Do you want to go fast?
Of course you do. Human beings are fascinated with speed, and even the most timid of us will probably admit some sort of attraction the quicker things in life. That’s why the fact that China has just set the new speed record for unmodified commercial trains should send a tingle down your spine. The speed? 302 mph (486 kph), set just a few months after an earlier Chinese train reached 262 mph. The train travels between Beijing and Shanghai, a trip which normally takes about ten hours but would only take around five at this rate. Researchers aren’t done yet, thoughthey’re hoping to ramp it up an extra 10 miles to hit 312 mph (500 kph).The unmodified train still hasn’t reached the record set by the V150, a specially-configured train built in France which reached 357.2 mph (574.8 kph) on April 3 2007. However, this train only ran on an unopened section of the LGV EST, located between Strasbourg and Paris. Modifications included four more powered axles than the train which broke the earlier record in 1990, as well as a maximum power output more than twice that of a standard TGV POS (26,300 hp as opposed to 12,500 hp). Part of the train was displayed at the foot of the Eiffel Tower after breaking the record.Could you imagine typing on your iPad at more than 300 mph? There’s still some work to be done before we see this kind of technology widespread in the United States, but the fact that the potential is there is enough to get anybody’s heart racing.