Stock Tip? Boeing, BAE to Build 'Laser Machine Gun

The stock tip below caught my eye because I personally have always wanted to have my own laser machine gun, and because it will change the economics of war and that is something that I, as a Binary Day Trader need to be kept abreast of.  I found this article at http://pimp-my-trades.blogspot.com/2011/07/boeing-bae-to-build-laser-machine-gun.html

I found this article while trolling the web and aside from thinking that it is very much out of sci-fi movies to shoot stuff with a laser gun, I also think that it will result in strong performance from the companies developing it.  The primary companies involved are Boeing and BAE, so keep a sharp eye out for their stock performance.  

Boeing, BAE to Build 'Laser Machine Gun'

Published July 27, 2011

BAE System's ship defense laser.

Like peanut butter and chocolate, the U.S. Navy thinks machine guns and lasers are two great tastes that taste great together. They hope the combination of old school lead with new school "pew" will better protect their ships from attack by smaller boats.

BAE Systems, a British defense firm, already makes the giant machine guns that protect warships from approaching watercraft. Tuesday, Boeing announced that it will team up with BAE Systems to develop a solid-state laser that would work in tandem with the already potent weapon.

"Boeing is committed to developing this directed energy system that will significantly enhance ship defense," said Michael Rinn, Boeing DES vice president. "Combining BAE's engineering expertise with the proven directed-energy proficiency of Boeing's DES division creates a team uniquely qualified to integrate directed-energy technology into the Navy's shipboard armaments."

BAE won the contract to develop the laser, which the Navy envisions as a countermeasure against small drones, tiny boats and anything else that gets too close a Navy surface vessel. Now, Boeing has joined the team to develop the prototype weapon.

It's anybody's guess what kind of threat a machine guns or lasers can't defeat on their own (Mothra? Decepticons? Kraken?). But now that 19th century ballistic technology has teamed up with 21st century ray gun tech, whatever that enemy may be will think twice about messing with a U.S. Navy warship.

  *   Ten Military Aircraft that Never Made it Past the Test Phase
  *   Could America Really Build a 'Star Wars' AT-AT Walker?
  *   INFOGRAPHIC: When Will I Get My Laser Gun?

 

How much gold is there in the world?

When it comes to precious metals, they really are short on supply. Gold, which is not the most scarce of those metals is still defined in personal sizes even when discribing quantities of the world.

There are various estimates of how much gold there is in the world, but most estimates place it at an amount that could be stored in a single medium sized area. One estimate, which states that all the gold in the world would fill up two olympic sized swimming pools  and that article also states that all the platinum in the world would fill up a medium sized living room.

So think about that, the entire world, vs the size of a few pools or even a living room. It is a scarce metal and it never goes bad. Its an interesting investment, or is it an inflated commodity?