$2.80 in 2 years, page-2

Assuming this science doesn't evolve rapidly

Ancient alchemists tried just about anything to turn lead into gold. But if they had just had a laser, they might have been able to make pseudo-platinum.
More than half of the worlds platinum goes into cars catalytic converters, where it helps neutralize the carbon monoxide and nitrous oxide in exhaust. That demand is what drives platinums price up. This winter, Penn State University chemist A. Welford Castleman, Jr., used a laser to kick an electron off a molecule of tungsten carbide, giving it properties that allow it to act as platinum does. Tungsten carbide, a metallic compound just one thousandth the cost of platinum, wont pass as an engagement ring, but it could bring down platinums price by stepping in for grittier jobs.
Castleman hopes to repeat the trick with groups of tungsten carbide molecules by next spring, while also finding stand-ins for other rare elements. Like the alchemists, he still hasnt figured out how to transmute lead to gold, but hes happy to mimic the rest of the periodic table.