1. Travel at my own pace around Australia in a caravan and invite my family and best friends along whenever they can join me, all expenses paid
2. Volunteer with my favourite charities, with a view to making hefty donations if I like what I see
3. Buy a house with a view of the sky and sunset on the outskirts of my favourite Australian town

One thing I would not do is: buy a motorised boat.

1. Keep a little to make us a bit more financially comfortable.
2. Donate to appropriate charities.
3. That’d be it then.

1. Buy air conditioning for all classrooms at Mini Me’s school.
2. Holiday, staying some presidential suite.
3. Definitely invest.

4. Not tell my mum. She’d beg for money as long as she lives. She cannot be trusted with money, it is not my problem.

Yonks ago, I watched a show about lottery winners and what they did with the money. Most of it was all the usual stuff: cars, houses, holidays etc. One woman fascinated me. She and her 8 kids still lived in a trailer but she’d bought a yellow Ferrari.

Set up a new Science Academy

CSIRO used to have an acronym “BHAG” meaning big hairy audacious goal.

$150 million is big enough to spend on a BHAG.

The key is “think big”, “then think bigger”, “then think bigger still”.

I’ll give it some thought.

Create a small electric car / electric bike company smallish like fiat 500 but more modern looking. Electric bicycle and larger electric motor bike.

Create a new research company.

1. Pa y off the house
2. buy a nice new car
3. sit down under a nice shady tree and think about what to invest in. I hear that Fiji have some particularly nice shade trees.

I’d like to create a new model of building company for houses. Both the construction and letting them out on a long term up front lease.

I’d buy a fine big old house with lots of lovely wooded land far from any visible and audible neighbours (and also get a car and learn how to drive).

Not sure where, but some of the requirements would be:

a) The house would be right next to a largish body of water.
b) Cool climate and cold enough to reliably snow every winter.

After furnishing the house and buying a few expensive musical instruments etc, I’d invest enough to keep me comfortable and give the rest away to relatives, friends and charity.

The last few posts are close to my thinking.

1. Rent this place and buy something more suitable for my life.
2. Hire someone as part time handy person and driver.
3. Design and build small units and studio flats for lower incomes above electric bus terminals, staggered through various suburbs with solar built into the design.

Bubblecar said:

I’d buy a fine big old house with lots of lovely wooded land far from any visible and audible neighbours (and also get a car and learn how to drive).

Not sure where, but some of the requirements would be:

a) The house would be right next to a largish body of water.
b) Cool climate and cold enough to reliably snow every winter.

After furnishing the house and buying a few expensive musical instruments etc, I’d invest enough to keep me comfortable and give the rest away to relatives, friends and charity.

You could buy a snow machine and have your gardener spread it about.

i’d buy the Internet and fire everyone.

mollwollfumble said:

CSIRO used to have an acronym “BHAG” meaning big hairy audacious goal.

$150 million is big enough to spend on a BHAG.

The key is “think big”, “then think bigger”, “then think bigger still”.

I’ll give it some thought.

Initial “think big” thoughts.

• Solve the Murray-Darling water supply problem
• No flooding of any Australian towns ever again
• Manganese economy with dredging of seabed nodules off tasmania
• “Blind spot” space telescope
• Australia synchrotron 2,000 km in diameter.
• Develop supersonic passenger aircraft
• Complete the Mohole project
• Origin of life redo the Miller-Urey experiment in a 100,000 cubic metre tank

But that’s not hinking big enough yet.

The house would also have its own bar well stocked with single malt whiskies.

mollwollfumble said:

mollwollfumble said:

CSIRO used to have an acronym “BHAG” meaning big hairy audacious goal.

$150 million is big enough to spend on a BHAG.

The key is “think big”, “then think bigger”, “then think bigger still”.

I’ll give it some thought.

Initial “think big” thoughts.

• Solve the Murray-Darling water supply problem
• No flooding of any Australian towns ever again
• Manganese economy with dredging of seabed nodules off tasmania
• “Blind spot” space telescope
• Australia synchrotron 2,000 km in diameter.
• Develop supersonic passenger aircraft
• Complete the Mohole project
• Origin of life redo the Miller-Urey experiment in a 100,000 cubic metre tank

But that’s not hinking big enough yet.

You do realise that the question was about $150 * 10⁶ and not $150 * 10⁹, don’t you?

sibeen said:

mollwollfumble said:

mollwollfumble said:

CSIRO used to have an acronym “BHAG” meaning big hairy audacious goal.

$150 million is big enough to spend on a BHAG.

The key is “think big”, “then think bigger”, “then think bigger still”.

I’ll give it some thought.

Initial “think big” thoughts.

• Solve the Murray-Darling water supply problem
• No flooding of any Australian towns ever again
• Manganese economy with dredging of seabed nodules off tasmania
• “Blind spot” space telescope
• Australia synchrotron 2,000 km in diameter.
• Develop supersonic passenger aircraft
• Complete the Mohole project
• Origin of life redo the Miller-Urey experiment in a 100,000 cubic metre tank

But that’s not hinking big enough yet.

You do realise that the question was about $150 * 10⁶ and not $150 * 10⁹, don’t you?

Yes, keep it real.

;)

“Solve the Murray-Darling water supply problem”

That would be good. Remove waterways from the states, make them federal.

All new buildings to have brown water systems.

mollwollfumble said:

mollwollfumble said:

CSIRO used to have an acronym “BHAG” meaning big hairy audacious goal.

$150 million is big enough to spend on a BHAG.

The key is “think big”, “then think bigger”, “then think bigger still”.

I’ll give it some thought.

Initial “think big” thoughts.

• Solve the Murray-Darling water supply problem
• No flooding of any Australian towns ever again
• Manganese economy with dredging of seabed nodules off tasmania
• “Blind spot” space telescope
• Australia synchrotron 2,000 km in diameter.
• Develop supersonic passenger aircraft
• Complete the Mohole project
• Origin of life redo the Miller-Urey experiment in a 100,000 cubic metre tank

But that’s not hinking big enough yet.

$150m doesn’t go far in those sorts of projects.

It would be nice to be able to fix up the old Burow house. Look at that woolshed. I think it’s in better nick than the house. But you could do something with that house if you had money.

https://www.realestate.com.au/property-mixed+farming-vic-tabor-700052070

It’s up the road form us here. Mr buffy has been there in the ambulance. But then, where hasn’t he been in the ambulance…

mollwollfumble said:

mollwollfumble said:

CSIRO used to have an acronym “BHAG” meaning big hairy audacious goal.

$150 million is big enough to spend on a BHAG.

The key is “think big”, “then think bigger”, “then think bigger still”.

I’ll give it some thought.

Initial “think big” thoughts.

• Solve the Murray-Darling water supply problem
• No flooding of any Australian towns ever again
• Manganese economy with dredging of seabed nodules off tasmania
• “Blind spot” space telescope
• Australia synchrotron 2,000 km in diameter.
• Develop supersonic passenger aircraft
• Complete the Mohole project
• Origin of life redo the Miller-Urey experiment in a 100,000 cubic metre tank

But that’s not hinking big enough yet.

My think big (needs $150 billions rather than millions:

• Large scale growing of algae as a source of biomass fuel. Using salt water species.
• Salty water for the growing of same to be extracted and pumped from agricultural areas suffering from salinity due to high water tables.
• A minerals processing industry using energy derived from the algae-derived renewable energy. With particular emphasis on rare earths, titanium, aluminium, with some iron production using syngas (waste product from algae) as a reducing agent.
• Development of high tech manufacturing using titanium and exotic metals for aerospace, electronics and related industries.

*development of an international HVDC grid connecting Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, PNG, Solomon Islands and others, supplied with electricty from algae.

give it all back, no one person needs that sort of money and trying to help everyone will just leave you unsatisfied.

This place in Hamilton looks good. It’s on the main road/highway though.

https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-hamilton-131093270

I just looked up Mohole Project, I don’t think it needs more money, it needs clarity.

Develop an automated space mining rig, self assembling spacecraft that can get to the asteroid belt, select and mine asteroids then return with resources.

I think this thread needs to be renamed: “Umpteen things you would do with unlimited funds.”

Bubblecar said:

I think this thread needs to be renamed: “Umpteen things you would do with unlimited funds.”

I think I lived within my means.

Bubblecar said:

I think this thread needs to be renamed: “Umpteen things you would do with unlimited funds.”

OK. I would buy a large area of salt-affected farmland and start experimenting with growing algae. Once I’ve got it sussed, then it starts making me money.

Bubblecar said:

I think this thread needs to be renamed: “Umpteen things you would do with unlimited funds.”

I’d invest enough money in research to successfully find a cure for death, then create a new universe and give each person their own gorgeous planet, with instantaneous travel between them.

A more serious answer from me – I’ve got a fair few projects and a lot of them to develop would be in the 6 – 7 digit range. I’d love to get the workshop, machinery, and team to build some of them. They’d be a heap of fun to do. Some of them would transition into real companies and employ people so that’s also a good thing.
I’d also get a few properties around the world to stay in as we please.

Publish a poetry book
Create a ceramic art studio
Create a company that researches perceptual awareness, storage and AI processing, emotions, information retrieval and decision and action systems for robots.

I think I’d like my own rail wagon too. Sort of like a Pullman car but a bit more modern.

Arts said:

give it all back, no one person needs that sort of money and trying to help everyone will just leave you unsatisfied.

I wonder how many Australians have total assets worth $150 million or more.

Must be quite a few of them.

spend, spend, spend.

Tau.Neutrino said:

Publish a poetry book

You don’t need a huge amount of money to do that. $8 at Officeworks will get you a nice little booklet. For something fancier, create your own book cover at canva.com using free images from Unsplash, then print using Smashwords or Draft2Digital, or Ingram Spark for a physical copy.

Divine Angel said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Publish a poetry book

You don’t need a huge amount of money to do that. $8 at Officeworks will get you a nice little booklet. For something fancier, create your own book cover at canva.com using free images from Unsplash, then print using Smashwords or Draft2Digital, or Ingram Spark for a physical copy.

ain’t no one got time fo dat!

Divine Angel said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Publish a poetry book

You don’t need a huge amount of money to do that. $8 at Officeworks will get you a nice little booklet. For something fancier, create your own book cover at canva.com using free images from Unsplash, then print using Smashwords or Draft2Digital, or Ingram Spark for a physical copy.

You may not need the money, but you do need the time. Having $150m can help with that.

Create a company to research ways to educate and reduce domestic violence in future generations of people using teaching methods for emotional control of anger, jealousy rejection to ages K1 to 12. teaching appropriate emotions to relevant age groups.

Create a company that can research ways to teach music and programming to very young people.

Create a university funded lab that can reserach ways to reduce consumption of energy over a suburb sized area.

Willie Nelson If You Got The Money I’ve Got The Time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVphs8eP6c4

I’d buy a federal election

dv said:

I’d buy a federal election

How much are they these days?

dv said:

I’d buy a federal election

I’d buy myself a piece of land as a new Federal Territory, so I could make my own laws.

dv said:

I’d buy a federal election

That’s a magnanimous gesture sir.

dv said:

I’d buy a federal election

US or Aus?

Bubblecar said:

dv said:

I’d buy a federal election

How much are they these days?

Palmer outlaid about 60 mill but he’ll be getting some of that back…

Divine Angel said:

dv said:

I’d buy a federal election

US or Aus?

$150 m won’t even touch the sides of the US federal election. The NRA spends about 400 million every year.

dv said:

Divine Angel said:

dv said:

I’d buy a federal election

US or Aus?

$150 m won’t even touch the sides of the US federal election. The NRA spends about 400 million every year.

How much did Russia spend?

Divine Angel said:

dv said:

Divine Angel said:

US or Aus?

$150 m won’t even touch the sides of the US federal election. The NRA spends about 400 million every year.

How much did Russia spend?

tree fiddy roubles.

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a company to research ways to educate and reduce domestic violence in future generations of people using teaching methods for emotional control of anger, jealousy rejection to ages K1 to 12. teaching appropriate emotions to relevant age groups.

Create a company that can research ways to teach music and programming to very young people.

Create a university funded lab that can reserach ways to reduce consumption of energy over a suburb sized area.

Check out the program called ‘love bites’ aimed at school kids to recognise what an abusive relationship looks like

Forte school of music that has been running since the 1980s in qld and has franchises across the nation has music programs that start at preschool level (I used to teach them!)

Pretty sure there are uni courses that would have sustainability in them.

Like, I don’t want to crush your ideas but, dude, these are big issues that don’t have one solution that will change the world, the solutions are multi tiered and multi factored. Like sure, rolling these programs out across the board will help and funding will certainly help that but 150 mil is probably not going to cover much. Or many generations.

This is actually a question about morality.

A topic that isn’t taught these days.

What usage of $150 million would result in the greatest happiness of the greatest number (people and animals, weighted by biomass) over the longest period of time?

Buy a large block of rolling countryside by the ocean….build house on cliff…..set up rescue homes for people and animals. Sit back and be happy.

party_pants said:

mollwollfumble said:

mollwollfumble said:

CSIRO used to have an acronym “BHAG” meaning big hairy audacious goal.

$150 million is big enough to spend on a BHAG.

The key is “think big”, “then think bigger”, “then think bigger still”.

I’ll give it some thought.

Initial “think big” thoughts.

• Solve the Murray-Darling water supply problem
• No flooding of any Australian towns ever again
• Manganese economy with dredging of seabed nodules off tasmania
• “Blind spot” space telescope
• Australia synchrotron 2,000 km in diameter.
• Develop supersonic passenger aircraft
• Complete the Mohole project
• Origin of life redo the Miller-Urey experiment in a 100,000 cubic metre tank

But that’s not hinking big enough yet.

My think big (needs $150 billions rather than millions:

• Large scale growing of algae as a source of biomass fuel. Using salt water species.
• Salty water for the growing of same to be extracted and pumped from agricultural areas suffering from salinity due to high water tables.
• A minerals processing industry using energy derived from the algae-derived renewable energy. With particular emphasis on rare earths, titanium, aluminium, with some iron production using syngas (waste product from algae) as a reducing agent.
• Development of high tech manufacturing using titanium and exotic metals for aerospace, electronics and related industries.

*development of an international HVDC grid connecting Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, PNG, Solomon Islands and others, supplied with electricty from algae.

Nice!

I particularly like your use of salt water algae. I did research for CSIRO on fresh water algae as a source of biomass fuel. The water loss due to evaporation was horrendous.

Also, I particularly like your development of an international HVDC grid. One factor leading to the demise of the Cooper Basin hot rock project was the cost of connecting it to the existing HVDC grid. South Australia needs a better connection by HVDC to Victoria etc.

Thinking big, another one.

• Eliminate a disease, eg. malaria, rabies, dengue fever.

Create a human behaviour research institute that studies individual and groups behaviours.

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a human behaviour research institute that studies individual and groups behaviours.

Create a robotics and AI behaviour institute as well.

Tau.Neutrino said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a human behaviour research institute that studies individual and groups behaviours.

Create a robotics and AI behaviour institute as well.

Create a political science institute that studies global politics.

Tau.Neutrino said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a human behaviour research institute that studies individual and groups behaviours.

Create a robotics and AI behaviour institute as well.

Create a political science institute that studies global politics.

What are all your new institutes going to do that the existing ones don’t do?

Tau.Neutrino said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a human behaviour research institute that studies individual and groups behaviours.

Create a robotics and AI behaviour institute as well.

Create a political science institute that studies global politics.

Fund more research into CMML so I & other sufferers can have our lives back.
First though I’d pay off my daughter’s mortgage.

The Rev Dodgson said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a robotics and AI behaviour institute as well.

Create a political science institute that studies global politics.

What are all your new institutes going to do that the existing ones don’t do?

Create new ideas and study new ways to look at things.

Tau.Neutrino said:

The Rev Dodgson said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a political science institute that studies global politics.

What are all your new institutes going to do that the existing ones don’t do?

Create new ideas and study new ways to look at things.

The opposite of the The Ramsay Centre which wants to cling onto the past.

Tau.Neutrino said:

The Rev Dodgson said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a political science institute that studies global politics.

What are all your new institutes going to do that the existing ones don’t do?

Create new ideas and study new ways to look at things.

Yeah, but they all say that.

Dropbear said:

What’s my line?

sarahs mum said:

Dropbear said:

What’s my line?

C17H21NO4

sarahs mum said:

Dropbear said:

What’s my line?

Looks like the Maginot Line. You come to the end it & you are stuffed.

sarahs mum said:

Dropbear said:

What’s my line?

Who’s line is it anyway?

One could buy a lot of C 21 H 30 O 2

Create a drone company that makes a one / two person emergency rescue drone.

Like the one person drone that was used for fishing. This type of drone could help in emergency situations where cliff operations are needed.

The drone lowers a medic, medic then attaches patient to drone, drone then come back for the medic or another drone could be used to cut down time.

Create water harvesting farms that can harvest water from the atmosphere in various different locations.

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create water harvesting farms that can harvest water from the atmosphere in various different locations.

How about harvesting salty ground water from place affected by salinity and using solar energy to obtain fresh water through boiling and condensation?

Create a robot company that makes sex robots, valets in hotels, waiters, door openers etc

Create a company that makes variable single, 2 seater, 4, 6, 8 10+ seater spaceships that can get people or robots into space and lands again, like the shuttle.

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a robot company that makes sex robots, valets in hotels, waiters, door openers etc

That say “pleased to be of service” every time they are of service?

The Rev Dodgson said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a robot company that makes sex robots, valets in hotels, waiters, door openers etc

That say “pleased to be of service” every time they are of service?

They could. I would also give them funny little greeting and farewell beeps like R2D2 .

Establish a world standard for robot communications and robot languages

Common noises that robots can make that people can identify with.

I think I’ve run out of money.

Tau.Neutrino said:

The Rev Dodgson said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a robot company that makes sex robots, valets in hotels, waiters, door openers etc

That say “pleased to be of service” every time they are of service?

They could. I would also give them funny little greeting and farewell beeps like R2D2 .

How many people will lose jobs and how many times will they have to report and how many times will they be knocked off?

The Rev Dodgson said:

Tau.Neutrino said:

Create a robot company that makes sex robots, valets in hotels, waiters, door openers etc

That say “pleased to be of service” every time they are of service?

The idea being “greatest happiness of the greatest number”?

1. I would buy a solid gold tuxedo from the Nonsense store.
2. Half-fill a basement with gold coins and dive into it like a swimming pool
3. Buy a solid gold toilet.

KJW said:

1. I would buy a solid gold tuxedo from the Nonsense store.
2. Half-fill a basement with gold coins and dive into it like a swimming pool
3. Buy a solid gold toilet.

Do you watch 30 Rock? Tracy Jordan buys solid gold sneakers and has trouble walking in them, his two man posse goes to help him and he waves them away saying he is too proud to accept assistance.

AwesomeO said:

KJW said:

1. I would buy a solid gold tuxedo from the Nonsense store.
2. Half-fill a basement with gold coins and dive into it like a swimming pool
3. Buy a solid gold toilet.

Do you watch 30 Rock? Tracy Jordan buys solid gold sneakers and has trouble walking in them, his two man posse goes to help him and he waves them away saying he is too proud to accept assistance.

Yes, I saw that episode. :-)

Actually, when Peter Griffin bought his tuxedo from the nonsense store, he had to fight off three rappers for it. ;-)

Buy some cleared farmland ( because it’s already got fences), start planting trees and turn it into a nature and wildlife reserve.

Develop my own passenger drone.

Support cancer research.

Plus the usual properties near the sea, preferably with personal golf course.

KJW said:

AwesomeO said:

KJW said:

1. I would buy a solid gold tuxedo from the Nonsense store.
2. Half-fill a basement with gold coins and dive into it like a swimming pool
3. Buy a solid gold toilet.

Do you watch 30 Rock? Tracy Jordan buys solid gold sneakers and has trouble walking in them, his two man posse goes to help him and he waves them away saying he is too proud to accept assistance.

Yes, I saw that episode. :-)

Actually, when Peter Griffin bought his tuxedo from the nonsense store, he had to fight off three rappers for it. ;-)

I think the rage now is just to steal a solid gold toilet.

Arts said:

KJW said:

AwesomeO said:

Do you watch 30 Rock? Tracy Jordan buys solid gold sneakers and has trouble walking in them, his two man posse goes to help him and he waves them away saying he is too proud to accept assistance.

Yes, I saw that episode. :-)

Actually, when Peter Griffin bought his tuxedo from the nonsense store, he had to fight off three rappers for it. ;-)

I think the rage now is just to steal a solid gold toilet.

Yeah, they were who I was thinking of buying the toilet from. I’d probably get it for a discount.

Arts said:

KJW said:

AwesomeO said:

Do you watch 30 Rock? Tracy Jordan buys solid gold sneakers and has trouble walking in them, his two man posse goes to help him and he waves them away saying he is too proud to accept assistance.

Yes, I saw that episode. :-)

Actually, when Peter Griffin bought his tuxedo from the nonsense store, he had to fight off three rappers for it. ;-)

I think the rage now is just to steal a solid gold toilet.

Aye, happened recently.
I’d give most of it away after looking after family.
Probably crowd fund people who’s jet ski has broken down and they cant afford to fix it or liberate a Nigerian princess.
That sort of thing.

Peak Warming Man said:

Arts said:

KJW said:

Yes, I saw that episode. :-)

Actually, when Peter Griffin bought his tuxedo from the nonsense store, he had to fight off three rappers for it. ;-)

I think the rage now is just to steal a solid gold toilet.

Aye, happened recently.
I’d give most of it away after looking after family.
Probably crowd fund people who’s jet ski has broken down and they cant afford to fix it or liberate a Nigerian princess.
That sort of thing.

Just give it all to Bill Gates.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-09-18/how-$150m-powerball-lotto-jackpot-can-change-your-life/11521802

I’ve changed my mind.

1. Elope with Mr Mutant
2. Get Adam Lambert to sing at the wedding.

ChrispenEvan said:

spend, spend, spend.

in triplicate.

1. Buy a movie-quality replica Apollo EVA suit.
2. Give money to some friends.
3. Throw a good party.

Seems the $150m has been shared between three winners; two in QLD and one in NSW.

Wasn’t me.

Speedy said:

Seems the $150m has been shared between three winners; two in QLD and one in NSW.

Wasn’t me.

That’s where not entering the lottery has its advantages. I already knew it wouldn’t be me :)