An alternative tech tree idea: categories of research

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I don't expect Squad to change their tech tree to accommodate for this or even really care that much about it, but the idea for it has been bouncing about in my head for some time. I figured I might as well mention it now that we have the tech tree coming. What I came up with was a fluid, natural development cycle which focuses more on categories of research. Instead of having parts be unlocked by tiers, parts are instead developed based on what type of scientific research you perform.

The categories I came up with were:

Rocketry

Aerodynamics

Structural

Utility

Electronics

Experimentation

Micro-Scale

Macro-Scale

As you invest in them, you get more advanced parts. Get enough development overall in the branches, and you unlock better tech. Here are a few examples I cooked up from the engine categories (assuming that you start with Rocketry 1 and nothing else):

LV-T30 Liquid Fuel Engine: Rocketry 1

LV-T45 Liquid Fuel Engine: Rocketry 2

LV-909 Liquid Fuel Engine: Rocketry 3

Rockomax 24-77: Rocketry 2, Micro-Scale 1

Rockomax 48-7S: Rocketry 3, Micro-Scale 2

LV-1 Liquid Fuel Engine: Rocketry 1, Micro-Scale 2

LV-1R Liquid Fuel Engine: Rocketry 2, Micro-Scale 2

Rockomax Mark 55 Radiam Mount Liquid Engine: Rocketry 2, Macro-Scale 1

Rockomax "Poodle" Liquid Engine: Rocketry 3, Macro-Scale 2

Rockomax "Skipper" Liquid Engine: Rocketry 3, Macro-Scale 3

Rockomax "Mainsail" Liquid Engine: Rocketry 4, Macro-Scale 3

Toroidal Aerospike Rocket: Rocketry 4, Experimentation 3

LV-N Atomic Rocket Engine: Rocketry 5, Electronics 3, Experimentation 4

Basic Jet Engine: Rocketry 1, Aerodynamics 1

TurboJet Engine: Rocketry 2, Aerodynamics 2

RT-10 Solid Fuel Booster: Rocketry 1

Rockomax BACC Solid Fuel Booster: Rocketry 2, Macro-Scale 1

Sepratron I: Rocketry 2, Micro-Scale 1

The basic idea behind this is that technology is not something which develops in chunks independently of other research, but rather that breakthroughs are the result of continuous expansion of understanding in a multitude of categories. It was just my own take on things, and a bit different than the usual sort of tech trees you see in video games. I'm not too terribly surprised that a potentially very complicated system like this wasn't used.