h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Congratulations on your article entitled ‘numbers’ - it now makes complete sense to me! As to the great debate about zero - number or not - I think that should rest in the hands, literally, of Mr William Babbage (of computer fame). After all, according to your own criteria, Mr Babbage had only 1 or 2 digits, hence the binary system. If he had only one finger then clearly zero is not a number, on the other hand, if he had two, then zero is a number. Unearth this hitherto unknown fact and your dispute is resolved.
However, there is one more matter upon which I would appreciate your opinion. Some time ago a gentlemen published a book proclaiming it to contain the “largest known number”. Interesting though 500 pages of numbers were, I skipped straight to the last page to unearth the plot. Then I had a revelation! Fame and fortune were coming my way. I only had to add one more number and I would be acclaimed as the genius who had discovered the “even bigger largest known number”! But, publishers just weren’t intersted. Can you explain this anomoly? It seems very unfair!!!

Perhaps you should have doubled the number in question. Simply adding one, while sufficient to make a larger number, doesn't make the number that much bigger.

Also, publishers are notoriously wary about publishing anything related to mathematics. They may have felt that the largest number fad had burnt out its time in the sun and that it was time to move on to the smallest positive numbers. You should take the reciprocal of your number and resubmit.

As a publisher I resent that last remark. We're so keen on mathematics that we give a free number away with (almost) every page. Who else gives away so many numbers with each purchase? Check with your bookstore if your numbers are missing.