You know, it’s just a convention that we (I’m talking here about the United States) put out money in denominations of one and five and ten and twenty dollars, plus some other highly fictional amounts like fifty or a hundred or even two dollars. There’s no reason we couldn’t do it in a more orderly fashion, by which is meant the way computer programmers would do it, which is in denominations of one, two, four, eight, sixteen, and so on. Then an ordinary transaction could be much more logically handled, like this:
“Hundred and forty dollars, all right … uh … here’s a 64-dollar bill, and … 140 minus 64 is … more than 64, right? Well, I guess I have a 32 here and that’s … 140 minus 32 is … wait, 32 and 64 is … something and then that away from 140 is … uh … I could swear I had a couple 8-dollar bills when I set out this morning and … uh … OK, 140 minus 64 has to be like 86 … 76, thanks, and then from that I take away 32 and … no, I put in 32 and … ”
All right, so we’d have a couple more people who finish buying things at the supermarket by curling up in a ball and weeping, but that’s why the rest of us have credit cards for crying out loud.
If those people can’t handle it, then they should have been paying attention in math class. That’ll learn ’em.
LikeLike
How about some sympathy for me? I can’t do arithmetic, I’m a mathematics PhD.
LikeLike
That explains a lot.
Just kidding!
LikeLike
Dammit J.N., we’ve got people trained not to write checks at stores anymore, don’t screw that up.
LikeLike
Hey, checks were great. With just a little bit of effort you could tie your purchase of a couple packs of soda and some Fritos to the system of trade fairs held in 14th century Florence. It’s just everything after that which was a hassle.
LikeLike
There’s one mathematician who says that what this country needs is an 18-cent coin:
http://discovermagazine.com/2003/oct/featscienceof
LikeLike
That’s actually a pretty neat result and I might make use of it over on my mathematics blog. Thank you.
LikeLike
The IRS was questioning my existence due to my lack of credit history and fact I pay for things ether in cash or with my bank account debit card. Woof!
LikeLike
Ah, but that’s my favorite sort of question to be asked. Someone comes up and asks me if I exist and any answer I give, what are they going to do, dispute? I just don’t know how they find me those days I don’t exist.
LikeLike