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Space Money Invented For Space Tourists
An anonymous reader writes "The foreign exchange company Travelex has invented a unit of currency designed to be used in space commerce, the Quasi Universal Intergalactic Denomination (QUID). The QUID is made of a space-qualified plastic, with round edges to prevent injuries in zero gravity. One QUID is equivalent to about 6.25 pounds, 12.50 dollars or 8.68 Euros. Of course, space currencies are already a staple of science fiction, with 'credits' being the most popular."
Solution: Problem, where are you?
"I think that God in creating Man somewhat overestimated his ability."-Oscar Wilde
What the hell is wrong with paper currency? 0g paper-cuts?
That said, sounds frivolous and unimportant, albeit kind've a cool subject.
One QUID is equivalent to about 6.25 pounds
So it's 6 quid per QUID? That sounds confusing.
The theory of relativity doesn't work right in Arkansas.
No sufficiently advanced spacefaring civilisation should be using currency. The presence of currency means the scarcity problem hasn't been solved by the civilisation, which means they are poor primitives not worth the bother of Contacting.
Everyone knows the only true space money is the Interstellar Kredit. Go go ISK!
Follow your Euro bills at EBT
I sold some slaves to the Lesti system not too long ago for 98.2 credits per tonne. I'm now rated as a fugative and your QUIDs are worthless to me since they're only good in the Sol system.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
As long as you have the Q and the U, wouldn't "quatloo" be a more appropriate name?
What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
I'll wager 15 quatloos that that QUID will never fly.
"He's lost in a 'floyd hole"
In fact there are three freely convertible currencies in the Galaxy, but none of them count. The Altarian Dollar has recently collapsed, the Flainian Pobble Bead is only exchangeable for other Flainian Pobble Beads, and the Triganic Pu has its own very special problems. It exchange rate of eight Ningis to one Pu is simple enough, but since Ningi is a triangular rubber coin six thousand eight hundred miles along each side, no one has ever collected enough to own one Pu. Nigis are not negotiable currency, because Galactibanks refuse to deal in fiddling small change. From this basic premise it is very simple to prove that the Galactibanks are also the product of a deranged imagination.
-metric
1. Float in space - 300,000 $
2. Land on planet - 30,000,000 $
3. Your oxygen is running out, but your AmEx is not accepted at the nearby refill station - Priceless.
I was always partial to "Space Bucks"...
PIZZA THE HUT!
1, 2, 3, 4, 5... That's the combination on my luggage!
Can we remove the tagging system? Or moderate the people who put the idiotic tags?
"Thanks for all the money you paid to us. We've used it to buy off ISO among other things" -Microsoft
If one of those 'QUIDS' has a mass of 10g and you want to take 10 'quid' with you on 'holiday'.
That 10 'quid' (worth £62.50), if launced on the STS would cost £240 to get to LEO due to their additional mass.
Therefore, if you used this new currency, to actually get that money (£62.50) on orbit would cost you over £300 extra.
Disclaimer: E&OE, YMMV, IANARS, My ability to perform basic mathematics is inversely proportional to the amount of alcohol I have consumed.
Ripping an new rectum in the fabric of spacetime.
>>Why not "credit"?!?
Because it isn't a cool acronym. Cool acronyms always make things cooler. Just look at what "AJAX" did for - uh, AJAX.
Easily remedied though:
CALCULATED
RATE of
EXCHANGE
DENOMINATION for
INTERPLANETARY
TRAVELERS
There - CREDIT. That oughtta just about do it. Lot better than QUID, to be sure...
It's only worthwhile if it's backed by something valuable, such as gold-pressed latinum.
Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.
Psh. I was hoping we could exchange goods and services with things like youtube external links, myspace mass friend invites and wikipedia article additions...
While I'm at it:
Spacesuits: $1,200 each.
Oxygen recharge: $3.22 per gallon.
Farting in your space suit while you and your cheap-ass buddy share an airtank; priceless.
There's somethings your national currency can't buy. For everything else, there's QUIDS.
Ginga no Rekshiya Mata Each page.
I believe the term quid already exists for currency http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quid I wonder where they came up with this new space currency??
This reminds me of Flooz an attempt to create a currency for the Internet, as an attempt to cross borders and such.... But the truth is people want their own money either US Dollar, Pound, Euro... They are not going to transfer it for one thing and back again... Especially with those pictures. Heck take paper curancy and put it in your wallet or keep a credit card in your wallet. It is safer there then a bunch of oddly shaped plastic things in your pocket in 0g.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
Hi, I'm the fact your $20M trip to space only costs one lump sum of $20M. I'm wishing that, in addition, you would be charged in some way for each of your vacuum-sealed meals and packets of Tang. I'm wishing that different modules in the space station and future space hotels would charge admission. I'm wishing there was a way for these goals to be achieved that would cost you outrageous sums of money that you could never get back, even if you didn't use them, yet still seemed to be value-added products and services. Could you help me out?
They took the time to design a new monetary format and didn't even make it based on a Balanced Ternary system. Balanced ternary cash would be quite nice, it would mean almost always having the exact change, you only need one coin of each denomination to ensure you can make change for any possible transaction among other nice qualities.
http://notanumber.net/
A science fiction term needs the word "space" somewhere in there.
What about "Space Quasi Universal Intergalactic Denomination"?
Dear Sir:
Greetings from the Highest General of the Counsel of Intergalactic Planetary Commerce Exchange. I am Sir Zaphod Centauri, esteemed chairman of the Counsel of Planets. I have a business proposal for you that may be of most benefit to both of us. Forgive me for contacting you over subspace, but Colonel Zimrohn expressed you will be reliable, and I ask you to hold this in utmost confidence.
On Stardate 92714.3, the King of the United Saturnalia perished unexpectedly in a teleportation tragedy. He left in our accounts sum of NINETY-TWO TRILLION SEVEN HUNDRED EIGHT BILLION Quasi Universal Intergalactic Demoniations (QUID) which can not be accessed except by a native of the Milky Way. As of now this money sits unclaimed in our starbank.
I would like you to act as Earth fiduciary for this money. Please send your STARBANK number via encrypted link to me so that I may transfer this QUID to you. As agent for this transaction you will receive 10% of QUID in your account.
Please contact me at your most urgent communication, only over encrypted subspace link.
Yours sincerely,
Zaphod Centauri
Slashdotter, ID #101. UIDs are in binary, right?
I prefer buckazoids.
Sometimes at night I imagine the darkness is filled with horrible things with too many teeth, like Julia Roberts.
QUID is just as much of an Acronym as yours is for CREDIT.
Quid is British slang for £1. They were just trying to make an acronym to fit the facts like you.
Of course, this may be known to everyone already. If so, then I am getting increasingly redundant and might as well stop typing. But, just in case I'm not just repeating information you already know, I figured I would just inform you about the whole Quid slang thing.
With current launch prices at about $10,000 US per pound for manned missions, that's $625/oz, more than the price of gold until very recently. Carrying a few ounces of "change" up with you would cost you quite a bit more than the £6.25 per QUID. That's only for a LEO launch. Make it "Intergalactic" and it would probably cost more than the entire Earth's economy. Quite an investment!