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Significant Digits for Wednesday, August 31, 2016

You’re reading Significant Digits, a daily digest of the telling numbers tucked inside the news. It’s Guest Week here at this column, which means a cavalcade of FiveThirtyEight writers has agreed to keep you numerate. Today’s guest writer: @jodyavirgan.


0 percent

A new PPP survey has found a 0 percent favorable rating for Donald Trump among African-American voters. [The Hill]


$7.79

About eight bucks will buy you the new “Dakburger,” at Snuffer’s, a Dallas-area restaurant chain. The burger is named after Dak Prescott, the Dallas Cowboys’ rookie quarterback who fans are desperately deluding themselves into thinking is their savior by doing things like naming a burger after him. [Dallas News]


111 prisoners

President Obama shortened the prison sentences of 111 inmates Tuesday, most of them nonviolent drug offenders who would receive much lighter sentences were they convicted today. Obama has now granted 673 commutations, more than the past 10 presidents combined. [NPR]


444 runs

Here’s how the BBC puts it: “Alex Hales struck a record 171 and Jos Buttler made England’s fastest ever 50 from 22 balls as England hit 444-3.” And here’s my translation: 444 is the highest ever score in a one-day cricket match. And I guess Alex Hales is really, really good. [BBC]


$2 billion

How much is it worth to have the U.S. government as a customer? For the private prison industry, at least $2 billion. After the Department of Justice announced it would no longer use private prison companies for federal inmates, and after the Department of Homeland Security said it was also looking into ending its use of private detention centers, two private prison companies lost over $2 billion in value. [Quartz]


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Jody Avirgan hosts and produces podcasts for FiveThirtyEight.

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