I am currently building an escalator to the moon....hopefully it will be done sometime in 2099.

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Scott has been introduced to the rave scene, and Ecstasy, by Craig. The two of them go out on the weekends, with some of Craigs friends, and stay up all night, dancing in a drug-fueled trance.

Last edited by Moral Hazard on Apr-26-2011 at 07:48

quote:

I am currently building an escalator to the moon....hopefully it will be done sometime in 2099.

TO THE MOON IN A SPACE ELEVATOR?

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Steve Kettmann Email 02.04.03 | 2:00 AM 'The Climber' gets its name from its function. A track and roller system presses onto the ribbon and provides traction for movement up and down the tether. The circular base consists of photovoltaic cells, which receives power from a laser beaming station on the surface below. View Slideshow View Slideshow The Columbia disaster could spur faster development of a radically different approach to reaching outer space: the space elevator. Long imagined by science-fiction writers but seen by others as hopelessly far-fetched, the space-elevator concept has advanced dramatically in recent years along with leaps forward in the design of carbon nanotubes. Using the lightweight, strong carbon material, it's feasible to talk of building a meter-wide "ribbon" that would start on a mobile ocean platform at the equator, west of Ecuador, and extend 62,000 miles up into space. An elevator could be attached to this ribbon to ferry materials such as satellites and replacement parts for space stations -- or even people -- up into space. The project could become a reality as soon as 15 years from now, experts say. "Technically it's feasible," said Robert Cassanova, director of the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts. "There's nothing wrong with the physics." NIAC has given more than $500,000 to Seattle-based HighLift Systems to develop the concept under the leadership of the company's chief technology officer, Bradley Edwards. The key to the concept's feasibility lies in the material that will be used to construct the ribbon between the Earth and outer space. Nanotubes are essentially sheets of graphite -- a lattice of carbon -- seamlessly rolled into long tubes that are mere nanometers in diameter. These are 100 times as strong as steel, but much lighter. "Carbon nanotubes are rapidly developing," Cassanova said. "They are not long enough to stretch from Earth's surface to 62,000 miles, but there are a number of organizations working on that now." David Raitt, senior technology transfer officer for the European Space Agency, believes the question is not whether to build a space elevator, but only how long it will take. "It's like Jack and the beanstalk," Raitt said. "Just think of this idea of having this ribbon snaking up into space 100,000 kilometers long. It will be about a meter wide, but it will be as thin as paper. People would come just to see it." Edwards said a space elevator could transport materials into the cosmos for about $100 a kilogram. He estimated that sending materials on a shuttle costs $10,000 to $40,000 per kilogram. That could make it affordable, for example, to build huge solar-energy gatherers and send them into space on the elevator. "African countries could send up a solar satellite, and use that energy to build wells, and pump water and develop their economies," Edwards said. Bill Rever, senior manager of business development for BP Solar, has been in contact with Edwards and said the space-elevator concept is "very promising." "I was very impressed with the level of detail in their analysis of potential engineering problems, and their proposed solutions," Rever said. "They've done a lot of homework, and it really shows. It's far beyond the level of a bunch of guys with an idea. It's definitely at the level of actual engineering to make it happen." Edwards is working with people worldwide on different aspects of the project, and looking for more investors to raise the $10 billion necessary to build the elevator. Some of that financial support could come from companies interested in developing space tourism. "With the space elevator you could easily have an operating tourist system and a small city up there," Edwards said. "The space elevator would essentially allow the world to participate."

I remember seeing this a few months ago and your post made me think about it.

SOURCE

twas only a matter of time...

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Link to article

CN TOWER TO DROP FROM LOFTY PERCH
Topped By Burj Dubai; New Building Set To Take Crown As World's Tallest
Kelly Patrick, National Post
Published: Wednesday, August 22, 2007

For 31 years, Toronto's CN Tower has held the title of tallest freestanding structure on the planet.

Now the engineering marvel, wonder of the modern world and symbol of the city is poised to officially fall to second place.

The Burj Dubai, a glittering office and condo tower in the booming emirate on the Persian Gulf, is set to eclipse the CN Tower's 553-metre height in the next week or two, the building's project manager said yesterday.

"We think we'll be surpassing it by the end of this month," said George Efstathiou, managing partner with Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, the Chicago-based architecture firm that designed the Burj Dubai. "Becoming the tallest free-standing structure on Earth is a pretty big deal."

Although plans for several buildings taller than the CN Tower have made headlines in the past few years, the Burj Dubai will be the first to turn that paper dream into physical reality.

As of Sunday, the building had reached 145 floors and 536 metres.

Construction is proceeding swiftly; workers are putting up one floor roughly every three days, Mr. Efstathiou said.

The Burj Dubai will boast 165 floors and a height of about 800 metres when completed. The building's precise height is a closely guarded secret, Mr. Efstathiou said.

It is no secret, however, that the Burj Dubai will dethrone the CN Tower.

The architect who spearheaded the CN Tower's design in the early 1970s said yesterday he never dreamed his record would stand for more than three decades.

"I think it's great for [Dubai], too bad for us," Ned Baldwin said in an interview from New York City. "But we've had a heck of a run. I mean, who would have thunk it? Thirty-odd years as the tallest in the world? I thought it would be maybe five years."

The CN Tower was completed on June 26, 1976. Ever since, the 181-storey communications tower has been an icon, a key feature on the city's skyline and a source of international bragging rights.

Still, some observers said yesterday that Toronto's identity is no longer bound up in the singular achievement of building the planet's tallest structure -- and that means losing the record will not be a serious blow to the city.

"We don't view our success now as the city with the tallest building," said Ian Chodikoff, editor of Canadian Architect magazine. "We're probably luckier to say we're the city with the most diverse types of buildings or the most diverse population."

Adam Vaughan, the councillor whose ward includes the CN Tower, echoed that sentiment.

"I think it's like the SkyDome -- the achievement has sort of worn off. It's part of the civic skyline in an emotional way, but I think the sense of wow left a while ago," he said.

Officials at the CN Tower are taking their impending fall to second place in stride.

"When the time comes and the building is complete, we will congratulate the Burj Dubai project on their unique achievement," Jack Robinson, chief operating officer of the CN Tower, said in an e-mail.

"For now, we remain proud of the 30-year-plus record Canada's national tower has held as world's tallest, and will continue to celebrate the architectural marvel and wonder that the CN Tower represents to Toronto, Canada and the rest of the world."

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800 meters? fuck thats crazy

We also have the longest freshwater beach in the world - Wasaga.

All those fancy towers that are taller than the CN are MASTS. There is a difference between a mast and a tower. I'm pretty sure any mast will have guywires holding it up and therefore they are not free standing.

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"Hey look, I can make a heart-shape with my hands!!!" So Fucking what? Stop it. You're a douche.

When life gives you lemons, squirt the juice in the eyes of your enemies.