THE MINUTE REALISATION.

Northern Advocate, 28 June 1924, Page 9 (Supplement)

THE MINUTE REALISATION.

COUNTING A BILLION,

Most of us nowadays are so used to seeing vast sums of money mentioned In connection with war debts, national debt and so on, that there is at least a risk that figures become almost meaningless. One came across a fine corrective to this tendency in an old copy of the "American Literary Gazette. ' It asked:—"What i 3 a billion? Thsj reply is very simple—a million times a million. This is quickly written, and quicker still pronourced. But no man is able to count it. You count 100 or 170 a minute; but let us even suppose that you go as far a:. 200, then an hour will produce 12,000; a day, 285,C00; and a year, or 365 days (for every four years you may rest a day from counting, during- leap year), 105,120,000. Let us suppose now, that Adam, at the beginning of his existence, had begun to count, had continued to do so, nnd was counting still, he would not even now, according to the usually supposed age of our globe, havo counted near enough. For to count a billion he would require 9512 years 34 days 5 hours an-1 20 minutes, acceding to the above rule. Now,

suprr.Jung we were to tillow the popr counter 12 hours daily for rest, eating and sleeping, he would ne<,d 19.024 years 69 days 10 hours and 40 minutes."