numbers of numbers :)

results returned, anyone care to comment?

[pixel_juice]

1 - 1,230,000,000
2 - 801,000,000
3 - 742,000,000
4 - 618,000,000
5 - 568,000,00
6 - 455,000,000
7 - 404,000,000
8 - 369,000,000
9 - 349,000,000

Why would this seem to be so proportional?

[takagi]

Is this the new Gizmo Quiz?

[pixel_juice]

LOL, OK i'll explain if it isn't clear. Above is the number of results for each number returned by Google. Why would the number of pages decrease as the numbers go up?

[Pegasus]

A: Every numbered list starts with 1. Not every numbered list makes it to 9 though.

Thus, there are less of the high numbers.

[pendanticist]

I think that's pretty evident. There are fewer (larger) numbers the higher you go.

Google Search: 100000000000000 [google.com] yields 2,800.

Pendanticist.

[dazz]

Ah but 100000000000000000000 comes up with 888 results! ;)

[takagi]

Not completely true. You forgot 0.

0 - 572,000,000
1 - 1,230,000,000
2 - 801,000,000
3 - 742,000,000
...
.

But you are not the only one that starts with one. If you have a list of 5 points, you will most likely number them 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. That means that 6, 7, 8 and 9 won't appear on your page. Most software version start with 1.0 (okay, there are exceptions).

[pixel_juice]

>>software version

I think this is a big factor - 0.5 returns 13,300,000 results!

>>There are fewer (larger) numbers the higher you go

How about 10 (524,000,000 results)?

:)

[dunnthat]

Ten is higher because most people doing a list - i.e. Top 10 things I like" will go the extra 1 or 2 to make it to 10. Rarely do they stop at 8 or 9. And Top 10 is such a prominent word that it will show up in seaches for UN-Numbered lists. Just "Top 10 software titles" and they won't be numbered, just listed.

Dunnthat

[pixel_juice]

Thanks everyone for your responses.

Round 2:

0.1 - 12,800,000
0.2 - 9,720,000
0.3 - 7,840,000
0.4 - 7,690,000
0.5 - 13,300,000
0.6 - 6,580,000
0.7 - 6,030,000
0.8 - 6,580,000
0.9 - 8,680,000

If we assume that this is because of software versions, what does this tell us about the state of software development online? It either doesn't get off the ground or is only half done? :)

[Darkness]

1(113 zeros) = 1 result ;)

[edited by: Darkness at 3:47 pm (utc) on April 7, 2003]

[pendanticist]

Darkness. Could you please go back an take some of those zeroes out? It widens all of our browsers. Thanks.

Pendanticist.

[xcandyman]

1(113 zeros)

2 Results Next Month Thanks to WW ;)

[edited by: xcandyman at 3:49 pm (utc) on April 7, 2003]

[takagi]

Hi Darkness, after freshbot found this page, it will be 2.

<added>xcandyman, you beat me.</added>
<added-2>If Darkness changes it, it will stay at 1</added-2>

[Jocelyn]

What about "3.14" (rounded value of PI)? It currently gives me 960,000 results, almost as much as the number of results for "1".

[mydumpstinks]

Darkness, how sad is that, you went thru adding 5 0`s at a time till you got down to 1 result, :) well thats what i did but chickened out of posting it :)

Lee

[takagi]

1 - 1,230,000,000
3.14 - 960,000 results

almost same?

[novice]

1 = 1,230,000,000

It's hard to believe that 34% of all the pages indexed by Google some how equate to the number 1.

[RichD]

Going back to the first post, these sorts of numbers are typical of Benfold's Law.

Benford's law states that in listings, tables of statistics, etc., the digit 1 tends to occur as the first digit with probability ~30%, much greater than the expected 11.1% (i.e., one digit out of 9).

While that isn't truely what Google is showing, the results do still fit the formular quite well.

[takagi]

It's hard to believe that 34% of all the pages indexed by Google some how equate to the number 1.

It is hard to believe because it isn't true.

Search for +the [google.com] gives 3,450,000,000 web pages; 112%

[HenryUK]

OK, if you are checking out pi, what about those other natural numbers?

e = 526,000,000 results

i = 832,000,000 results

NB i is the square root of -1 and e is, er, something to do with natural logarithms...

Who would have thought that there were so many math(s) enthusiasts?

;-)

[threecrans]

It looks like one exception is "69" where the number drops substantially lower than picks back up to "normal" for "70". Evidence the spam (pornography) killing is eliminating valid results? Completely useless info, but interesting :)

[pixel_juice]

>>Completely useless info, but interesting :)

I have to admit that this type of thing was the real object of my post. There is much to be learned about Google by paying attention to useless info ;)

>>Benfold's Law

I was also hoping a mathematician would offer me an explanation :)

[Jesse_Smith]

1000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Contains one link, er two after the deepcrawl sees this. Any larger number gives you a message that it's too long!

Now it's changed, there for the dance is about to start!

0= 572,000,000
1= 998,000,000
2= 961,000,000
3= 741,000,000
4= 618,000,000
5= 565,000,000
6= 421,000,000
7= 402,000,000
8= 329,000,000
9= 348,000,000
10= 524,000,000

[Chris_R]

It looks like one exception is "69" where the number drops substantially lower than picks back up to "normal" for "70". Evidence the spam (pornography) killing is eliminating valid results? Completely useless info, but interesting :)

I can almost guarantee you that those searching for 69 want the "spam" and not pages from some professor that mentions how frogs do better at 69 degress or something.

Powers of two

2 951000000
4 608000000
8 392000000
16 260000000
32 96000000
64 43000000
128 17500000
256 10900000
512 8060000
1024 5140000

About half of the follow the "golden rule" / fibonnaci whatever of the number before it - but that is probably just a coincidence...

[Ankheg]

Since we already did pi, I got curious...

411 : 5,020,000
911 : 4,130,000
999 : 6,660,000

So, even despite terrorism, the UK's emergency number tops the U.S. one. :)

180: 17,800,000
357 : 4,590,000
360 : 11,200,000

[doc_z]

speed of light in m/s:

299792458: 2,960

[pixel_juice]

Current number of pages in the Google index:

3083324652 - 301

the number of pages in the index that have the number of pages in the index...