[wwwater]

"If I have told you these details about the asteroid, and made a note of its number for you, it is on account of the grown-ups and their ways. When you tell them that you have made a new friend, they never ask you any questions about essential matters. They never say to you, "What does his voice sound like? What games does he love best? Does he collect butterflies?" Instead, they demand: "How old is he? How many brothers has he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make?" Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him."

from The Little Prince

Your mention about questions that could be answered with numbers just reminded me on this passage from the book. : ) Apparently Saint-Exupéry made the same observation, that people find it easier to answer to number questions.