there's no end of confusion in the counting system because of the different meanings given to the same word when using numbers bigger than nine hundred and ninety nine million nine hundred and ninety nine thousand nine hundred and ninety nine (999 999 999) this web site uses a powering system for numbers bigger than (999 999 999) using the powering system means the number 1000 000 000 is spoken as "one to the nine" (there's only one more syllable in the sentence "one to the nine" than there is in saying "one billion" ) then there is the added bonus of it being much easier to write 1 ^9 than it is to write 1000 000 000 to say 1 ^100 (the number of years the universe lasts for) in a formal way means having to say duotrigintillion and in order to say that it means having to learn all the other latin prefixes that are used with the numbering system. this link   will give you an insight into just how complicated the counting system is. the biggest number we are ever going to need is 1 ^83 000. between 1 and 1 ^83 000 there are 83 000 zeros. most of us can identify with 83 000... the number of people at a football stadium...  the amount a person with a weekly take-home pay of £1600 earns in a year... the number of meals we'll eat in a lifetime... simplicity is the key to understanding.   it's time to start thinking big, big, big and doing it in a way that most people can easily follow