where do we stop? isn't this too fast for human race?

Japan's maglev train sets record

[Nermin]

A magnetically levitated Japanese train has raced to a new record, topping its own previous best set just last month.

i really dont think we need anything faster than this, even this is too fast, whatever happened to let's take train and njeoy the nature, view and relax.

i remebr i took the train ince in croatia and it took 6 hours to get from rijeka to zagreb and it's like 300 km netween two cities. it was perfect :)

[Distel]

I took a train not so long ago, but they spotted me and I had to give it back.

[snowman]

Speed like that is necessary for airplanes and space ships. Not for trains.

What might happen if even a small animal happened to stray onto the tracks? I'd speculate that the impact with the animal would cause much of the engine to disintegrate, just as a seagull flying into a 747 can cause those big jet engines, in spite of their great strength, to become severely damaged.

[digitalghost]

>>I'd speculate that the impact with the animal would cause much of the engine to

I've got a thousands bucks that says the train wins. :) And that the passengers would barely feel the impact from an animal as large as a cow. And that all they would have to do is spray off the front of the train...

[Brett_Tabke]

Personally, I want to build a tunnel from New York to LA and then Eventually under the pacific to Japan and other parts west.

It would be a steel tunnel with a magnetic rocket powered train. I think 1/2 the speed of light should be attainable. Given time for acceleration and deceleration, NY to LA should be doable in under a half hour.

...only $50 billion to build our first 1 mile prototype. (who's in?)

[mivox]

Some group of engineering nuts actually plotted out what it would take to build a mag-lev train tunnel under the Atlantic Ocean... apparently it would require the entire world's steel production for several consecutive years to actually build it.

So, first you'll be arranging a mining expedition to the asteroid belt to collect raw materials? ;)