Non-Bakken Headlines -- Links And Stories To Return To (Perhaps) -- October 23, 2017

The American farm.  The family farm bulks up -- The WSJ.

Quantum computing. US likely to lag China for many years in quantum computing. China's surge would have occurred when President Obama was asleep at the wheel. One can go back, do a google search to see all the stories of China's quantum computing / communication advances in the past few years.

U.S. and other Western scientists voice awe, and even alarm, at China’s quickening advances and spending on quantum communications and computing, revolutionary technologies that could give a huge military and commercial advantage to the nation that conquers them.

The concerns echo — although to a lesser degree — the shock in the West six decades ago when the Soviets launched the Sputnik satellite, sparking a space race.

In quick succession, China in recent months has utilized a quantum satellite to transmit ultra-secure data, inaugurated a 1,243-mile quantum link between Shanghai and Beijing, and announced a $10 billion quantum computing center.

GE. Dow 30 components: include GE. GE continues to slip.  (Currently down 6.6% at 2:12 p.m. Central Time):

The stock dropped 5.4% in morning trading to about $22.50 a share, on pace for its largest drop in more than six years. It more than reversed a 1.1% rise on Friday after the quarterly results. The firm on Friday morning slashed its 2017 outlook and reported per-share profits that missed analyst expectations, which the company’s new chief executive, John Flannery, called “unacceptable.”

Equity analysts, typically an optimistic bunch, turned more cautious after the earnings report, collectively cutting their average price target to $26 a share Monday. That’s above where the stock is currently trading, but marks the lowest average price target since mid 2013, according to FactSet’s monthly data.

More GE: this time long-term care deficiencies:

Worries about the health of the long-term-care insurance industry have nettled investors for years. General Electric Co.’s comments show the problem isn’t going away soon.

The Boston company on Friday cut its earnings forecast for the year, citing poor results at units including its power division. The company also said results could be hit by a reassessment of an insurance unit’s prospects—a remark that came as a surprise to some, given that GE years ago spun out a business closely identified with long-term care, now known as Genworth Financial Inc.

A GE executive on the company’s conference call Friday morning said the firm has actuaries combing through its long-term-care insurance reserves in “a very complex exercise” to figure out if they are deficient.

Uber-alles: Ill-time Uber investment roils a giant Saudi fund. I wondered when we would start seeing these stories. Of course I can't imagine Saudi Arabia investors being too upset with the alleged Uber culture alleged to be causing all the alleged Uber problems. Just saying. After all, women aren't allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia, that will (?) change in 2018. In fact some say the women-driving issue was one reason Saudi bought into Uber in the first place. Those dots I cannot connect.

Medicine. Having just completed Jonathan Eig's The Birth of the Pill, I found this article on Allergan's new treatment for fibroids to be very, very interesting. In a different life, a long, long time ago and in a far away land, fibroids were one of the biggest issues I had to contend with, but that story has long been consigned to the dustbin of history.

The New Yorker. So, now we get to this week's issue of The New Yorker: remarkably the cover is not "about" President Trump (October 23, 2017). And that is very, very surprising considering the issue bills itself as "The Money Issue." Did The New York miss an opportunity or are they getting the message from folks like me (I doubt it). Every time they send me a request to re-subscribe, I write them a note telling them that The New Yorker a) suffers from Trump derangement syndrome; b) has become nothing but a pro-Hillary magazine; and, c) has too many political articles. Just as I used to watch late-night talk television to relax and not listen to politics, I used to read The New Yorker to learn about things I might not read elsewhere, but late-night talk television is all politics -- at least at the time I quit watching over a year ago; and The New Yorker is ... well, I'm repeating myself.

And there is it, of the four articles (not counting the short-story fiction article) one is "The President Pence Delusion." A second is on Harvey Weinstein (Hollywood, not NYC, mogul, The New Yorker quickly points out). Articles three and four ("Getting By in NYC" and "Can Humans Adapt To A Robot Workforce?") do not interest me. Regarding the four: we've had a robotic workforce for quite some time (visit Detroit).

And, so mostly the cartoons. Although I am curious about the robot story.

Later: why do I bother?

Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/national-security/article179971861.html#st