What is quantum computing, you may ask, because you’ve heard the phrase a thousand times last week, and what is Majorana…the world must be saved or something, right? No, and calm down please. Here’s the story including the parts worth keeping in mind. Microsoft recently announced development of a ‘quantum computer’, small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, and yet capable of solving insanely complicated problems rapidly, a chip that involves creation of “a new state of matter” that is not solid, liquid, or gas. News of this chip swept the world as some sort of mega-breakthrough that could begin solving the world’s most daunting challenges in “years, not decades”. It turned into one of those stories everyone seemed to be talking about, I mean even beyond nerds. (Story here). But hang on there, techno-adrenaline junkies, read the fine print. Of course this is an amazing achievement (probably? How would I know?), but, among many other daunting challenges, these devices need to be cooled to “near absolute zero”. Absolute zero is -273 degrees Celsius which is even colder than Winnipeg, and it is fiendishly hard to work at that level. Us Gen Xers remember that, because we once wet our pants (or us nerds did anyway) when in 1986 scientists discovered a new class of copper-oxide materials that exhibited superconductivity, which came to be known as high-temperature superconductors. These materials were hailed as a success because they were able to operate at temperatures significantly above absolute zero, include some of them at temperatures above liquid nitrogen (-321°F). Per a wistfully reflective story, “This discovery held the promise of revolutionary new technologies. It also suggested that scientists may be able to find materials that are superconducting at relatively high temperatures. Since then, many new high-temperature superconducting materials have been discovered using educated guesses combined with trial-and-error experiments, including a class of iron-based materials. However, it also became clear that the microscopic theory that describes superconductivity in metals and metal alloys does not apply to most of these new materials, so once again the mystery of superconductivity is challenging the scientific community.” In other words, as usual, don’t be grabbed by the headline, or, you can if you want, but don’t be surprised that if in 39 years you’ll be scratching your bald head and wondering “Hey, whatever happened with that Microsoft Majorana thing…” Article here.
The Idaho Press ran a story about how Idahoans are about to “go gangster” on wind turbines, if residents don’t want to look at them. A bill was introduced in state legislature that would place a massive tax on wind projects if voters disapprove of them. The tax would equate to $25,000 per foot of height, which adds up in a hurry. For example one project noted in the story would include 400 turbines capped at 660 feet, for a total tax on the project of $6.6 billion at $25,000 per vertical foot. It would be cheaper to buy off every resident within sight of the turbines with a million bucks apiece, probably. Story here.
New tariffs and trade threats are falling like leaves in October and it’s hard to keep up. Here is one that seems to have slipped under a lot of radar, perhaps because it was reported on Lloyd’s List Intelligence, a maritime insights website. It is one of those low-key websites devoted to a mundane topic that generates zero interest for anyone outside the industry, the sort of thing Homer Simpson would find mockingly funny, and yet it is precisely the sort of place people need to go in order to really understand what is going on in the world. The depth of knowledge and information is incredible, like at Mining.com or, say, the BOE Report. But anyway, here’s the kicker: A US trade proposal is targeting Chinese maritime/shipbuilding interests by looking to impose some pretty significant port fees for Chinese shipping companies, Chinese built ships, or potentially any ship operator that has a single Chinese-built vessel in its fleet. The proposal has a bizarrely long-limbed reach; it would apply to any operator that has ships built at Chinese yards that are ordered or expected to be delivered within the next 24 months. The port fee would be $1,000/tonne to a maximum of $1 million, which most cargo ships would hit. And then here’s a kick to the kicker, even: This port fee would be involved for every port stop, and many container lines stop at multiple ports per trip. A China-to-US freighter that stops at 3 ports, not unusual, would garner $3 million in fees/tariffs. This is all of course to drive the industry to build more ships in the US, which is almost hilarious, given how long it would take for the US to revive it’s ship building industry and actually build ships. But whatever. Still another 140 trade-shredding proclamations to sign before tee time, no time for fussing!
Story here.
On the topic of shipping, delivered to you in a very infuriating way, French LNG ship builder GTT expects more than 450 orders for large LNG carriers over the next 10 years. According to Statista, in 2024 there were 175 LNG carriers in operation worldwide. Let’s see, quick bit of math…carry the two…that’s a hell of a lot of new LNG ships. And what’s so infuriating about the way this news is delivered? Well, here it is, behind a $285 paywall and no can do. I do like supporting independent publications, but if I purchased all the ones I want to read I’d just buy a Ferrari instead.
An interesting article posted on X recounts the amazing discovery in 2007 of a man in France that was functioning perfectly normally yet a CT brain scan revealed that he “didn’t have 90% of his brain.” The skull was almost entirely filled with cerebrospinal fluid. The man was married, had two children, a job, and the only sign of trouble apparently was that his IQ was somewhat below average at 75. I find that remarkable because if there is any linearity the fellow would have had an IQ of 750 with a normal brain, or…could our brain be trained to perform in its entirety at a level that this poor fellow’s little walnut did? Is his intelligence density (for want of a better word) something even more interesting than a Microsoft’s sexy new computer chip? Surely a guy with only 10 percent of a brain will not win a context of sexiness? LOL. But anyway I am sure you can and will find a way to transpose this story onto your enemies. Story here.
Turns out an energy transition isn’t quite so simple. Read why in The End of Fossil Fuel Insanity – the energy story for those that don’t live it, and want to find out. And laugh. Available at Amazon.ca, Indigo.ca, or Amazon.com.
Read more insightful analysis from Terry Etam here, or email Terry here.