases just plain
seek to be in different places, even if we can get all the
productivity without it. Even when we have full virtual reality like
Rainbow's End or Star Trek Holodecks, I suspect we'll still like to
actually go places to do things, though not quite as much.
Dennis Manning
Fascinating point. Will all the information we can get about places and
people all over the world via the net increase or decrease our individual
desires to travel the world?
You hinted it might reduce the desire. I'd speculate it might increase it.
If you don't know anything about a different place or culture what would
motivate your travel? Could the reverse be true? The more you learn about
far away places the more you want go there and see them in person. I suspect
the latter.
Dennis
--------------------------------------------------
From: "Brad Templeton" <bra...@gmail.com>
Sent: Sunday, December 05, 2010 9:27 PM
To: "transport-innovators" <transport-...@googlegroups.com>
Brad Templeton
cheaper, the popular spots of the world will be overwhelmed, if they
are not already. And if you've seen the bigdog video, you know that
things like a walking robot chair are also coming, that can take
people down steep and difficult trails to the great sights of the
world that were once secluded. There will be so many people they
will need to find a way to slow them down.
One option is a field I also work in, high resolution panoramic
photography. You can look at my photo at
http://pic.templetons.com/cgi-bin/imget?f=brad/pano/burning/dota-maga-360.jpg&fw=155093
(fullscreen it and wander around with arrow keys and mouse wheel.)
This is much more resolution than the human eye has.
Imagine that in a room with a full 360 degree of high resolution
seamless screens with infinity optics. Imagine it in 3-D. And then
imagine it moving with really good sound, and computerized sound
processors to generate the acoustic depth of the scene. Shot for each
great location in the world at the best time, in the perfect light,
and with the crowds temporarily held back. Today we could build
such a room but it would cost a lot of money. In a decade it won't.
It really will feel a lot like being there -- better in some ways,
though lacking depth of focus and the joys of the journey that took
you there. Will it make you work harder to get there, or will
people stop going, knowing that the actual view when they get there
isn't going to be as good.
It will work on both directions on people.
On Dec 5, 10:43 pm, "Dennis Manning" <john.manni...@comcast.net>
wrote:
>
> Fascinating point. Will all the information we can get about places and
> people all over the world via the net increase or decrease our individual
> desires to travel the world?
>
> You hinted it might reduce the desire. I'd speculate it might increase it.
> If you don't know anything about a different place or culture what would
> motivate your travel? Could the reverse be true? The more you learn about
> far away places the more you want go there and see them in person. I suspect
> the latter.
>
> Dennis
>
> --------------------------------------------------
WALTER BREWER
My main point is many arguments for particular transportation modes stop at
the useful but insufficient criteria about BTU, or cost per passenger mile,
if even that.
Quantifing the important step into community functioning seldom happens.
Example: For smart growth, mass transit travel is considered interchangable
with auto travel, despite its travel time disadvantage, ancillary goods
transportaion, etc.
Walt Brewer
WALTER BREWER
In the '60's, very active strategic missile and space buidup in the LA area
was virtially filling airplanes to and from Washington.
Air Force set up a secure participation TV link to/from LA and DC so
conferences could happen w/o travel.
Didn't work for that reason. A higher ranking officer would say; Gee that's
an interesting idea, come tell me more about it.
WALTER BREWER
altitude across USA.
360 deg screens around audience.
Some became airsick.
Walt Brewer
----- Original Message -----
Dennis Manning
Interesting speculations. Perhaps an example is what's got the NFL
concerned. The TV for watching football games has gotten so good they are
worrying what it will do to live crowds. It's one of those issues with so
many variables that probably only time will tell.
Dennis
--------------------------------------------------
From: "Brad Templeton" <bra...@gmail.com>
Sent: Sunday, December 05, 2010 11:46 PM
WALTER BREWER
to move otherwise.
Extreme of the attendance issue may be Buffalo Bills.
Lousy team only two wins out of 12 this year. But only one game was a TV
blackout because of low attendance.
Rain or snow, it's a weekend even with bigtime tailgate parties, bonfires in
the parking lots, etc.
Michael Weidler
| I never go to live sporting events if I'm actually interested in the game - you can't see anything! Ever try to follow a hockey puck or a baseball in real life? And football is not much better. Give me TV with instant replay any day!! --- On Mon, 12/6/10, Dennis Manning <john.m...@comcast.net> wrote: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Edward Sax
I recall that airsick feeling many decades ago at a similar video panorama taken
from a moving firetruck.
But jumping to the virtual future of virtual travel (and inspired by a view of
the world globe from the center of its interior at the Christian Science Monitor
Mapparium in Boston), I have visualized for many years a 3-D display that
I call a Uni-Terrium.
Its single seated viewer can swivel in any direction for undistorted wide angle
view of any part of the world. If instead of graphics fixed in point of time
like the Mapparium it had an electronic screen, the viewer could travel back in
time to Pangea, witness the world-wide impact of mankind, and jump down to the
surface for virtual views of history or evenan exciting current event via remote
panoramic camera.
For travel on that surface (or that of another planet) Google would doubtless
oblige you, and you could Twitter a travelling companion to keep you company.
You might try out a wide range of virtual vehicles, but soon learn to avoid
those that let you get stuck in mud, can't ford streams or need virtual feeding
or stoking.
For continuously innovative transport, imagine your daily commute through
dreary unkept rail corridors in a PRT with Uni-Terrium option installed. Just
avoid getting air-sick!
WALTER BREWER
ride.
Audience at Disney stood up with rails to grasp so they could look the whole
360deg.
Now all we need is virtual food, clothing, etc, etc, and work!!
Brad Templeton
good one is Nasa's Future Flight Central which is used to simulate air
traffic control towers, but you can also go to Mars and other places.
Not just one person. Google has what they used to call the Holodeck
for Google Earth, it has a new name now. Both of these have
seams. Flight simulators present a seamless image though they put
seamed windows in front of it, and only have to do about 200 degrees.
They also use infinity focus optics which makes a big difference.
Many systems now exist for seamless merging of projectors, and of
course for doing 3-D with LCD glasses on -- so all the tech is here.
Today a billion pixels of projection is expensive, but soon that will
change.
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "transport-innovators" group.
> To post to this group, send email to transport-...@googlegroups.com.
> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
> transport-innova...@googlegroups.com.
George Schrader
miles an hour. Seems their would be an opportunity to provide a view.
George Schrader
1208 Grace Ave
Panama City, FL. 32401
850 769 4060 Bus. & Home
850 527 7612 George Cel