googol

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The Word of the Day for January 4 is:=20

googol   \GOO-goll\   noun
          : the figure 1 followed by 100 zeros equal to 10 to the hundre=
dth power

Example sentence:
          In January 1997, astronomers Fred Adams and Gregory Laughlin p=
redicted that the universe would end in a number of years equal to appro=
ximately one googol.

Did you know?
          Around 1930, American mathematician Edward Kasner found himsel=
f working with numbers as large as 10 to the 100th power -- that's a one=
 followed by 100 zeroes. While it is possible to write that number using=
 standard scientific notation, Dr. Kasner felt that it deserved a name o=
f its own. According to his own account, Dr. Kasner asked his nine-year-=
old nephew, Milton Sirotta, to pick a name, promising the boy that he wo=
uld use the word in the future. Milton made up the word "googol," and so=
 the enormous number was christened. Dr. Kasner kept his promise, and th=
e word has spread and been widely adopted by mathematicians and the gene=
ral public alike.





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