When governments, or even private developers, used to talk about the cost of projects, they once, and it seems like just a few years ago, spoke of millions of dollars or hundreds of million dollars. Nowadays such projects are spoken of in billions of dollars, and I think we are now conditioned to hearing billions of dollars and no long gasp for air in shock.
But what is a billion dollars? Billions was an unimaginable amount to me as a child and teeenager. Apart from the obvious that it was a massive amount of money back then, the definition changed.
When I was young, a billion dollars was a million million dollars. Unknown to me, Australia changed to the US billion dollar definition, a thousand million dollars. I think I discovered that in the eighties. The world followed the new definition but there wasn't a date announced for the change. It was a slow dawning.
I can't put a photo of a billion dollars laid out with notes, more is the pity if it was mine, but can I write one billion dollars in numerals (I just amused myself by accidently typing numberals).
One million is $1,000,000. One billion is just an extra zero? $10,000,000? No, that is ten million. One hundred million, two zeros. $100,000,000. One hundred million equals one billion. That must be correct. I is a maths genius.
What a boring post. I continue to be surprised at how long it takes to get from street level to the platforms of our new Metro Tunnel train. I had plenty of time today at Town Hall Station today after getting my hair cut, with an un asked for eyebrow trim, but after holding a lift for a woman, her two young children and their dog, and again gesticulating to her for the lift to travel to the platform from the concourse, I just missed my train, and so did they. She spoke Spanish to her children and her dog, and was carrying a crudely drawn Aboriginal flag on a piece of cardboard. Spanish speaking woman had been supporting Aboriginal rights and indoctrinating her children. I liked her. I went back to the street to what I could see. With another plug for our ABC TV, and the government of NSW, what a terrific music concert from Sydney Harbour, as I am about to hit publish.
The pro white Australia march had broken up earlier as I observed in Elizabeth Street, carrying their flags wrapped around their sticks, trying to hide their symbols of white power. I stared into a number of eyes, in a stupid attempt to get understanding. They all had dead and unseeing eyes, staring straight ahead.
With another plug for our ABC TV, and the government of NSW, what a terrific music concert from Sydney Harbour, as I am about to hit publish.
Today I must go out in 43/110 degree heat for a medical appointment. The obvious is to catch a a tram, but there is no guarantee of one with aircon. I will drive, after calling reception to get the car park access code.
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Well, I hadn't realised that about the redefinition of a billion. Just looked it up and, yes, in 1974 the UK also changed to the US version. Now I can feel less shocked by our government's profligate spending.
ReplyDeleteJayCee, I think we need to be afraid now when we hear the word trillion, which might be a figure for HS2.
DeleteI think the word trillion is more commonly heard these days
ReplyDeleteRoentare, I am not sure we hear it here much yet, but the debt level in the US is in trillions.
DeleteI am probably on some facebook page with a dart or something. As I am older and retired I have no issues in calling out racists. I walk past and swear and yell at the neo nazis.
ReplyDeleteMuch respect at your mouthing off, J.
Delete$100,000,000 is One Hundred Million. A Billion is a thousand million so you need an extra zero, $1,000,000,000. Nine zeros, in the past when it was a million million you would need 12 zeros.
ReplyDeleteI knew I would be wrong, River. Such figures are quite alien to me, until....
Delete"trying to hide their symblos of white power.." Why? Are they ashamed of what they are doing? Ashamed of what they stand for? Then STOP DOING IT!
ReplyDeleteBecause most people will be giving them the evil eye, or saying something to them. They know they are wrong, and yet they have this idealistic view of a white Australia.
DeleteI find it interesting that they were trying to hide their signs too. Here they would have been proud of it.
ReplyDeleteDebby, two groups marched in the city on Australia Day, the pro white Australia mob, and the Aborigines and supporters of their rights and against Australia Day being celebrated when white people first landed in Australia. If only the date would change, this friction would disappear. The police did a good job of keeping the two groups apart.
DeleteI'm reminded of the Austen Powers movies. In one Dr Evil returns from the 1960s and demands one million dollars or nuclear catastrophe, not aware that a one million dollars in a relatively small sum by the late 1990s. In the sequel, Dr Evil returns to the 1960s and demand one billion dollars, more money than there was in the world at the time. The guy just can't get it right.
ReplyDeleteThat's amusing Kirk. You have see the first film to make sense of the sequel.
DeleteI really don't know why both sides have to march, doesn't do any good just them feel better I suppose. They must need something to do.
ReplyDeleteSensible to drive to your appointment and hope you got on ok, Andrew.
Margaret, get a life, hey.
DeleteThe heat wasn't quite so bad at the time of my appointment and I wish I caught a tram, door to door. The underground parking was deep and I was down in Basement Level 2 after negotiating narrow carpark ramps. Much less stress by just catching a tram, and there is a mix of trams with aircon and those without. I may have struck it lucky.
Well you are back safe and I am not going to worry about how many zeros there are in a billion of anything because as we all know 'money is the root of all evil'!
ReplyDeleteThelma, or a necessary evil.
DeleteI can remember when, a million was really a lot of money.
ReplyDeleteTP, yes, and it is not much now.
DeleteThat much money is still too much to comprehend. I can't even really believe that millionaires exist because I don't think I know anyone. It's unreal to think of people having billions themselves. Like Mark Suckerberg, travelling the seas in a super yacht so massive it requires two smaller super yachts to travel alongside to service it. One super yacht adds so much carbon to the environment its quite unbelievable.
ReplyDeleteStrayer, essentially if you live in Melbourne in a house, within 10 kilometres of the city, your house will be worth AU$1,000,000, plus, US$700,000. Ostentatious displays of wealth make me sick. Btw, I know the keys are close, but you need to be more careful with your z and s keys.
Deletewell I was going to use the F key there not the S, and not the Z.
DeleteSoon 'gazillion' will be in common parlance. How many noughts would that have, I wonder?
ReplyDeleteI don't understand the hatred that drives so many protests - prejudice, bigotry, ignorance and inherited 'beliefs' lead to sheep-like, blind followers.
JB, how many would like? Is three more noughts adequate?
DeleteThe protestors will have their arguments at the ready, overpopulation of Australia for our infrastructure. Rising house prices etc. You will hear it all there too, I expect.
I had no idea a billion wasn't the same everywhere. I always knew it to be a thousand million (or nine zeros, as River correctly said above). I didn't know it was ever a million million in other countries. You learn something new every day! (I always understood a million million, with twelve zeros, to be a trillion.)
ReplyDeleteSteve, I suppose it has become too complicated to express in numbers now, which is why we see the figures written and spoken as say, $1.2 billion.
DeleteThis is fascinating. Andrew, I'm always trying to conceptualize and I appreciate your lessons here. Thank you
ReplyDeleteCloudia, I think I confused myself and thanks to comments, others knew the correct answer.
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