Internet

Internet questions cover a system that is mostly invisible from the inside. The figures here describe traffic, infrastructure and behaviour that no user ever sees directly, which is why almost every answer in this category surprises people who use the thing being measured every day.

The reliable method is users times a rate. Take the number of people online — around two thirds of humanity — apply a plausible per-person frequency, and the global total follows. Converting that total into a per-second rate is the fastest way to check whether an answer is absurd or merely large.

The theme running through this category is the gap between registered and active. Domains, websites, podcasts, stores and accounts all exist in vastly larger numbers than the subset anyone maintains, because creating one is free and keeping one is not. The interesting figure is almost always the active fraction.