WEBVTT - Hyperloop

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<v Speaker 1>Elon Musk says that he got a verbal agreement from

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<v Speaker 1>the White House that would allow him to build an

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<v Speaker 1>ultra fast underground transportation system between Washington, d C. And

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<v Speaker 1>New York City. But is the hyperloof just height? I'm

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<v Speaker 1>Jonathan Strickland, and this is tech Stuff Daily. Back in

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<v Speaker 1>two thousand thirteen, Elon Musk published a white paper in

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<v Speaker 1>which he proposed an alternative to the high speed rail

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<v Speaker 1>system the government of California had just approved. Must found

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<v Speaker 1>the approved system to be underwhelming, to say the least.

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<v Speaker 1>He claimed it was one of the most expensive high

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<v Speaker 1>speed systems on a per mile basis, while simultaneously being

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<v Speaker 1>one of the slowest in the world. In his view,

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<v Speaker 1>it was both too expensive and not effective. There had

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<v Speaker 1>to be a better way. Musk's idea of a better

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<v Speaker 1>way was a concept he called the hyper loop. Imagine

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<v Speaker 1>an enclosed steel tube mounted on pylons. The tube forms

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<v Speaker 1>a loop between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Inside the tube,

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<v Speaker 1>passenger capsules carry twenty eight people at a time from

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<v Speaker 1>one city to another, completing the journey in about half

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<v Speaker 1>an hour. Compare that travel time to alternatives to drive

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<v Speaker 1>your car between the two cities would take about five

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<v Speaker 1>and a half hours. A flight would be a bit

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<v Speaker 1>more than an hour, and a trip on this approved

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<v Speaker 1>high speed rail system that California had been talking about

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<v Speaker 1>would be two hours thirty eight minutes for cities that

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<v Speaker 1>are about nine hundred miles apart or less. Musk says

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<v Speaker 1>his design makes the most sense both from an economic

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<v Speaker 1>standpoint and logistics approach. Any further apart than that, and

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<v Speaker 1>Musk says supersonic air travel is likely more efficient, So

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<v Speaker 1>you might not hop on a hyper loop train to

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<v Speaker 1>go from Atlanta to San Diego, but you could go

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<v Speaker 1>from Atlanta to St. Paul, Minnesota. Musk's design involved a

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<v Speaker 1>special system of air bearings, sort of like what you'd

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<v Speaker 1>find on an air hockey table, except in this case,

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<v Speaker 1>the air blows down from the capsule, allowing the capsule

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<v Speaker 1>to hover above the tube floor. A linear electric motor

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<v Speaker 1>would provide the acceleration, allowing the capsule to travel faster

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<v Speaker 1>than seven miles per hour at top speed. Air pumps

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<v Speaker 1>would keep the air pressure inside the tube blow It

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<v Speaker 1>wouldn't be a total vacuum, but it would reduce air

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<v Speaker 1>density inside the tube to cut down on air resistance.

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<v Speaker 1>A pump mounted to the front of each capsule would

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<v Speaker 1>allow the pods to pull air in from in front

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<v Speaker 1>of them and pump them into a compressor, which then

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<v Speaker 1>would be used to power the air bearings. It was

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<v Speaker 1>an interesting system. Since Musk's proposal, a few different companies

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<v Speaker 1>have formed to try and bring it to reality. These

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<v Speaker 1>companies take a slightly different approach in their designs, leaning

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<v Speaker 1>more heavily on magnetic levitation and is shoeing the air

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<v Speaker 1>bearings approach. Several cities around the world have signed preliminary

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<v Speaker 1>agreements with these companies to build hyperloop transportation systems between them.

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<v Speaker 1>Musk himself initially said that he was too busy to

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<v Speaker 1>get into the hyper loop game directly and instead made

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<v Speaker 1>his proposal an open source project. But these days Musk

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<v Speaker 1>seems eager to give it a shot. He founded the

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<v Speaker 1>Boring Company. It's an organization with one goal digging tunnels

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<v Speaker 1>to create transportation systems. That brings us to this verbal

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<v Speaker 1>agreement from the White House. Must wants to tunnel from

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<v Speaker 1>DC to New York City and install a hyper loop

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<v Speaker 1>transportation system to cut travel time down to half an hour.

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<v Speaker 1>There are many other barriers in the way, of that goal.

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<v Speaker 1>Some of them are technological, boring machines are pretty slow.

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<v Speaker 1>Some are legislative, as there are plenty of other levels

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<v Speaker 1>of government that would have to sign off on such

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<v Speaker 1>a major project. But if he can do it, the

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<v Speaker 1>outcome would be dramatic. Such a transportation system could transform

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<v Speaker 1>how people live and work. Imagine living in one city

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<v Speaker 1>and commuting to another hundreds of miles away, depending upon

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<v Speaker 1>property values. You could save a lot of money that way.

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<v Speaker 1>Why live in Brooklyn, where the cost of living is high.

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<v Speaker 1>If you could have a home outside of Washington, d C.

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<v Speaker 1>For much less and just commute in every day. It

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<v Speaker 1>remains to be seen if the hyper loop projects will

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<v Speaker 1>live up to all the expectation. Ideally, they will create economic,

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<v Speaker 1>environmentally friendly alternatives to other means of transportation. They could

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<v Speaker 1>transform our cities so that we start to see similar

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<v Speaker 1>populations in cities that are hundreds of miles apart because

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<v Speaker 1>of their ability to travel between them. Or it could

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<v Speaker 1>all just end up falling short of where we hope

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<v Speaker 1>they can go. To learn more about the history of

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<v Speaker 1>the hyper loop concept and how it works, check out

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<v Speaker 1>the tech Stuff podcast. In every episode, we dive into

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<v Speaker 1>the stories and inner workings of technology. Whether it's particle

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<v Speaker 1>accelerators or air conditioners, you're bound to learn something. Episodes

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<v Speaker 1>published every Wednesday and Friday. That's all from me for now,

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<v Speaker 1>See you next time. Won