How many Fermi questions…?

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In spite of being a strong ESTJ, one of the most fascinating concepts that I have had the good fortune of coming across is the ‘Fermi question’.

Then again, upon some reflection, perhaps it is because I am a strong ESTJ that they intrigue me so much. It has always been an inherent compulsion in my mind to arrive at the greatest possible level of certainty in response to even the most vague of queries.

For your amusement, I present some of the most famous of these to you.

I am quite sure that you’ve come across at least one of them before.

I encourage you all to work towards a sensible answer to at least one of these. Even the easiest (seemingly) one of these can be quite a mental workout.

I am almost certain that some of you have actually experienced at least one of these before. I did just this morning.

  1. How many jellybeans can fit into a school bus?
  2. How many golf balls can fit into the Empire State building?
  3. How many people in the U.S.A. unknowingly go to a USPS office to post letters/packages on President’s Day?
  4. How many people shout ‘Taxi’ in New York, NY in any given year?
  5. How many people take a U-turn in Los Angeles, CA on a ‘No U-turn’ signal in any given year?
  6. How many footsteps are taken in concourse D of Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport in any given year?
  7. How many people in the U.S.A. own both an iPhone and an Android phone?
  8. How many right-clicks of a mouse does the typical computer user make in any given year?
  9. How many babies do not say ‘mama’ as their first word in any given year?
  10. How many times does a polar bear fail to catch a penguin in any given year?