One Trillion - How Big is that number?

[ALCapshaw2]

I keep hearing the number One Trillion bandied about on the evening news and can't help but wonder how many listeners have any concept of the magnitude of that number.

Do *you* know how many Zeros are in the number One Trillion?

How do you visualize that number?
i.e. How do you 'get your head around that number'?

I think those would be interesting Questions for Jay Leno to pose on one of his "Jay Walking" episodes on the streets of California.

 

[Eva]

I personally look at the magnitured of the repeated zeros! one million has six zeros, billion: (double that; i.e 12 zeros) and trillion (triple millions: 18 zeros). The ironic thing is to me that a 'zero' is nothing, except when it is put next to other figures! Then the more zeros, the better!

Hey, you can send Leno an email...sure he will pick on it

 

[Lisa in Katy]

In the US, we define them as follows: million has 6, billion has 9, trillion has 12. If you want to keep going, quadrillion has 15, quintillion has 18, sextillion has 21, septillion has 24, octillion has 27, novillion has 30, decillion has 33, undecillion has 36, duodecillion has 39, tredecillion has 42, quattuordecillion has 45, quindecillion has 48, sexdecillion has 51, septendecillion has 54, octodecillion has 57, novemdecillion has 60, and vigintillion has 63. That's as far as I can go.

BTW, in Britain, they used to define a billion as a million million, or what we call a trillion.

When I taught 5th grade, the high class had a homework assignment to figure out how long it would take to save a billion dollars if you were able to save $1000 a day. Assuming there are 365.25 days in each year, the answer is 2,737 years, 10 months and 7 days. To save a trillion dollars would be 1000 times that amount or about 3 million years!

A trillion grains of rice would fill approximately 6,500,000 gallons.

A trillion seconds is over 31,688 years.

In other words, it's a ridiculously large amount of money.

 

[Ross]

I'm not a Trillion years old yet and I'm old.

 

[ALCapshaw2]

In the US, we define them as follows: million has 6, billion has 9, trillion has 12. If you want to keep going, quadrillion has 15, quintillion has 18, sextillion has 21, septillion has 24, octillion has 27, novillion has 30, decillion has 33, undecillion has 36, duodecillion has 39, tredecillion has 42, quattuordecillion has 45, quindecillion has 48, sexdecillion has 51, septendecillion has 54, octodecillion has 57, novemdecillion has 60, and vigintillion has 63. That's as far as I can go.

BTW, in Britain, they used to define a billion as a million million, or what we call a trillion.

When I taught 5th grade, the high class had a homework assignment to figure out how long it would take to save a billion dollars if you were able to save $1000 a day. Assuming there are 365.25 days in each year, the answer is 2,737 years, 10 months and 7 days. To save a trillion dollars would be 1000 times that amount or about 3 million years!

A trillion grains of rice would fill approximately 6,500,000 gallons.

A trillion seconds is over 31,688 years.

In other words, it's a ridiculously large amount of money.

Right On Lisa!

(Except I can't believe the Brits call a Billion a Million Million because as you correctly point out, it takes a Million Million to make a Trillion. One Billion is *only* one thousand million...)

In other words, it would take One Million people with a net worth of One Million Dollars to accumulate a net worth of One Trillion Dollars! Kinda puts things in perspective...

Another way to visualize the progression is
1000 Thousand = 1 million
1000 Million = 1 billion
1000 Billion = 1 trillion It's a LOT!

I wonder if the Newscasters even know that it takes a Million Million to equal one Trillion???

 

[aussigal]

We Aussies count trillions and billions etc. differently to you guys too....we like to be difficult!

 

[Bina]

1,000----------------one thousand.
1,000,000------------one million.
1,000,000,000--------one billion.
1,000,000,000,000----one trillion.

 

[Lisa in Katy]

According to the U.S. National Debt Clock, we are currently, as of today, at $10,950,411,540,315.51. The estimated population of the United States is 305,760,112 so each citizen's share of this debt is $35,813.73. I'm going to write a check for mine and send it tomorrow!

If it makes anyone feel any better, the civilized Brits are apparently worse off when you consider the population. According to the UK's Office of National Statistics they currently have a national debt of £2 trillion or £33,000 for each citizen. That's about $46,547 for each citizen.

 

[Superbob]

In the US, we define them as follows: million has 6, billion has 9, trillion has 12. If you want to keep going, quadrillion has 15, quintillion has 18, sextillion has 21, septillion has 24, octillion has 27, novillion has 30, decillion has 33, undecillion has 36, duodecillion has 39, tredecillion has 42, quattuordecillion has 45, quindecillion has 48, sexdecillion has 51, septendecillion has 54, octodecillion has 57, novemdecillion has 60, and vigintillion has 63. That's as far as I can go.

BTW, in Britain, they used to define a billion as a million million, or what we call a trillion.

When I taught 5th grade, the high class had a homework assignment to figure out how long it would take to save a billion dollars if you were able to save $1000 a day. Assuming there are 365.25 days in each year, the answer is 2,737 years, 10 months and 7 days. To save a trillion dollars would be 1000 times that amount or about 3 million years!

A trillion grains of rice would fill approximately 6,500,000 gallons.

A trillion seconds is over 31,688 years.

In other words, it's a ridiculously large amount of money.

Great stuff, Lisa. I was wondering what came next. Looks like we're on the road to "vigintillion." I think they should throw an "r" in there, making it "virgintillion," so at least we could have visions of virgins as eternal gifts if we get crushed under all this debt.

 

[catwoman]

I thought $1 trillion was equal to infinity.

 

[Tbone]

Where is my bailout?