Questions and Answers: Volume 47

About this episode

In 1964, two students at Pomona College in California, Laurie Mets and Bruce Elgin, jokingly attempted to prove that the number 47 appeared in nature more frequently than chance would predict. They began collecting examples, and statistics professor Donald Bentley contributed a deliberately flawed mathematical proof that all numbers equal 47. The joke spread throughout campus and eventually developed into a broader fascination with finding the number 47 in everyday life, popular culture, and science fiction. Writer Joe Menosky, a Pomona College graduate, deliberately inserted references to 47 into scripts, and a group created the 47 Society. I don’t know where these people are today, but they would probably love the 47th installment of questions and answers on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. ⁠ Shop the store at ⁠⁠Shop.Everything-Everywhere.com⁠ Sponsors Hexclad Get 10% off your order at hexclad.com/DAILY Mint Mobile Save 50% on Unlimited premium wireless plans starting at $15/month at MintMobile.com/EED Quince Go to quince.com/daily for 365-day returns, plus free shipping on your order! DripDrop Go to dripdrop.com and use promo code E