It's the Finite Countdown: Presenting Talking Time's Top 50 Numbers!

[Torzelbaum]

When you see 9999 in an RPG it lets you know that something either really, really good or really, really bad has just occurred.

[Loki]

In Paper Mario the numbers go up to like 6. What’s the difference between 9 and 9999 when you really sit down and think about it?

[Destil]

-9990

[Dracula]

Paper Mario only goes to six? Sounds like a baby game. It should try to have bigger numbers, like games on playstation made for real men.

[Destil]

Let's be real though the very low stats are one of the things that makes FFT one of the better games in the series mechanically.

[Bulgakov]

43. (tie)

151


Points: 80
Mentions: 3
First Round Rank: 33
First Round Points:80
Movement between rounds: -10


Person That Takes Single-minded Set Collection to the Unhealthiest Level:
Dracula Ranked at #7

Binary Representation: 10010111
Roman Numeral Representation: CLI
ASCII Symbol: N/A
Divisors: Prime Number
Other Notables: Twin prime with 149, Palindrome

I will admit that I have basically never caught a pocket monster in my life. I think my brother had one of the blue cartridges, but to me the lore and appeal of this vast world is hidden behind layers of teenaged cynicism thicker than a geodude’s carapace. I got 15 minutes into the game before the rote battle structure led me to conclude I had better things to do with my time as an up-and-coming teenaged loner (basically “better things” involved going to speech and debate tournaments where I occasionally saw Loki, so you make the call). From being alive between 1996 and the present, though, I have had it drilled into my skull that there were 151 original pokemon in the first generation of the game.

That said, it turns out that 151 isn’t just about trying to memorize a bunch of weird names and abilities from a 30+ year old video game!

• Bacardi 151 is a rum well suited for those moments when you realize how much of your life you’ve spent chasing pokemon.
  
• Many cars, trains and military vehicles have been designated with the “151” moniker, perhaps most notably the Maserati Tipo 151. All of these items can be used to travel between Pokestops when playing the popular Millenial game, “Pokemon Go Outside But Keep Staring at Your Phone.”
  
• 151 is the atomic number for the temporarily named, theoretical, and undiscovered element Unpentunium. Think of it as the Mew of the periodic table.
  
• A number of musicians have written songs with “151” in the title, including Slick Shoes, R.E.M, Steve Hackett, and Jedi Mind Tricks. All of these are great songs to listen to while hunting Pokemon.
  
• XKCD Comic #151 features another Nintendo property, Mario. Mario has been jealous of Pikachu and his 150 friends since the inception of Pokemon, leading to an internal struggle that has wracked Nintendo and its various licencing partners for years. The saga of their conflict has been recorded sub-textually in the many iterations of the "Super Smash Bros." franchise.
  

Running average of all numbers under 10 Million: 1484.23125
Running average of all numbers It's reasonable to include: 1484.23125

[Bulgakov]

43. (Tie)

(Skip to about 59 Seconds for the briefest explanation of Graham’s Number I could find.)

Graham’s Number


Points: 80
Mentions: 4
First Round Rank: 44
First Round Points: 66
Movement between rounds: +1


Person Most Likely to Cackle As the Known Universe Fills With Numbers:
muteKi Ranked at #14

Binary Representation: Would take the entire human race typing their entire lives many times over.
Roman Numeral Representation: I don't want to break Talking Time OR the internet.
ASCII Symbol: You’re cute.
Divisors: Die in a fire.
Other Notables: What else do you need?

Graham’s Number is named after the mathematician Ronald Graham, who first described it. Graham’s number is big. Absurdly big. It is literally so big that if you tried to write out Graham’s number at even a microscopic size and using Power Towers (that is, stacking exponents), the notation would fill the known universe and still not be able to hold the entirety of Graham’s number. The best way to express it is using up-arrow notation and a recursive definition as described in the video above.

What’s so special about this number? At the time it was described, it was the largest specific integer used in a mathematical proof (that is even though we can’t fully express it, it served a logical mathematical purpose). It is not infinite, it’s just so big we can’t comprehend it, and that is a significant difference.

But don’t worry, since Graham’s Number came about, there have been much larger numbers described. If you want go down this rabbit hole, check out tree(3):

Running average of all numbers under 10 Million: 1484.23125
Running average of all numbers It's reasonable to include: 1484.23125
For obvious reasons, Graham’s number is excluded.

[Loki]

Originally Posted by Bulgakov

For obvious reasons, Graham’s number is excluded.

Coward.

[Loki]

I voted for Graham’s number not only because it's a big chunky boy (understatement), but also because it was conceived as an answer to the question:

Connect each pair of geometric vertices of an n-dimensional hypercube to obtain a complete graph on 2n vertices. Color each of the edges of this graph either red or blue. What is the smallest value of n for which every such coloring contains at least one single-colored complete subgraph on four coplanar vertices?

Which is some math-ass nonsense.

[Dracula]

Hypercube was a good Michael Crichton novel.

[Issun]

Graham's Number is also the total number of times people have died and will die in King's Quest games.

[Daikaiju]

Originally Posted by Mogri

Genji Glove is the most wildly inconsistent piece of equipment in the series.

1: Glove-slot armor that gives immunity to Poison/Petrify. Remakes only, of course.
2: A strong, heavy arm-slot armor.
3: Same, although in the remake, it provides a bunch of status immunities.
4: A relatively weak late-game arm-slot armor. When Kain last rejoins the party, he comes with a pair.
5: An accessory that provides some defense and immunity to Toad and Paralyze.
6: Now we start getting weird. A relic that lets you equip (and attack with) two weapons.
CC7: An accessory that breaks the damage limit.
8: Mysteriously absent.
9: A heavy gauntlet. Teaches High Tide, but then every piece of equipment teaches something in 9, so it's mostly unremarkable.
10: Any Kimahri armor where the dominant ability is Break HP Limit.
12: An accessory that increases your combo rate.
13: An accessory that breaks the damage limit.
13-2: An accessory that gives Resist Damage 12%.
15: An accessory that gives 30% resistance to lightning, dark, and ballistics.
T: An accessory that gives +2 PA/MA.
TA/TA2: An accessory that boosts stats a bit.

Overwatch: Reloads your shuriken and NEEDS HEALING.

[Bulgakov]

42.

88


Points: 81
Mentions: 3
First Round Rank: 36
First Round Points: 78
Movement between rounds: -6


Person Who’s Sure In 1985 Plutonium is In Every Corner Drug Store, But In 1955, It’s a Little Hard to Come By:
Bulgakov Ranked at #4

Binary Representation: 1011000
Roman Numeral Representation: LXXXVIII
ASCII Symbol: X
Divisors: 1,2,4,8,11,22,44
Other Notables: Palindrome, can be expressed as 4^2 +2 * 6^2

Boy does 88 ever have things going on with it! Part of this may have to do with its visual nature of looking so round and symmetrical, but people have been applying it for practical and cultural reasons for years.

• Mathematically, 88 is a semiperfect and abundant number (see entry on 60 for definition), a refactorable number (that is, it is divisible by the number of factors it has), and an Untouchable number (no number’s factors sum to a total of 88).
  
• According to the International Astronomical Union, there are 88 official constellations in the sky.
  
• There are 88 keys on a full-sized piano (52 white and 36 black keys).
  
• There are 88 counties in Ohio. You can save that one for pub trivia.
  
• ”88” is a signoff in amatuer radio equivalent to “love and kisses.” It can be both spoken and in Morse code to this effect.
  
• 88 is the racing number of NASCAR star Dale Jarret.
  
• 88 is the atomic number of Radium, the only radioactive alkaline earth metal.
  
• In the Back to the Future movie series, objects needed to reach 88 miles per hour in order to travel through time.
  
• Chinese culture sees 88 as representative of fortune and good luck, because the pronunciation for the number 8 sounds similar to a Chinese word associated with wealth. Finally, “88” can mean “bye bye” in Chinese texts, because 8181 sounds the same as “bye bye” in Mandarin, and people are too lazy to type 1s. Phonic association; it’s all you need folks!
  
• In Japanese “88” can be a stand in for “A great many” or “An infinite number” of objects.
  
• Unfortunately 88 also has a bit of a dark side. Because the eighth letter of the alphabet is “H”, white supremacists use “88” as a stand-in for the phrase “Heil Hitler,” so you’ll see the number a lot in alt-right circles as a sad kind of Nazi-wink. I feel very bad for 88 that it has to put up with idiots like this trying to appropriate it!

Running average of all numbers under 10 Million: 1329.094444
Running average of all numbers It's reasonable to include: 1329.094444

[Bulgakov]

41.

0.25


Points: 82
Mentions: 3
First Round Rank: 51
First Round Points: 60
Movement between rounds: +10


Currently Stocking Up on Time Cubes:
Torzelbaum Ranked at #2

Binary Representation: N/A
Roman Numeral Representation: N/A
ASCII Symbol: N/A
Divisors: N/A
Other Notables:

Our first number between 0 and 1! 0.25 is one of those numbers that without humans around to make it important pretty much wouldn’t mean a thing. And boy did we decide to do it! 0.25 is also known as a quarter, or 1/4th of a full object. It’s how you split Kit Kat bars when your parents tell you that’s too much sugar for just one kid. It’s also the colloquial name of a 25-cent piece in the US, or as everyone who grew up in the arcade era knows it, the price of admission to 5 sweet, sweet minutes of Tron while the rest of your family roller skates/bowls and wonders why they paid for your skate/shoe rental.

The first US quarter was minted in 1796, and went through several designs before Washington took his place on the front in 1932 (the 200th anniversary of his birth).

Throughout the second half of the 20th century, Quarters were the mainstay of vending machines, jukeboxes, and all sorts of other modest entertainments. You could buy pretty much anything for a quarter: a tank of gas, a movie, or even a quality shoe shine (just ask my cranky grandpa!). Nowadays, you’re lucky to find a 25 cent arcade machine that’s not in a “retro” area, and as reliance on digital currency has increased in the US, the popularity of the quarter has waned (that’s why they started “limited edition” state quarters in 1999, to drum up interest).

Into which arcade game have you fed the most quarters?


Running average of all numbers under 10 Million: 1196.21
Running average of all numbers It's reasonable to include: 1196.21

[Loki]

Originally Posted by Bulgakov

abundant

Originally Posted by Bulgakov

efactorable

Originally Posted by Bulgakov

Untouchable

If nothing else this thread has taught me there's a lot of classifications for numbers that are based entirely on arbitrary factors and what not.

Math nerds are really nerdy.

[jpfriction]

#41 was 1/4? Seems rigged to me.

[Issun]

Originally Posted by Bulgakov

Into which arcade game have you fed the most quarters?

Street Fighter II, no contest.

[Johnny Unusual]

Originally Posted by Bulgakov

Into which arcade game have you fed the most quarters?

Probably a beat 'em up. Once, when me and my family were living in Thailand, some very wealthy neighbors took us for a vacation and gave me and my sister about $25 in quarters. I used it too beat Moonwalker and... maybe the Spider-Man beat 'em up?

[Karzac]

Originally Posted by jpfriction

#41 was 1/4? Seems rigged to me.

I'm so hopeful that there will be an entry that is listed at the same rank as its numerical value.

[Mogri]

Originally Posted by Johnny Unusual

Probably a beat 'em up.

Simpsons right here.

[Patrick]

Die Hard Arcade. My friend and I would meet up on our lunch break and play through it.

[JBear]

"Wizard needs more quarters badly."

[masterthes]

Simpsons, X-Men, some of the TMNT games, Rampage, Galaga, Golden Axe, various pinball games

[Torzelbaum]

Originally Posted by Bulgakov

Into which arcade game have you fed the most quarters?

The Neo Geo MVS

[WildcatJF]

Probably Marvel Vs. Capcom.

[Sensenic]

I wouldn't know, since I haven't played many arcade games, and most as an adult. My parents wouldn't let me spend money on them so I just watched the demo modes and fantasized about what would it be to play them, or watch other people play.

Loving this list so far, excellent presentation, and very educative!

[Bulgakov]

40.

99


Points: 83
Mentions: 5
First Round Rank: 43
First Round Points: 68
Movement between rounds: +3


Person Most Likely to Corner You at a Party and Talk Your Ear Off About The Psychological Manipulation of the Masses:
Masterthes Ranked at #13

Binary Representation: 1100011
Roman Numeral Representation: XCIX
ASCII Symbol: c
Divisors: 1,3,9,11,33
Other Notables: Largest 2-digit number, palindrome, can be expressed as 2^3+3^3+4^3

Like 9999 before it, 99 is one integer away from a new place value, making it a number that lives on the edge. So much on the edge, in fact, that you’ll see a lot of things priced at, say $5.99 or $399 instead of the nearest round number. This technique is called “psychological pricing” and operates under the assumption that, in cultures that read left-to-right, the first number we see has the greatest impact on our perception. Seeing the “99” at the end implies that we are getting a deal, albeit a small one. Research on the subject suggests the actual effect on consumer behavior may be debatable, but that hasn’t stopped retailers from using it! About 60% of goods in the US are priced so that the last two digits read “99”.

Other interesting facts about 99:

• 99 is the atomic number for Einsteinium, a man-made element first found in the wreckage of Hydrogen bomb tests.
  
• 99 was the name of the fictional agent in Get Smart played by Barbara Feldon (and I feel ashamed I missed Maxwell Smart earlier, I’m sorry!).
  
• ”Player 99” was a fictional character created in NBA Live ‘96 placed in the Chicago Bulls because Michael Jordan was not part of the NBA players association and only licensed only games branded with his name at the time. The player is essentially a stand-in for Jordan.
  
• ”The 99%” is a popular rallying term used by the political left in the US.
  
• ”99 Flake” is a popular ice cream treat with a chocolate flake in the center sold by Cadbury. The term also refers to just the flake itself.
  
• In the Qu’ran, Allah (or God) is known to have 99 names.

Finally, there are many songs that start with or are simply titled “99”beyond Toto’s tribute above, including the traditional “99 Bottles of Beer.” Here’s a selection:

[YOUTUBE]cUH4jDN1Yew[/YOUTUBE

Running average of all numbers under 10 Million: 1096.463636
Running average of all numbers It's reasonable to include: 1096.463636

[Bulgakov]

39.

1729


Points: 84
Mentions: 5
First Round Rank: 42
First Round Points: 70
Movement between rounds: +3


Person Most Likely to Tell the Same Story Every Time He Gets in a Taxi:
Falslogic Ranked at #6

Binary Representation: 1101111
Roman Numeral Representation: MDCCXXIX
ASCII Symbol: ہ
Divisors: 1,7,13,19,91,133,247
Other Notables: Smallest number with two representations as the sum of two cubes.

So here’s the story Falselogic will tell you if you ever take a taxi with him, via Wikipedia:

Originally Posted by ”Wikipedia”

1729 is known as the Hardy-Ramanujan number, after an anecdote of the British mathematician G. H. Hardy when he visited Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan in hospital. He related their conversation.
I remember once going to see him when he was ill at Putney. I had ridden in taxi cab number 1729 and remarked that the number seemed to me rather a dull one, and that I hoped it was not an unfavourable omen. "No," he replied, "it is a very interesting number; it is the smallest number expressible as the sum of two cubes in two different ways."
The two different ways are:
1729 = 1^3 + 12^3 = 9^3 + 10^3

Because of this anecdote, the smallest number that can be expressed n ways as the sum of two cubes is known as a “Taxicab number.” 2 is the smallest Taxicab Number (as it can be expressed as 1^3+1^3). 1729 is the second; in all 6 taxicab numbers have been discovered to date. It’s all on the Taxicab Number Wikipedia page if you want the details. The other numbers are harder to remember because they’re a lot bigger.

That’s pretty much what you get with 1729. 1729 is one of those numbers nobody but people with significant math training or trivia knowledge cares much about, and even for them 1729 is good for about one random conversation-starter at parties. Ironically, all the other math/trivia people at the party already know this factoid, and everyone else in the room gets alienated because it’s so lame, so the only thing it’s really doing is serving as an identifying marker for math people and trivia nerds in the room (way to pick ‘em out of the crowd, False).

Which is of course why Futurama loves 1729. As evidenced by the picture for this entry, 1729 is slipped in all over that wacky show from the aughts that has everyone complaining about how the first 10 episodes of Disenchanted don’t live up to Futurama at its peak. Several of the writers on the show (including J. Stewart Burns, Bill Odenkirk, Jeff Westbrook, Ken Keeler, and David X. Cohen himself) have degrees in applied math, math, or computer science that put them pretty far over on the “math-people” end of the spectrum. To prove their mettle, they have put tons of math easter eggs into the series, including a frequent use of the number 1729, and putting a taxicab number on pretty much any taxicab a character sees or takes in the series.

Running average of all numbers under 10 Million: 1149.175
Running average of all numbers It's reasonable to include: 1149.175

[Falselogic]

it is on my list because I am a trivia person and a Futurama person.

I cannot maths.

[Issun]

Also: