

What If Money Were Designed to Celebrate Science Instead of Presidents? - JohnsonRob
http://www.wired.com/2014/11/money-designed-celebrate-science-instead-presidents/

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ggchappell
I would be in favor of such a redesign, but the nitpicker in me wants to point
out that U.S. bills don't all feature presidents.

Alexander Hamilton, on the $10 bill, was never president. Bills valued at more
than $100 have not been made for some time[1], but the most recent $10,000
bill featured Salmon P. Chase, who was also never president.

[1] Not since 1945, saith Wikipedia:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_denominations_of_United_...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_denominations_of_United_States_currency)

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xrange
As long as we're nitpicking, none of: Benjamin Franklin, Sacajawea, or Susan
B. Anthony were president.

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ggchappell
Yes, I forgot Franklin.

The other two have only appeared on coins, no?

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xrange
Yes, coins only. The title of the article mentions "money".

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worldsayshi
I imagined a much more abstract take of the title. What if 'money' was
designed so that it gravitated towards achievers of scientific accomplishments
rather than towards weilders of power.

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Chinjut
Not, I think, that politicians are the richest people in modern society. But,
my brain went for a similar interpretation at first as well: what if economic
structures were somehow redesigned so that money gravitated towards different
activities than currently, changing the world's balance of wealth and thus
influence? Would've been a fun article, if it existed...

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mikeyouse
A former classmate of mine keeps a personal website with a section that has a
very thorough list of scientists and mathematicians who appear on various
currencies with full-res scans of most of his collection:

[http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jbourj/money.htm](http://www-
personal.umich.edu/~jbourj/money.htm)

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Osmium
The link's very cool, but I think it highlights the important distinction
between notes that celebrate _science_ and notes that celebrate specific
_scientists_. Both may be worthwhile doing, but they're different things.

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spectre
Why just celebrate Science? In New Zealand our banknotes feature people famous
for all kinds of achievements: $5 - Sir Edmund Hillary (Climber), $10 - Kate
Sheppard (Woman's Suffrage), $50 - Sir Āpirana Ngata (Māori Culture), $100 -
Lord Ernest Rutherford (Nuclear Physics).

[http://www.rbnz.govt.nz/notes_and_coins/notes/](http://www.rbnz.govt.nz/notes_and_coins/notes/)

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informatimago
You mean, like Pasteur (5 francs, 1966), Berlioz (10 francs, 1972), Travail et
Science (20 francs, 1939), Le Verrier (50 francs, 1945), Saint-Exupéry (50
francs, 1992), Descartes (100 francs, 1942), Gustave Eiffel (200 francs,
1995), Pascal (500 francs, 1968), Pierre et Marie Curie (500 francs, 1994)?

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ISL
And the beautiful 10-Dmark, featuring Gauss and some of his work?

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:10_DM_Serie4_Vorderseite.j...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:10_DM_Serie4_Vorderseite.jpg)
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:10_DM_Serie4_Rueckseite.jp...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:10_DM_Serie4_Rueckseite.jpg)
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deutsche_Mark](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deutsche_Mark)

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SoCalNS_902
It is in Canada.

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burke
Well, it's both really; one side is a cultural or scientific icon, and the
other is the Queen or a prime minister.

I am pretty proud of our $5 though:
[http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8542/8694157272_8990e8bcca_z.j...](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8542/8694157272_8990e8bcca_z.jpg)

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adambard
Any Canadian will tell you that the space shuttle is just the thing they use
to get the arm into space.

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cratermoon
I don't really care who is _on_ the money, let's just give more of it to the
scientists instead of the Presidents and other politicians.

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onewaystreet
Most people probably can't even name the presidents on the bills so it
wouldn't make much difference who you put on there.

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lifeisstillgood
It would still be all about the Benjamin's, surely ?

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breadbox
Franklin is the closest thing we have to a scientist on our currency now --
so, maybe.

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joliv
I think the man to discover conservation of charge is more than just _close
to_ a scientist :)

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jonah
I do like the inclusion of the denomination in braille.

Otherwise, they're too textural and not figurative enough.

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devindotcom
It would feel strange to me - American dollars are a uniquely American thing,
created and backed by the American government. Seems right to celebrate the
history of the government on there, just as it would seem right to see the
Queen on some British coin, or Gandhi on an Indian bill. Scientific advances
don't seem like the kind of thing that should be printed on money. Do statues,
or dedications!

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lotsofmangos
Without your impressive history of scientific and technical advances, the
history of your government would be a hell of a lot shorter.

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lotsofmangos
If you find that your money is already designed to celebrate science, you are
probably in the UK.

We've had loads of scientists and engineers on banknotes, including Charles
Darwin, Issac Newton, Matthew Boulton, James Watt, Michael Faraday, Alexander
Graham Bell, Adam Smith, George Stephenson, Florence Nightingale and
Christopher Wren.

Also the coins regularly have geeky stuff on them. Like the current £2 coin
which features gears and circuitry with Newtons 'shoulders of giants' comment
written around the edge. -
[https://www.thelondoncoincompany.com/coinimages/1329309475-2...](https://www.thelondoncoincompany.com/coinimages/1329309475-2011_Shoulders_of_Giants_BU_Two_Pound_Coin_R.jpg)

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edit - This Northern Irish £5 featuring the space shuttle is awesome and is
probably the coolest Stirling note ever.

It is also in portrait like the designs suggested in the article and could
well be the inspiration for them.

[http://www.banknotes.com/IEN203.JPG](http://www.banknotes.com/IEN203.JPG)

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midhir
That was an awesome fiver! It was also made of plastic. I remember it well.

It was recalled after the Northern Bank robbery and discontinued. The biggest
bank robbery in UK and Irish history IIRC. Crazy times.

The bank is now owned by Danske, so we use Danish fivers now :p

Interestingly Belfast just agreed to name a street after John Bell. It's
significant because there's a rule here about not naming streets after people.
They got around it for Bell by naming it Bell's Theorem Crescent.

Pretty sure Lord Kelvin made it onto a Scottish note too.

Me, I'm all about the Punt with the stag on it.[1]

[1]
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_pound_%28Irish_coin%29#medi...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_pound_%28Irish_coin%29#mediaviewer/File:Irish_pound_\(reverse\).png)

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lotsofmangos
Is doubly cool cos the stag is surfing.

