Data Bits & Bites - Jay Bartroff, SDS Associate Chair
Nov
11
2026
Nov
11
2026
Description
Topic Title: Why Not All Digits Are Created Equal: Benford's Law
Abstract: You might think that the digits 1 through 9 are equally likely to appear at the beginning of a number. Surprisingly, in many collections of real-world data, 1 appears much more often than 9. This curious phenomenon, known as Benford's Law, shows up in everything from city populations to the Fibonacci numbers, and has applications ranging from financial fraud detection to lottery strategies. We'll explore this strange law through some surprising examples, games, and audience participation. No math background required -- and Ben Affleck may even make an appearance.
Audience
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