[Lor (OP)]

With the development of nanotechnolgy and the recently discovered/invented ability to chemically engineer a motor inside a cell-is there any chance i will see a hoverboard in my lifetime? Would either of these technologies help make it possible ?  I'm 50 years old now and would love to ride on one before I'm too old or ash.


 ?<a Back to the Future fan>

[wolfekeeper]

AFAIK neither of those things are currently able to help build a hoverboard, there are other ways to approximate a hoverboard though, jet engines, ground effect, propellers, maglev, that kind of thing, that have hovered or flown before.

[syhprum]

Hovering will always consume a lot of power and make a lot of noise, wheels are much better.
The much vaunted cross channel hover craft did not last for long.

[Geezer]

I'm pretty sure you could make one that would work under water. Would that qualify?

[wolfekeeper]

Hovering will always consume a lot of power and make a lot of noise, wheels are much better.
The much vaunted cross channel hover craft did not last for long.

That's not true, hovering doesn't necessarily take any energy, superconductors don't for example.

The hovercraft ran for years and years, it only failed because it wasn't good in rough weather.

With the transrapid system in Germany and China, the air conditioner takes more power than the magnetic levitation system! And the energy needed to go fast is even more than that. Air drag is the main loss, by a very long way.

[syhprum]

I am sure that a hover board could be constructed to run along the rail lines rather like a plate layers trolly but I thought you wanted a go anywhere one rather like Bart uses.

[CliffordK]

If someone hadn't put a tunnel under the English Channel, the hovercraft would probably still be running.

I'm seeing many notes of small homebuilt hovercraft on the web, as well as a few that look like hovering jet skis.

Vacuum cleaners and leaf blowers seem to be favorite power sources.

[Geezer]

I had a hovercraft once, well, actually it was lawnmower made by Flymo. They are quite common in the UK, but they never caught on in the US, and I think I know why.

I took mine from Scotland to Arizona. What a disaster! It was so dry there that it blew all the soil out of the grass and created a gigantic dust cloud.

[CliffordK]

Arizona?

Don't you get a little rain up in Washington?  Of course, it is probably like Oregon, lots of rain in the winter, a bit less in the summer.

[Geezer]

Mostly on the wrong side of the Cascade Curtain. Anyway, I'm in the one with two time zones, although, if you are not paying attention, you'll miss it and find yourself in Montana.

[Lor (OP)]

fine, you dream slayers, gardeners of doubt.


but i still want a hoverboard.. 

Geezer -thanks for the wit and humor-you could make a living writing. )

 

[syhprum]

I had the miguided idea that the cross channel tunell would take a large proportion of the traffic and bought £5000.00 worth of shares.
I was lucky to get out with the loss of only £1000.00

[pippystardust]

Why does everyone have this preoccupation with hoverboards as being the epitome of futuristic technology?

I can think of much better applications for "hover technology"   how about

Hover luggage
hover wheelchairs
hover oil rigs
hover stretchers
hover shoes
hover wheelbarrows  etc etc etc

[wolfekeeper]

This is more or less a hoverboard:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=h-7RlL3YtiQ

I've seen stuff like this before on Bang Goes the Theory and elsewhere but putting the jets on your feet rather than on your back is doubtless a lot better (people have natural reflexes that greatly help with balance while you're flying that way).