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13 extraordinary gifts for absurdly wealthy science fanatics
Most of us have limits on what we spend for Christmas.
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But in a world with no limits, what would you spring for?
Perhaps a trip to space, where you and your family could gaze down at the Earth? A diving session to watch great white sharks rip apart dinner? Or your own hoverboard, for cruising across your own specially designed track?
We've picked some of our favorite super-size gift ideas for science and technology fans (one can dream, right?).
Whether you're interested in exploring the ocean depths or getting your hands on a technology out of a sci-fi movie, there's something here for everyone — with extraordinarily deep pockets.
If you're tired of planes, trains, and cars, then the Martin Jetpack might be a good choice.
It's a little bulkier than the jetpacks we see in movies, but it really works!
A V4 engine and ducted fans (sort of like a helicopter) power the device, which can fly up to 30 minutes and reach a maximum altitude of 3,280 feet.
Right now the company is marketing the jetpack to the military and to rescue operations from extremely tall buildings. We want one to get from Manhattan to Queens and back.
Price: $150,000
Vacations make great gifts, but why not pick somewhere a little more exotic than the Bahamas — perhaps the International Space Station?
You can book a trip through Space Adventures. The exact price depends on what time of year you want to go and how long you want to stay.
Price: A 10-day stay will cost you $52 million, but spacewalks aren't included — those cost an additional $15 million each.
If you're not quite ready for space, then the private space tourism company World View will float you 20 miles above the Earth in a capsule carried by a balloon.
At that height it's still possible to experience the "overview effect" — a cognitive shift experienced by some astronauts when they catch a glimpse of the Earth from space. The experience leaves people feeling deeply connected to the world and fills them with a desire to protect it and change it for the better.
World View plans to ferry the first passengers beyond the stratosphere at the end of 2016, so you might want to save this one for next year's gift list.
Price: $75,000
The Hendo Hoverboard is not the hands-free motorized scooters passing for "hoverboards" these days.
The contraption actually levitates, and it can support up to 300 pounds. However, since the board uses magnetism to stay in the air, for now you can only ride it over special (and expensive) metal surfaces like copper.
Price: $10,000
Perhaps you prefer exploring mountaintops — then carving out their virgin snow with skis or a snowboard.
In that case, a heli-skiing adventure might be more your speed.
You and 15 of your closest friends can enjoy the award-winning incredible luxury of British Columbia's five-star Bighorn chalet for rates starting at $75,000 Canadian a week ($56,000 US). Private heli-skiing on Revelstoke Mountain Resort will cost $1,700 Canadian ($1,270 US) per person, per day — but being almost alone on those mountains sounds like the trip of a lifetime.
Price: Starts at $75,000 Canadian.
The Kuratas robot is about as close to an "Iron Man" suit or reenacting the giant robot battle in "Pacific Rim" as you can get.
Users can drive Kuratas from the control seat or direct it with a remote. It's also possible to arm Kuratas (which sounds terrifying) with a rotary canon, a fireworks launcher, a "Kuratas handgun," and a "pilebunker," according to Suidobashi Heavy Industry which designed the robot.
Price: $1.3 million
The Necker Nymph open-top submarine can get up to about 5 knots (5.7 mph) and dive about 130 feet.
It comes with a "wind screen" to protect the riders from the water's slipstream as they cruise along. It seats three and it's possible to drive from any of the seats.
Price: About 415,000 Euros.
While the Necker Nymph looks like a fun way to cruise shallower waters, you'll need something more hardcore to go any deeper.
To hit the deepest depths of the ocean — the bottom of the Mariana Trench 35,800 feet down, where only three people have visited — then the Triton 36,000/3 is for you (and two others). Triton says their projected build time is 24 months and prices start at $30 million.
But Triton's also got other options, too, like the Triton 3,300/3 — which starts at $3.6 million. It'll take you and two others 3,300 feet deep.
Price: $30 million for 36,000/3 submarine
You could have your own personal robotic entertainer with RoboThespian.
It can greet the guests at your next swanky party, tell them jokes in 30 different languages, and even perform a few songs.
It's one of the most advanced humanoid robots out there — it can even hold eye contact and make fluid, human-like gestures.
Price: About 350,000 Euros ($370,000 US).
The company Great White Adventures will sail you out to the Farallon Islands, lock you in a cage, and drop you below the surface to hang out with great white sharks.
The cage can fit four divers at a time, and you'll get a few 30-minute sessions in the cage.
As part of the trip you might also witness a great white ripping its prey to shreds, so this experience is not for the faint of heart.
Price: $775
Companies like Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin, Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic, and Jeff Greason's XCOR are racing to become the first to offer paying customers a flight to the edge of space.
The high arc of flight — about 62 miles up — and the fall back to Earth will provide a few minutes of zero gravity inside a spacecraft.
No company is flying any paying passengers yet, but Virgin Galactic is so optimistic about its progress that reservations are already on sale.
Price: $150,000 (XCOR), $250,000 (Virgin Galactic), unknown (Blue Origin)
If you're going on an adventure to the bottom of the globe, why not cross the Drake Passage the way the first explorers did — on a sailboat? Of course, this boat used on this trip, run by Natural Habitat Adventures, is reinforced with state-of-the-art equipment and a hull built to withstand icy encounters.
And once you get there, your exclusive experience (a max of seven travelers join each trip) will have you exploring caves and beaches, trekking, kayaking, camping on the ice, and more.
This one isn't for the faint of heart or foot — you'll need to be physically fit for this expedition. But if you're exploring the most remote place on the planet, you don't want to be carried everywhere on a cruise ship, do you?
And yes, you'll get to see penguins.
Price: Trips start at $22,995 per person.
Satisfy your need for speed, and with less environmental guilt, in a hybrid sports car like Ferrari's LaFerrari.
This model combines chargeable electric motors with a roaring V12 engine. So while it can cut fuel consumption up to 40%, it can still hit a top speed of 217 mph and go from 0 to 60 mph in under three seconds.
Ferrari has made fewer than 500 models of this car, so it might be hard to get your hands on one.
Price: $1.4 million
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