How to count associated objects?

What are instances where you have to count a large number of similar objects?

• Are there any real-life situations where you need to get a count of objects, such as the number of people in a crowd or the number of bacteria in a lab sample. Something along those lines, but more frequently encountered.

• Answer:

  If you work in any kind of industry or service where inventory of products or components is needed. This could be in grocery stores or department stores. It could be in factories counting finished goods or counting the components that are used to make finished goods. If your job is in a lab, then counting bacteria could happen. If your job is at a stadium or some kind of club, then possibly counting people could happen. Theatre attendants sometimes count the people in the theatre room to be sure it matches the tickets sold for that feature. The company I work at does weekly inventory checks to see that what is "on the shelf" matches what is actually listed in the computer. The list is different each week to make sure that all things are checked on a regular basis.