The World Needs More Crazy Billionaires

Leave it to a tech billionaire to once again raise the bar on space exploration. With news that Paul Allen plans to build the largest plane ever—the wings will be 385 feet long—geeks all over the world are surely rejoicing. The plane, which will be made by Allen's new company, Stratolaunch Systems, isn't for passenger travel, at least initially. It's meant to launch rockets into space from 30,000 feet, thereby eliminating costly launching pads.