90,000,000

Checking the memory of my calculator this morning revealed last night's dream: ninety million - a nice round number, complete with the commas in the right places (which it doesn't always bother with).

So what can we say about this number? There are nintey million people in Vietnam, says google... I seriously doubt that the population is that precise - you can't be with a number that will be constantly changing.

Its interesting that the majority of search results for such a high figure involve either a number of people or a quantity of money.

"Ninety million people survive on less than $75 a year"
"Ninety million Americans battle chronic illness every day."
"Ninety million dollar investment in Ethiopian tea."
"Ninety Million Brazilians Can't Be Wrong"

The world of human interest it seems is goverened by its resources, the most abundant being people, and (consequently) the most scarce being money. Scarce in the sense that there is never enough of it, despite the many millions of dollars flying here and there funding Hollywood films and Ethiopian beverages.

The recognised religion of those nintey million people in Vietnam is Confucianism, so what did Confucius have to say on the subject of money?

"Death and life have their determined appointments; riches and honors depend upon heaven."

Are these the matters that my calculator is ruminating upon in its sleep? Probably not - like any other brain it is drawn magnetically to the big round numbers...