Nature in Numbers

Nature is inspiring in so many ways.  If you are also inspired by numbers, you’ll enjoy this list of numbers inspired by nature – brought to us by Denise Deluca   of BCI Biomomicry for Creative Innovation :

7,5000,000:  The estimated number of  different life forms on earth

1,200,000: The number of life forms that have been identified by science

99.9:  The percentage of all species that have ever lived on earth that are now extinct

1:  The number of species on earth that relies on fossil fuels

12,000:  The number of species of ants that are known to exist

1,500,000:  The number of ants on the planet for each human being

1 to 1:  The mass of all ants living on earth compared to that of all humans

1,000,000,000: The number of bacteria in a teaspoon of soil

5,000:  The number of different species of bacteria represented in that teaspoon of soil

4:  The number of elements it takes to account for 99% of all biomass on earth  (C,H, O, and N)

4:  The number of base pairs found in DNA, which contains the instructions needed to create all of the complexity, biodiversity, and functionality of life on earth

10 sextillion:  The number of atoms of air you take into your body with breath

1:  The number of years it takes for you to breathe in oxygen molecules exhaled by every person alive, as well as by everyone who ever lived

1:  The number of seconds since the industrial revolution started, if measured on a scale where one year represents the amount of time life has been on earth. On this scale, humans have been around for 6 minutes.

<7:  The estimates number of days it would take to run out of food in the UK if petroleum supplies were cut off for some reason.  We have no plans to address this potentiality.

>50:  The percentage of cells in your body that are not human cells.

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