- In mathematics: it's the 20th prime number, directly adjacent (in the odd sequence) to the 21st prime number (73), which is also known as a 'twin prime.'
- The number of judges on the Sanhedrin, the court in ancient Israel responsible for hearing the cases of criminals who facing the death penalty for their crimes.
- The registry number for the US Navy's nuclear aircraft carrier (CVN-71), the USS Theodore Roosevelt.
- The number of goals scored by Wayne Gretzky (with the Edmonton Oilers) during the 1982-83 NHL hockey season.
- The number of different characters that can be typed with a traditional English keyboard, excluding uppercase letters, without repeating any.
- The number of pounds I have lost since my surgery on 8/3/10. (!!)
The number 60 has become fascinating to me this week as well. Not only is 60 the sum of another pair of twin primes (29 + 31), it is the sum of four consecutive prime numbers (11 + 13 + 17 + 19), and is adjacent to twin primes (59, 61). As we all found out this past Tuesday, 60 also represents the number of House seats (so far, at least) that were won by Republican candidates across the nation. (there are still 9 undecided races that are, as they say, 'too close to call.') Interestingly, perhaps only to me, the number of Senate seats won by Republicans is the largest single-digit divisor of the number 60 (6), so that's another cool thing. *note: for someone who always hated math, these kinds of relationships are actually neat. probably because no one has asked me to do any kinds of proofs, corollaries, or derivatives of same, but still.*
In any case, this entry is not really meant to be a mathlete's compendium of scatterplot facts and quirky numerological trivia. Instead, as any 'election results' Google/Bing search will demonstrate, this week really has just been all about the numbers. How many seats would the Democrats lose or keep? How many Tea Party candidates would win out over their Democrat (or in some cases, Republican) incumbent opponents? How many pundits would conclude that - whatever the result - the election was simply a 'referendum on the President,' as they have in virtually every midterm election since Senate seats stopped being handed out like the candy I enthusiastically distributed last Sunday night? Because this is the week of numbers, then, I have a couple more I'd like to discuss.
4 million - the number of children (and pregnant women) who are now eligible for healthcare under the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
$30 million - the amount of money used to reinvigorate the federal Pell Grant system for college assistance.
3219 - the bill number for the new veterans' benefits law, which takes effect in the next couple of months, and which greatly expands the assistance given to new and old vets, including increases in education and living assistance, burial and funeral benefits, enhanced employment opportunities (particularly for severely disabled vets), and many other sweet new programs.
3 - the number of WWI veterans verified as still living as of 10/3/10. Frank Buckles, a US citizen who served in the ambulance corps near the Western Front, currently lives near Charles Town, WV. He is 109.
464 - the number of Medals of Honor awarded during WWII, 266 posthumously. The only Medal of Honor ever received by a member of the US Coast Guard in history was awarded during WWII.
1.5 million - estimated number of US WWII vets still alive as of 9/1/10. (no figures are currently available on the percentage of women in this number.)
This Veterans Day (11/11), it is incredibly important to remember that the heroes who have served in all of this nation's armed conflicts usually started out as 'regular joes (or janes).' They simply answered a call and served - with varying levels of dignity and integrity. While no one will argue today that they always made the best decisions (see Lt. Callie, Viet Nam), the fact remains that these people have seen and done things that most of us hope we never even have to imagine. I have met many servicemembers and while I don't always agree with their positions or viewpoints, I cannot deny that each and every one of them deserve respect and recognition for the invaluable services they have provided and continue to provide to this nation.
After this week of what is laughingly termed 'battle,' I urge us all to remember that picking apart an election is probably the closest any of us will ever get to an actual conflict. For that, I raise a glass to Dylan, Justun, Jaime, Uncle Jenks, and the countless others who have committed themselves to a life of service and to whom we all owe a great deal, and who have never asked us for any thanks.
Thank you, veterans - this one's for you.
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