Tesla, TSLA & the Investment World: the Perpetual Investors' Roundtable

[Fact Checking]

Ugh, whilst being British I don't really care but, presumably, the closer it gets to November the worse any deal for the USA. Possibly no deal would suit China better? Rhetorical. OT

There's also the risk of Trump eventually realizing that he won't get reelected - especially if the Democratic Party ends up nominating anyone but Joe Biden (whom all Republicans are rooting for).

At that point it might be a scorched earth strategy to cover up the crimes, before AF1 takes Trump away to a non-extradition country, from where he won't ever return, due to various dangerous conspiracies by "Deep State Democrats".

That's an end game that would be absolutely brutal to the equities markets, including TSLA.

Then there's also the transition period of November and December 2020, when Trump still has the full powers of the president but already knows that he has lost the election.

My only hope is that so far Trump seemed to be incapable to accept the idea that he could ever fail to bully his way out of a difficult situation in life, and that somehow Republicans grow a spine in the 2 months of the transition. (And I suspect I fully deserve 'Funny' ratings for this last paragraph. )

 

[Fact Checking]

Today's most hilarious fair and balanced headline about the Starship hopper by the mainstream media:

SpaceX's Mars rocket prototype rattles nerves of nearby residents in Texas flight test - Reuters​

We are only reporting the facts sir, only the facts!

 

[Lessmog]

Today's most hilarious fair and balanced headline about the Starship hopper by the mainstream media:

SpaceX's Mars rocket prototype rattles nerves of nearby residents in Texas flight test - Reuters​

We are only reporting the facts sir, only the facts!

What, no cows?

 

[KarenRei]

What, no cows?

Ah, I loved that video - thanks for reminding me of it

 

[willw64]

How soon? Anyone know the interviewer?

Sorry didn't see this. They teased it forever, and it was just on. I am sure CNBC sill post it on their web site if you didn't see it. Not flattering to say the least.

 

[Speedr117]

Today's most hilarious fair and balanced headline about the Starship hopper by the mainstream media:

SpaceX's Mars rocket prototype rattles nerves of nearby residents in Texas flight test - Reuters​

We are only reporting the facts sir, only the facts!

THIS is important reporting! The fact that "dozens" of nearby residents were slightly annoyed for the advancement of humanity is just crazy and needs to be stopped!

 

[ReflexFunds]

I have to admit I haven't been following this enough to comment on what it's purpose is and at first glance thinking it looks like something put together by a crackpot with a welder and a wrecked milk truck but the more I look at it, the more I'm appreciating the design. It's got a kind of steampunk flavor. I think I'll call it "spacepunk".™

Starhopper was designed to test multiple components, materials, systems and software for SpaceX's future Mars bound Starship, but by far the key aim was to test SpaceX's new Raptor engine.
Raptor is a huge step forward in rocket engine design and is the first ever full flow staged combustion cycle engine. Rocket engineers have been trying to make a full flow staged combustion cycle engine since the 60s but until Raptor none had survived past initial testing. Raptor is also likely to be the first liquid methane fuelled engine to reach orbit. Raptor's key aims are for very low production cost, very high reusability, very high chamber pressure, very low cost per KN per flight (aiming for over 1000x lower than its current Merlin engine, Merlin itself is already over 10x lower than the competition) and all using fuel that can be manufactured on Mars.

I think it is surprising most people that Raptor appears to be working so well so soon. The Raptor engine is one of the key technological challenges towards Elon's plans to get to Mars and this successful test was a huge hop forward towards Mars.

 

[Speedr117]

Is there a good source to understand the Self driving competitive landscape?

Who is ahead? I have seen impressive demonstrations from Nvidia and zoox, and I was amazed at George Hotz' smartphone implementation, although I would prefer a more robust (more camera's, radar etc) system.

Presumably we should hear something on Thursday?

Wow. So touting something that every production Tesla that has Navigate on Autopilot enabled already has. And without Lidar...

 

[Antares Nebula]

Starhopper was designed to test multiple components, materials, systems and software for SpaceX's future Mars bound Starship, but by far the key aim was to test SpaceX's new Raptor engine.
Raptor is a huge step forward in rocket engine design and is the first ever full flow staged combustion cycle engine. Rocket engineers have been trying to make a full flow staged combustion cycle engine since the 60s but until Raptor none had survived past initial testing. Raptor is also likely to be the first liquid methane fuelled engine to reach orbit. Raptor's key aims are for very low production cost, very high reusability, very high chamber pressure, very low cost per KN per flight (aiming for over 1000x lower than its current Merlin engine, Merlin itself is already over 10x lower than the competition) and all using fuel that can be manufactured on Mars.

I think it is surprising most people that Raptor appears to be working so well so soon. The Raptor engine is one of the key technological challenges towards Elon's plans to get to Mars and this successful test was a huge hop forward towards Mars.

If Musk, scientists, governments, and the people of the world are truly concerned about the survival of the human race, then all efforts should go to funding physics programs and scholarship.

Being multi-planet is not sufficient to ensure long term survival. Cosmic catastrophes can wipe out our Sun and solar system. Need to be an an interstellar race. And that requires FTL (faster than light) travel. And FTL travel requires breakthroughs in fundamental physics.

Just saying...

 

[Unpilot]

If Musk, scientists, governments, and the people of the world are truly concerned about the survival of the human race, then all efforts should go to funding physics programs and scholarship.

Being multi-planet is not sufficient to ensure long term survival. Cosmic catastrophes can wipe out our Sun and solar system. Need to be an an interstellar race. And that requires FTL (faster than light) travel. And FTL travel requires breakthroughs in fundamental physics.

Just saying...

Is there a good tracking fund to invest in?

Trying to keep this on topic

 

[KarenRei]

Sorry didn't see this. They teased it forever, and it was just on. I am sure CNBC sill post it on their web site if you didn't see it. Not flattering to say the least.

Okay. The appropriate reaction to finding out about a possible FUD interview, IMHO, is if you can find out who the interviewer is, message them on Twitter. E.g. things like:

• Point out factual errors and deliberate distortions in the interviewee's work
• Point out conflicts of interest that the interviewee has**
• Offer sample questions that the interviewer can ask that undercut the interviewee's FUD

** - IMHO, only do this if they're blatant. E.g. pointing out that the Vanity Fair author presented Tesla short sellers as merely "critics", or simultaneously argued that there's no solar roof demand but that the waiting list is too long, or didn't take the time to talk to a single solar roof recipient or bother to mention the continuous uptick in the rate of installs, are IMHO more damaging than pointing out that she was the recipient of a major story from Chanos in the past that she turned into a book deal. We all instinctively react negatively to any connections to Chanos because we know him well to be a major dishonest FUD-spreader to back up his short positions in TSLA, but the general public does not have this reaction, and if you have to take the time to explain it, you've lost. It sounds like you 're trying to pull some "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon" thing.

 

[Antares Nebula]

Is there a good tracking fund to invest in?

I will start one. I will post my bitcoin address and you guys can start spreading the word and sending me money. (No guarantees though. Physics is not easy, especially FTL physics.)

 

[Christine69420]

Maybe via Norway, or vice versa? Just another guess.

Don't see any advantage. Might as well ship directly to the UK then after Brexit.

Norway is a member of the European Economic Area. Currently cars for Norway go trough The Netherlands. But Norway have separate tariffs.

 

[Sean Wagner]

The video was obviously shot on the same sound stage as the Lunar landing. It's all fake, Fake News, fake video, fake machinery, fake, fake, fake, fake. Back to the toilet cam of reality now.

The toilet cam, you say? Looey tunes.

I think that is what bond traders are starting to recognise, their metrics are starting to break down. Traditionally, full employment would lead to inflation increases and an interest rate rise as a response to control inflation. This is not happening substantially anywhere as far as I have heard. If the core financial premise of the reserve banks of the world continues to falter then there is reason to believe that bond prices could still rise significantly.

Quote ... / “Something is going on, and that’s causing . . . a total rethink of central banking and all our cherished notions about what we think we’re doing,” James Bullard, president of the St Louis Federal Reserve, told the Financial Times. “We just have to stop thinking that next year things are going to be normal.” / ... Unquote, Source yesterday's FT article "Japanification: investors fear malaise is spreading globally" Subscribe to read | Financial Times

Need to be an an interstellar race. And that requires FTL (faster than light) travel.

I disagree on the latter. Feel I'm in excellent company as per Gwynne Shotwell's breathtaking vision.

 

[madodel]

The toilet cam, you say? Looey tunes.

Bad reference to the #TSLAQ toilet analyst Wark B. Sbiegel. But somehow fitting to the endless political nonsense that none of us has any control of but people insist on commenting and arguing about.

 

[JRP3]

Personally, I had my heart set on this warning:

 

[TheTalkingMule]

If Musk, scientists, governments, and the people of the world are truly concerned about the survival of the human race, then all efforts should go to funding physics programs and scholarship.

Being multi-planet is not sufficient to ensure long term survival. Cosmic catastrophes can wipe out our Sun and solar system. Need to be an an interstellar race. And that requires FTL (faster than light) travel. And FTL travel requires breakthroughs in fundamental physics.

Just saying...

I think the math says we're more likely to get our FTL tech from alien beings. Much cheaper too.

Someone will probably get in touch with Elon once he hits Mars.

 

[KarenRei]

I think the math says we're more likely to get our FTL tech from alien beings. Much cheaper too.

Someone will probably get in touch with Elon once he hits Mars.

Why would they need to get in touch with one of their own?

 

[jerry33]

I think the math says we're more likely to get our FTL tech from alien beings. Much cheaper too.

Someone will probably get in touch with Elon once he hits Mars.

Martians take a dim view of people who hit them.

 

[ggr]

Raptor is a huge step forward in rocket engine design and is the first ever full flow staged combustion cycle engine.

"full flow" is the important part of this statement. Staged combustion has been around for a long time, the Russian RD-180 engines that were left over from a cancelled program but then sold to the US were staged combustion.

The fuel efficiency of the staged combustion cycle is in part a result of all propellant ultimately flowing to the main combustion chamber; contributing to thrust. The staged combustion cycle is sometimes referred to as closed cycle, as opposed to the gas generator, or open cycle where a portion of propellant never reaches the main combustion chamber. The engineering complexity is partly a result of the preburner exhaust of hot and highly pressurized gas which, particularly when oxidizer-rich, produces extremely harsh conditions for turbines and plumbing.
...
Several variants of the staged combustion cycle exist. Preburners that burn a small portion of oxidizer with a full flow of fuel are called fuel-rich, while preburners that burn a small portion of fuel with a full flow of oxidizer are called oxidizer-rich. The RD-180 has an oxidizer-rich preburner, while the RS-25 has two fuel-rich preburners. The SpaceX Raptor has both oxidizer-rich and fuel-rich preburners, a design called full-flow staged combustion.