Goldfinger

[Vimto]

I once read in a South African gold promotional brochure that all the gold ever mined in the history of the world could be accommodated on three London Routemaster double decker buses. I think it meant in the space occupied by the three buses! Can anyone comment on the veracity of this statement please?

[dilligaf]

The way I heard it is that it would "fill three double decker busses" so I suppose the space occupied would be correct.

Don't know how true it is, worth a few bob though.

[gary baldy]

At the end of 2001, it was estimated that all the gold ever mined totalled 145,000 tonnes. Gold has a very high density, 19.3 tonnes per cubic metre, therefore all the gold ever mined would make a cube less than 20 metres wide.

Vimto, on the other hand, is an exotic and delicious liquid which which is also rare and sought after (especially down south!) and pound for pound is worth more than gold. It also tastes much nicer with a couple of slices of toast before bedtime than gold does.
Give me a glass of Vimto over a glass of gold anyday!

[JudgeJ]

I believe it it is also true that more than 98% of all the gold ever dug out of the ground now rests back in it in bank vaults!

[THECORBYLOON]

If you look at the figures and do a wee bit maths, it shows the statement is wrong. The dimensions of the most common version of the Routemaster Double Decker bus are W= 8� L=27�6� H=14�4� so the MAXIMUM capacity (ignoring the space taken up by minor things like seats, engine and driver etc) is 3153.3 cubic feet or 89.3 cubic metres.

The volume of the gold produced is more than 84 times that.

[gary baldy]

You dont think i just made that up do you Corbs!
I just lifted it straight from here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold#Production

(except the Vimto bit -thats all mine)

[THECORBYLOON]

No, gary,I meant the bit about all the gold fitting into three buses. If you have a few glasses of gold I'll swap you the Vimto (can't help thinking on the fact that it's an anagram of Vomit!)

[Vimto]

I think I must have entered into a sort of cyber loony bin, corby almost admits as much. Are you the alchoholic, dyslexic, insomniac who very nearly choked to death on his own vimto? All super fun chaps.One starts out trying to discover the truth about something puzzling one and finish up not really caring one way or the other.Thanks to all.

[heathfield]

Yeah, and don't you love those movies where the villain runs down the street carrying a suitcase full of gold bars? As if the handle wouldn't break off when he tried to lift it!

[stevie21]

But the gold bars in the movies aren't pure gold as that'd be too soft. The jewellers mix it with helium to make it tougher AND lighter.