[headmelted]

"Humans and our ideas are the ultimate resource, not gas. When we work together we solve problems, and the weapon engineer who had to relocate back to HK to raise kids near family can often be the difference between a breakthrough we all benefit from and nothing at all"

Jeez, this again.

What is it about we tech folk that allows a little aptitude to let our ego get so far out of whack?

I'm not that special. You're not that special. Your weapon engineer is not that special.

There's a bunch of guys and gals in Hong Kong/Canada/Iceland/wherever who are just as capable of doing the same job without intercontinental commuting.

As others have said, the Internet exists, which mitigates the need for international travel like you've suggested anyway (which is absurd, not least for the environmental damage this implies).

"Tesla won in cars and SpaceX won in rockets"

I'm a fan, but this very much remains to be seen.

[ThomPete]

Think you are missing the point. Earth doesent just give us resources we then use, we invent ways to use things as resources. Oil wasnt a resource, uranium wasnt a resource,the sun wasnt a resource, we had to find ways to turn them into resources.

[sandworm101]

>> I'm not that special. You're not that special. Your weapon engineer is not that special.

There are a few target markets that are special. Celebs are each unique, their earning power is tied to this uniqueness. Such an aircraft is great if you want to film in the UK but spend your weekends in NY. Much of Concorde's passenger base fit this profile.

Then there are the truly wealthy. There might actually be an environmental argument for them to use this aircraft. Compare it against the carbon footprint of someone flying on Emirates in that airborne apartment they sell on the A380. I'd bet that a semi-normal seat on this rocket will be less carbon intensive than one of those giant first class seats on a slower aircraft. Maybe a few people opting for a less-opulent but far faster option might actually reduce net carbon emissions.

[eptcyka]

As far as the carbon footprint goes, the energy required to move a thing with a given mass scales quadraticly with speed, same goes for overcoming air resistance. However, there could be some novel gains in engineering an engine that isn't dogshit inefficient at low speeds like the Concorde ones were.

[mlevental]

>What is it about we tech folk that allows a little aptitude to let our ego get so far out of whack?

it's startup culture nonsense

[Aeolun]

What is it about corporate that makes everyone say ‘This is the way it’s always been done, so there cannot possibly be a better way.’?

Lets enjoy laughing at them after they fail, rather than before.

[headmelted]

Who here is saying that? And who or what in the thread is "corporate"?

"Lets enjoy laughing at them after they fail, rather than before"

Suggesting someone apply a little humility to their worldview is a pretty far cry from laughing at them for having goals.

I also don't know why you would laugh at someone for failing, it seems a bit harsh.

[taneq]

Kerosene is a lot less special than a domain expert who can save your company $100k/hr or whatever.