Huge stash of helium discovered

[Brainonska511]

Do you guys know how much helium car lots waste? Each large dealership runs through 3-4 cylinders per week for all those balloons you see on the lots. I think that kind of use should be prohibited.

To be fair, they are also not using ultra-high purity helium. For cryogenic uses, like magnets, you're generally using > 99% purity. And scientific applications that use helium gas, such as mass spec, also use high-purity cylinders.

However, I do cringe a little when I see helium wasted on balloons. Every 4 months, we buy 100L of liquid helium to refill our magnet's dewar (liquid helium runs ~$10/L for us, but I've heard costs double or triple that at times from other parts of the country). For a nearby facility, they go through the stuff much faster, as they have 9 high field magnets, 6 or 7 being older designs that just drink the stuff. I think they spend over $200k/year on cryogens.

 

[Darwin333]

There was no pressing national security need or other compelling reason for the government to maintain a helium stockpile; we aren't back in WW1 doing recon with blimps. Scarcity driving up prices isn't a compelling reason for Uncle Sam than it would be to have a government stockpile of Twinkies when those were in short supply a few years ago.

Either way, finding a new supply is a good thing, unless you were a speculator with a short position on helium futures contracts (if such a thing even exists).

Being necessary for medicine and science is a compelling national security reason.

 

[Humpy]

I hope I'm not the only one who read this thread in a squeaky voice.

 

[master_shake_]

Do you guys know how much helium car lots waste? Each large dealership runs through 3-4 cylinders per week for all those balloons you see on the lots. I think that kind of use should be prohibited.

I used to manage dealerships and I know the salespeople would be overjoyed if the practice stopped. They hate standing around filling balloons and placing them on the lot, for the first hour of their shift. Freaking balloons don't sell cars.

what are you talking about?!

gimmicks sell cars that's a verifiable fact.

true story:

i was at a dealership one day and there was a guy looking to buy a new mustang but he wouldn't sign anything until he saw a gorilla riding a tricycle.

lets just say when he left he was driving the mustang.

ok so it's not really true but it sounds like it could have been.

 

[Blue_Max]

i was at a dealership one day and there was a guy looking to buy a new mustang but he wouldn't sign anything until he saw a gorilla riding a tricycle.

Next time I buy a car I'm totally doing that.

"I want a guy in a monkey suit juggling on a unicycle or I walk."

Or, this guy!