As we enter 2015, I’m told I’ve got a “big birthday” coming up this year. Like everyone before me, whose age ends in a zero, I shrug it off with comments about being as old as you feel or life beginning at my new number. It made me think about how much numbers affect our lives – sometimes in a completely meaningless way, but at other times fundamentally.

Money is, of course, numbers with a currency sign in front of them. Some of the richest people in the country make fortunes by simply moving numbers around in the City of London. They’ll tell you there is a science and skill to it – but we don’t believe them, do we? It’s just playing with numbers.

Numbers come in all shapes and sizes
Every story that emanates from government is about figures, be it the value of the deficit, rates of tax, levels of unemployment or the number of days until the general election. More of that to come this year of course.

Numbers come in all shapes and sizes. Our trader friends in the City don’t recognize them unless they have at least six noughts attached. Politicians of different parties will give us completely differing figures to each other when they are reading the same number. I need some help with that one and I make my living dealing in figures. What chance do those with less numerate skills stand?

Maybe the most important numbers to the British public every week are the small ones – from 1 to 49 in the shape of the National Lottery balls. These little numbers can change your life in an instant, as long as you can overcome the 1 in 14 million chance of finding the winners!

I’m going to regard my number as a little one too, but I’m planning to enjoy my 2015. I hope you are too – Happy New Year!