I just read that there are approximately a billion billion planets in our universe. That’s a lot isn’t it?
I am finding it difficult to imagine what a billion billion of anything would look like. The best image I have come up with so far is an Olympic swimming pool full of those sprinkles you get on ice creams.
To be honest though, I have no idea how many sprinkles that would be. It could actually be a lot more than a billion billion. In my opinion you can never have too many sprinkles, but this is science so it is important to be accurate.
Luckily though, I live in London and London is going to be hosting the Olympics in 2012, so I expect there is an Olympic swimming pool somewhere in this city.
All I need to do now is persuade the Olympic committee to let me fill their pool with sprinkles.
I think it would help if I could get sprinkles in the Olympic colours. Not only would that look very cool, but Olympic committee would probably really like it because it would make a nice photograph which they could use for publicity. It would be like a fusion of art and science (and the Olympics).
I suppose I will also need to somehow find enough Olympic-coloured sprinkles to fill an Olympic swimming pool, which could be extra-problematic due to the fact that the whole point of the exercise is that I do not know how many sprinkles that would be.
One thing I am sure of though, is that I will not be buying the sprinkles from Baskin Robbins who charge you 35p for a small scoop of them. I mean, I’ve got to be realistic about this.
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
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7 comments:
By total random chance my RSS feed to
Information Aesthetics just found this: http://www.kokogiak.com/megapenny/
(via http://infosthetics.com/archives/2006/10/megapenny_project.html).
It's a series of visualizations of really big numbers, but using US pennies instead of sprinkles.
Thanks Bob, this is pretty good isn't it? Although, I think it would be better still if they'd used sprinkles.
Hi first time on your blog. Loved this absolutely brilliant.
Hello,
First time here. I like your blog, though. I think it might be more accurate, if less asthetically pleasing, to fill your pool with water, and then there would be a billion billion molecules.
And cartoon Julia smells lovely, since you asked.
maht
It shows just how insignificant we are when our planet is a mere sprinkle in a pool. Makes you wonder if it really matters if you don't bother getting up for work in the morning as it's all relative within an incomprehensible universe. Food for thought.
Hi Maht,
Thank you for the novel suggestion, but I think it is a bit too 'way out' really. I mean, where am I going to get water molecules in the olympic colours?
x
Sure does CW.
Just remember that you're standing on a planet that's evolving,
And revolving at nine hundred miles an hour...
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