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Nielsen's New College Numbers

Nielsen is expanding its TV ratings to include college students living in dorms, a group that had previously been excluded from the research firm's numbers. The students are already having a huge impact on ratings for some shows, but national stats are being based on a survey of just 130 viewers. Plus, join a discussion.

Farm Group Sows Questionable Stat

A trade group for farmers is promoting a holiday aimed at "celebrating the continued affordability of food." But the group uses some murky math to crunch the numbers on how much Americans spend on food. Plus, join a discussion.

Coming Soon: 'The Number 24'

"The Number 23," a new thriller starring Jim Carrey, shows how just about any number can appear to have eerie properties if you look hard enough. Such as the number 24. Plus, join a discussion.

Too Many Studies Use College Students

It's cheap for social scientists to tap into the on-campus research pool for studies. But psychologists who rely on studies of college students may be getting what they pay for, writes Carl Bialik. (Discuss)

Policy Makers Use Numbers to Turn Heads

Human beings have a hard time understanding big numbers, so when advocates and politicians want to get a rise from us over figures such as the cost of the Iraq war, the challenge is to provide shock and awe. (Discuss)

Fact-Checking Political Debate

Web sites that evaluate the statistical claims made by presidential candidates demonstrate how common it is for politicians to massage statistics or cherry-pick numbers in order to make a point.

How a Kids' Flick Can Beat Out de Sica

Internet users are asked to rate beer, restaurants, board games and movies, typically on a scale of one to five. Compiling all of that information into a single ranking is a provocative numbers question.

'16 Holes-in-One;' Few Eyewitnesses

California golfer Jacqueline Gagne claims to have hit 10 holes-in-one since January, but new skepticism has emerged about her purported feat.

Sales of Pirated Goods Lead to Fuzzy Figures

Manufacturers and trade groups estimate that counterfeit and pirated goods cost them hundreds of billions of dollars a year. But their figures tell more about how difficult it is to assign a value to lost sales than about the actual size of the problem.

Longer Daylight Time Motivated by Stale Stats

Americans observed four extra weeks of daylight-saving time this year, a move designed to save energy. But the extension was based on some questionable and out-of-date numbers, writes Carl Bialik.