A Life in The Days

Big Numbers – A comparison

Robert — Fri, 21 May 2010 10:02:36 +0000

There is a whole lot of talk in the news about very big numbers these days, what with countries getting bailed out of debt and huge tonnages of carbon or ash getting put in the atmosphere and even large sums of money being won on lotteries.

I’m not sure that these big numbers mean a lot any more, so I find this method of comparing the big numbers to be handy:

1 second = 1 second (dur..)
10 seconds = 10 seconds (… obviously)
100 seconds = 1.6 minutes
1 thousand seconds = 16 minutes
10 thousand seconds = 2.7 hours
100 thousand seconds = 1.1 days
1 million seconds = 11.5 days
10 million seconds = 115 days
100 million seconds = 3.1 years (years!)
1 billion seconds = 31 years
1 trillion seconds = 31,709 years!

Now think what £6 billion (the amount of savings that our Government believes we need to make) looks like. If you were given one pound every second, it would take 186 years to get that much money.

Natural History with Benny and Bjorn

Robert — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 13:59:49 +0000

Ruby was behaving oddly. Scurrying around on the floor, pretending to dig with her hands, jumping up and looking startled with her hands under her chin like paws, all the while humming a familiar tune. I asked her what she was up to.

“Daddy, I’m a Mama-Meerkat” she responded.

Tagged: Funny -HaHa, Ruby, Snippets, Songs

Made Me Giggle

Robert — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 13:49:55 +0000

From the comments on a BBC page about My Sharona.

It was lame song that unfortunately many ignorant people thought was by the Ramones.
William Johnson-Smith, London

I thought it was by the Ramones.
Joe Craig, London, London

Tagged: Funny -HaHa, Snippets, Songs

White and pleasant land.

Robert — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 09:29:26 +0000

Stunning image from NASA.

Tagged: Photo, Science

Re-writing songs.

Robert — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:15:35 +0000

I love listening to Ruby sing along to stuff. The lyrics she comes up with are often a marked improvement on the original.

Yesterday, while listening to a McCartney Christmas-y song she came up with these:

Play, find some beans,
Play, pipe some peas…

Both excellent games I’m sure.

Tagged: Funny -HaHa, Ruby, Songs

On Mucus

Robert — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 10:37:00 +0000

Little snotty Johnny,
Gave his cold to me,
I passed it on to Lucy,
Who passed it on to Lee,
Lee gave it to his Mummy,
Who gave it to my Dad,
Who gave it back to Johnny,
And now he’s very sad.

And so it keeps on going,
This cold we all have got,
A never ending virus,
Immortality in snot.

Tagged: Snot

Stage School.

Robert — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:42:03 +0000

Ruby was talking about the ‘Key Stages’ that schools are split into these days. Apparently the big children are in Key Stage 2, then there are ‘Year Twos’ who are in Key Stage 1.

I asked Ruby what stage she was in. She looked at me thoughtfully and announced “I think it is the Dalmatian Stage, or something like that”.

Tagged: Ruby, School, Snippets

Grandma’s Mountains

Robert — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 13:18:57 +0000

Ruby announced today that Grandma’s Mountains are very pointy.

Make of that what you will.

Tagged: Ruby, Snippets

Hype much? – Swine flu scare at Wolviston Primary School

Robert — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 15:32:39 +0000

Two children at Ruby’s school are suspected to have Swine Flu.

We will resist the urge to get on the web to buy knock-off anti-virals and face masks. We shall not keep ourselves locked up at home with the windows closed. We shall not deprive Ruby of the fun she will have at the nursery Teddy Bear Picnic (although maybe we should stop her from taking Oscar, wouldn’t want the bear to get ill).

In short we see no need to panic, even though our local rag seems to have lost all sense of proportion and indeed any regard for the facts.

Quote:

"Cases of the potentially deadly pandemic... "

Enough said.

Gazette Live – News – Local News – Swine flu scare at Wolviston Primary School.

Tagged: School

Location relative to relative

Robert — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:00:21 +0000

I just love this.

Location relative to relative

IN WHAT he describes as “an early introduction to relativity”, David Stott overheard this exchange outside his local primary school.

Mother, to her young daughter who had run on ahead: “Donna, come here!”

Small indignant voice: “Mummy, I am here!”

via Its that time again – 24 June 2009 – New Scientist.

Tagged: Funny -HaHa, Science, Snippets