Post by Veria Holt on Aug 9, 2011 17:37:18 GMT -5
The universal currency for the IO is crystals. Each planet and culture may have their own local currencies for trade among themselves, but trade between planets is always using the Intergalactic Organization Crystal (IOC).
These are literal crystals, synthetically made octahedra, of little value in themselves. They stand for value in the same way that paper money does. Different denominations come in different colors (based on the human visual light spectrum and color wheel) and different sizes. Floating inside the crystal are the name of the color, the size number, and the letters 'IO'. The approximate values in USD are as follows:
Note: Size 3s are rarely seen or used.
Generally speaking, if you say something costs 'three blues', you mean $300, as opposed to $1.50 or $300 000, but obviously it depends on the context. (Much like now, if you say a house costs 'five hundred', you probably mean five hundred thousand.) Some people will sometimes say 'two yellow Ones' or 'two yellow Twos' or 'two yellow Threes' to clarify.
Most people keep their crystals in bank accounts. These accounts can be accessed from the vidphones, but the IO has countless staff and AI monitoring accounts for suspicious transfers, so someone who brought aboard a lot of crystals is probably better off than someone who has a large number in their bank account. Also, some sentients from planets with less advanced technology will not have accounts.
These are literal crystals, synthetically made octahedra, of little value in themselves. They stand for value in the same way that paper money does. Different denominations come in different colors (based on the human visual light spectrum and color wheel) and different sizes. Floating inside the crystal are the name of the color, the size number, and the letters 'IO'. The approximate values in USD are as follows:
| Size | Red | Orange | Yellow | Green | Blue | Violet |
| 1 | 1¢ | 5¢ | 10¢ | 25¢ | 50¢ | $1 |
| 2 | $5 | $10 | $20 | $50 | $100 | $500 |
| 3 | $1000 | $5000 | $10 000 | $50 000 | $100 000 | $500 000 |
Note: Size 3s are rarely seen or used.
Generally speaking, if you say something costs 'three blues', you mean $300, as opposed to $1.50 or $300 000, but obviously it depends on the context. (Much like now, if you say a house costs 'five hundred', you probably mean five hundred thousand.) Some people will sometimes say 'two yellow Ones' or 'two yellow Twos' or 'two yellow Threes' to clarify.
Most people keep their crystals in bank accounts. These accounts can be accessed from the vidphones, but the IO has countless staff and AI monitoring accounts for suspicious transfers, so someone who brought aboard a lot of crystals is probably better off than someone who has a large number in their bank account. Also, some sentients from planets with less advanced technology will not have accounts.