Slashdot Mirror


Student Wants Science To Name 'Hella' Big Number

thodelu writes "Austin Sendek, a 20-year-old UC Davis student, is trying to get scientists from Boise to Beijing to use the term 'hella' to denote the unimaginably huge, seldom-cited quantity of 10 to the 27th power. From the article: 'It started as a joke, but Sendek's Facebook petition: to the Consultative Committee on Units, a subdivision of the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures, has drawn more than 60,000 supporters. Its chances for formal adoption by the global weights-and-measures community are hella dim, but Google was so taken with Sendek's modest proposal that it incorporated "hella" in its online calculator.'"

4 of 193 comments (clear)

  1. Dumb whim. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Keep it in urban dictionary, where it belongs.

  2. "lotsa" taken? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I think it would be wise not to make reference to a religious concept in an SI prefix.

  3. What? by natehoy · · Score: 2, Insightful

    "Hella" refers to "hell", a religious term. If science is going to use religion, then it should at least use it accurately.

    "Hella" is a perfectly valid prefix, but should be reserved for 10^666.

    --
    "This post contains words, known to the State of California to cause thought. Wash brain thoroughly after reading."
  4. Re:Ye gods no! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Wicked isn't an east coast thing. It's a "morons from Boston" thing, but I'm being redundant.