from Hacker News

Plans to bring Asimov's moving sidewalks from the Caves of Steel to life

by carbide on 9/30/15, 4:10 PM with 2 comments

• by carbide on 9/30/15, 4:10 PM

  In the underground cities of The Caves of Steel, people got around on complex moving walkways. They were arranged in a series of strips that moved at different speeds, with the fastest moving walkways in the center. People skilled at navigating the system could fluidly move through the crowds going from fast "express strips" to slower "off ramp" strips without breaking stride or zooming past their destinations. It looks like this is exactly what they want to build in London.

  It makes me think of how Neal Stephenson lamented the rise of "pessimistic sci-fi" because he believes that big ideas in fiction can inspire people to strive to implement those ideas in the real world. It's not a stretch to think that someone who grew up reading Isaac Asimov might be driven to build a robot or a moving walkway transportation system. Elon Musk even credits The Foundation Series when he talks about his inspiration to start SpaceX and get to Mars.

• by therealray on 9/30/15, 4:27 PM

  I always thought these should be called slidewalks