Slashdot Mirror
Notes From 3rd Annual Space Elevator Conference
colonist writes "The Space Elevator: 3rd Annual International Conference was held recently. Blaise Gassend, a PhD student at MIT, took notes. The main obstacle is still the material: transferring the strength of the nanotube to the ribbon. Other topics include: the nanotube tether Centennial Challenge; Elevator 2010, a challenge for a 250 kg climber to climb a 16 km tether; objections and refinements to Bradley Edwards' design; non-equatorial space elevators; replacing the term 'space elevator' with 'space bridge'; testing the space elevator material on cable cars; science; defense and economics."
I sure hope their wont be a floor for the earths center, cause thats where you'll be goin if you fall off.
Yeah! Crappy space elevator music in 2007. Sounds like a plan.
Why? Because its not yet possible? (Lack of strong and light cables)
The theory is simple.
Would it also be a stupid idea to strap some explosives to your ass and have yourself shot to the moon?
Jeroen
Secure messaging: http://quickmsg.vreeken.net/
Luckily with the movie, I Robot coming out Will Smith will dispell any doubts as to how robots will handle all those problems for you....
A fool throws a stone into a well and a thousand sages can not remove it.
True, but didn't a troll live under the 3 Billy Goats' Gruff bridge?
Stick Men
corepirate nazi felon execrable joined at the hype (Score:mynuts won, redonedunce)
s ys tems.html?pagewanted=2
by Anonymous Coward on Monday July 05, @05:36AM (#9611764)
what a surprise? as for robbIE's fauxking pateNTdead PostBlock corepirate nazi puppet censorship devise, it's still broken, also.
The Web sites of Senator John Kerry and the Democratic National Committee run mainly on the technology of the computing counterculture: open-source software that is distributed free, and improved and debugged by far-flung networks of programmers.
In the other corner, the Web sites of President Bush and the Republican National Committee run on software supplied by the corporate embodiment of big business - Microsoft.
The two sides are defined largely by their approach to intellectual property. Fans of open-source computing regard its software as a model for the future of business, saying that its underlying principle of collaboration will eventually be used in pharmaceuticals, entertainment and other industries whose products are tightly protected by patents or copyrights.
Many of them propose rewriting intellectual property laws worldwide to limit their scope and duration. The open-source path, they insist, should accelerate the pace of innovation and promote long-term economic growth. Theirs is an argument of efficiency, but also of a reshuffling of corporate wealth.
Microsoft and other American companies, by contrast, have long argued that intellectual property is responsible for any edge the United States has in an increasingly competitive global economy. Craig Mundie, chief technical officer and a senior strategist at Microsoft, observed, "Whether copyrights, patents or trade secrets, it was this foundation in law that made it possible for companies to raise capital, take risks, focus on the long term and create sustainable business models."
The dispute can take on a political flavor at times. David Brunton, who is a founder of Plus Three, a technology and marketing consulting company that has done much of the work on the Democratic and Kerry Web sites, regards open-source software as a technological expression of his political beliefs. Mr. Brunton, 28, a Harvard graduate, describes himself as a "very left-leaning Democrat." He met his wife, Lina, through politics; she is a staff member at the Democratic National Committee.
His company's client list includes state Democratic parties in Ohio and Missouri, and union groups including the United Federation of Teachers and the parent A.F.L.-C.I.O. "The ethic of open source has pervaded progressive organizations," Mr. Brunton said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/05/technology/05