I just wanted to throw my 2 bits in.

Engineering is cool, but those are some very tough programs. It's not for everyone, it wasn't for me.

I dropped out of my sophomore year of mechanical engineering. Switched over to an associates degree for CAD drafting at the local tech college.

Since then, I've spent 16 years doing architectural design work, 4 years as a floor inspector at machine shop (aerospace) and bow 3 years doing industrial/agricultural design.

You never really know what direction your life is going to go, just be ready for the opportunities that come your way.

You read the article?

Sir, this is a Reddit.

This is the way.

Not a single cable, more likely a truss like structure oriented vertically, with the load carrying members at the corners tied together diagonally to share the load in case of failure.

No. With infinite money you could make it with the reinforced concrete. IIRC they did the numbers for that in the original paper on a space elevator. It's just completely impractical.

We could build one with current technology, just not cheaply enough to make it a reasonable investment.