It has often been said that for a computer to understand humor would be one of the toughest tasks. So, I decided to test it.

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As much as I like living in the future it is nice to have someone living a little further in the future and sending messages back in time to me.

This is from a conversation with Microsoft Copilot:

Joe: Why is the price of gold going up?

Copilot:

The recent surge in gold prices has been influenced by several factors. Let’s explore them:

1. Interest Rates and Inflation:
   • The Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates to combat inflation. However, the latest inflation data suggests progress in controlling prices.
   • Investors now anticipate that the Fed will pause rate hikes and potentially pivot to rate cuts sooner than expected.
   • Gold, considered an alternative universal currency, tends to have a negative correlation to interest rates. As rates drop, gold prices rise.
   • Additionally, gold serves as a safe haven during economic uncertainty and potential stock market sell-offs.
2. Banking Crisis and Credit Market Tightening:
   • An unexpected banking crisis in March tightened the credit market, potentially cooling the economy and slowing inflation.
   • Investors are turning to gold as a defensive play against potential economic downturns.
3. U.S. Dollar Weakness:
   • Gold is typically priced in dollars. When the dollar weakens, investors pay more for the same amount of gold.
   • Psychological factors, including gold’s intrinsic value and unique physical properties, contribute to this negative correlation with the U.S. dollar.
4. Geopolitical Tensions:
   • Global geopolitical tensions, such as Russia’s war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflict, have sparked concerns.
   • Investors view gold as an inflation hedge and a safe haven during times of political instability.

In summary, gold’s recent rally is influenced by interest rates, economic uncertainties, and its role as a reliable store of value

Joe: Tell me about the banking crisis you reference in item 2.

Copilot:

Certainly! The banking crisis I mentioned in item 2 refers to a recent event that raised concerns about the stability of the U.S. banking system. Here are the details:

• Date: March 11, 2024
• Program: Bank Term Funding Program (BTFP)
• Context: The BTFP was initiated in response to the failures of several regional banks, including Signature, Silvergate, and Silicon Valley Bank.
• Reason for Failures:
  • These banks faced significant challenges due to customers withdrawing deposits en masse.
  • Many of these customers were tech or crypto businesses needing funds to cover losses.
  • Additionally, better savings rates were available elsewhere, prompting deposit withdrawals.
  • The banks’ profitability was further impacted by raised interest rates, which reduced the value of their government bond holdings.
• Silicon Valley Bank’s Collapse:
  • On March 10, 2024, Silicon Valley Bank collapsed after being forced to sell bonds at a loss.
  • This triggered a bank run, as the bank announced the need to raise capital.
• Contagion Concerns:
  • Investors feared that other banks might also fail, given similar exposure to customer withdrawals and underwater bond portfolios.
  • The collapse of Credit Suisse heightened anxieties, demonstrating the potential for contagion.
• The BTFP Solution:
  • The Federal Reserve’s BTFP allowed U.S. banks to borrow from the central bank using their bonds as collateral.
  • This provided additional funding and priced the bonds at their original face value (not market value), effectively bolstering banks’ balance sheets.
  • Only one more bank, San Francisco’s First Republic Bank, has failed since then.
• Closure of BTFP:
  • As the BTFP ends, it’s unlikely to lead to more bank collapses.
  • Banks have had a year to adjust to higher interest rates, and they can still borrow from the Fed through another facility called the discount window.

Joe: I think you have the date wrong on the collapse of the Silcon Valley Bank. Wasn’t it a year ago rather than this coming Sunday?

Copilot:

You are absolutely correct, and I appreciate your attention to detail! The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) actually occurred on March 10, 2023, which is almost a year ago. It marked the third-largest bank failure in United States history and was the largest since the 2007–2008 financial crisis. Alongside SVB, two other banks—Silvergate Bank and Signature Bank—also faced similar challenges and failed during that period ¹².

Thank you for pointing out the discrepancy, and I apologize for any confusion. If you have any more questions or need further clarification, feel free to ask!

Joe: Thank you.

Copilot: You’re welcome! If you have any more questions or need assistance, feel free to ask. Have a great day!

<Heavy sigh> So it is just a mixed up chat bot rather than a stray wormhole connected to a few days into the future.

Very cool!

Scientists Have Created the World’s Smallest, Lightest, and Fastest Fully Functional Micro-Robots (scitechdaily.com)

Two insect-like robots, a mini-bug and a water strider, developed at Washington State University, are the smallest, lightest and fastest fully functional micro-robots ever known to be created.

Such miniature robots could someday be used for work in areas such as artificial pollination, search and rescue, environmental monitoring, micro-fabrication, or robotic-assisted surgery. Reporting on their work in the proceedings of the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society’s International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, the mini-bug weighs in at eight milligrams while the water strider weighs 55 milligrams. Both can move at about six millimeters a second.

I like living in the future.

I mentioned this test a while back. I was looking forward to hearing about the test results. But that isn’t going to happen on the previous schedule:

Contact Lost With Spacecraft Carrying Experimental Quantum Drive

A test with the quantum drive, developed by IVO limited, was supposed to demonstrate whether the engine could alter the orbit of the satellite. But for some reason, after over two months in orbit, the test was never initiated, and contact with the satellite was lost on February 9 — an unceremonious end for a demo that was supposedly going to upend the laws of physics.

“Rogue’s Barry-1 satellite didn’t make it all the way through LEOP (Launch and Early Orbit Phase),” IVO founder and President Richard Mansell told The Debrief. “Sadly, we never even got to turn on the Drives!”

It is a little bit suspicious on such a controversial device. One could claim is the equivalent of a perpetual motion machine being “accidentally” destroyed just before the big demonstration.

I wish them luck, but if something similar happens after the second attempt, a lot of people are going to regard them as fraudsters.

DARPA Partially Funded Quantum Space Drive Orbital Test

IF the orbital test works then it will lead to interstellar travel and shrinking it down would give material that would have anti-gravity like effects. We would spend the money to make nanocavities so that we could have propellentless thrust for floating cities. All of space and propulsion related science fiction would become possible within about three decades short of faster than light. This drive is in orbit now for a few months. I think DARPA gave them more money to conclusively prove if it works or not. All of the ground tests show it might work. But if it proves out then we first get 1000 times better than a hall effect thruster but with no fuel limit. No fuel is used. So long as you have power, solar or nuclear the drive keeps working. So nuclear fuel supply for decades then thrust for decades. The theory proves out, then we make nanocavities which could act like antigravity then we get 1G or even 3G thrusters in space. This would be the Expanse TV show tech. 2 days to Mars using constant 2G acceleration.

The current version requires an energy source. The nanocavity version would not.

My first response is IF.

Less than a week, relatively inexpensive, trip to other planets and the asteroid belt opens up trade. It is a whole new frontier without having to suffer a technology starved frontier lifestyle.

I like living in the future.