Numbers

By Melissa August, Harriet Barovick, Autumn DeLeon, Tam Gray, Lina Lofaro, James Poniewozik and Michele Orecklin

118% Expected increase, 1996-2006, in demand for database administrators, computer-support specialists and computer scientists

4% Percentage of 1999 ACT-tested graduates planning to go into computer and information science

3 Rank, among Amazon.com book purchases from the U.S. House of Representatives, of Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding

13 Percentage of female Representatives in the House

$500,000 Winnings of Michael Shutterly on Wednesday night's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (ABC)

3[cents] Approximate cost, per Wednesday-night Millionaire viewer, of Shutterly's prize

12 Weight, in pounds, of the September issues of Vogue, Elle, Harper's Bazaar and InStyle magazines, combined

40 Weight, in pounds, of the U.S. budget for fiscal year 2000

Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics, ACT, Amazon.com Congressional Quarterly, ABC, Nielsen Media Research, New York Times