Comments by "SmallSpoonBrigade" (@SmallSpoonBrigade) on "Dr Ben Miles" channel.

That right there is a major part of the problem, at this time it takes these projects decades to go from the planning stages to something that might function. That time will drop a bit in the future as more efficient paths are discovered and less research is needed ahead of time, so, if we did decide to stop funding this project, it probably wouldn't mean that we'd get something online any sooner. With improvements in magnets, the next one will likely be a lot smaller and cheaper to operate, and will probably still benefit from this project.
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@jewymchoser Precisely, this is just one project and the first project for this sort of thing is never the peak efficiency. As long as the thing does function to produce a viable output, the next ones will be able to improve on that. Now, if they finish building the thing and something completely unexpected happens that makes it not work, that would be a major problem. New designs with better magnets were always going to happen, it's just that we can't collectively wait for that to happen as we'd never actually build the thing.
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@rogeliosalgado Yes, and if the wheel gets at all warped or deformed, then you can't patch that. (Not that you would want to ride around like that, but if it happens, you can't ride anywhere whereas with tubed tires, you can patch it and get to somewhere that can do a more long term fix/replacement of the affected tire.
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@petesig93 A lot of that has to do with car companies needing to ditch spare tires in order to hit fuel efficiency goals. Most cars these days have tire pressure sensors and puncture resistant tires as a result of it being easier to hit the targets by ditching weight than pretty much anything else.
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One of the things that I noticed about the options given is that none of them considered the difference in mass that air has versus water. The folks predicting that it would stay still were the closest, but I didn't notice any mention that the water particles that are pushing their way back into the tube are pressing against a pipe that's been backstopped against pressurized water. I'm only at 8:45, so we'll see what they conclude, but I think that's likely why there was the difference when it's water being sucked rather than air being sucked in Feynman's experiment.
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Yes, but if it's that much of a concern, you can always bring a spare innertube, they're not that heavy.
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There's also run flat bike tire inserts.They still allow for room for air, but in case of a puncture they provide enough resistance that you can still ride home.
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Thanks, I was under the assumption that pilots have training on how to navigate without the GPS given how stupid that would be to rely on GPS when for a long period of time the US could just shut it off in certain regions and there not necessarily being any guarantee that there wouldn't be commercial planes in the area.
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@richdobbs6595 Do some more research. There have already been successful test reactions that resulted in a net gain in the reactor core. There is still a ton of work that needs to go into the efficient delivery of the necessary energy to the core, but the basic road map is pretty solid at this point. This project will deliver relevant discoveries to get us there. Fusion won't be the whole solution, but it will be a part of it.
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You can trade some of that volume for a run flat insert. Yes, you would lose some of the springiness, but if you're somebody that regularly rides along the highway or in the middle of nowhere, that may be a compromise that's worth making. Especially if you're riding along a busy road with narrow shoulders.
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@wowfirebat Yes, although for most other uses, crystals are sufficiently precise and accurate. It's mostly things like GPS which normal people use that benefits from higher levels of both.
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@rogeliosalgado The issue is the rim and the wheel in general. It's great for motorcycles, because the added weight of the wheel isn't that big of a deal. But, if you've got a pedal powered bike, the extra weight needed to resist warping can be an issue. One of the great things about inner tubes and spokes is that if the wheel does warp a bit, you can still pedal home, just not as quickly and it can be a rather rough ride.
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TBH, it seems to me that if solid tires were such a good idea, that we would have had them decades ago. Especially during the early years when the materials were so poor for the purpose. Flat tires today are much less common and tires are usually thrown out due to the tread wearing out rather than puncture. (Although we're talking bike tires, so probably a larger share are damaged due to puncture than car tires)
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Of course not, people that suck and people that blow are usually the same people.
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