The document discusses Chris Jordan's art project "Running the Numbers" which uses large prints made up of thousands of smaller photos to represent vast statistics about American society. Some of the statistics depicted include 28,000 oil barrels representing the amount of oil consumed in the US every two minutes, 100 million toothpicks representing the number of trees cut down for junk mail yearly, and 2.3 million folded prison uniforms representing the number of Americans incarcerated in 2005. Jordan aims to examine measures of society through intricate artwork and raise questions about individual roles in an increasingly large and overwhelming society.

1. Oil Barrels, 2008 Depicts 28,000 42-gallon barrels, the amount of of oil consumed in the United States every two minutes (equal to the flow of a medium-sized river).

5. Toothpicks , 2008 Depicts one hundred million toothpicks, equal to the number of trees cut in the U.S. yearly to make the paper for junk mail.

7. Plastic Cups , 2008 Depicts one million plastic cups, the number used on airline flights in the US every six hours .

11. Plastic Bottles , 2007 Depicts two million plastic beverage bottles, the number used in the US every five minutes .

15. Skull With Cigarette, 2007 [based on a painting by Van Gogh] Depicts 200,000 packs of cigarettes , equal to the number of Americans who die from cigarette smoking every six months .

20. Prison Uniforms, 2007 Depicts 2.3 million folded prison uniforms , equal to the number of Americans incarcerated in 2005 . The U.S. has the largest prison population of any country in the world.

24. Cell Phones , 2007 Depicts 426,000 cell phones, equal to the number of cell phones retired in the US every day.

28. Cans Seurat, 2007 Depicts 106,000 aluminum cans , the number used in the US every thirty seconds .

32. Handguns, 2007 Depicts 29,569 handguns, equal to the number of gun-related deaths in the US in 2004 .

36. Plastic Bags , 2007 Depicts 60,000 plastic bags, the number used in the US every five seconds .

40. Ben Franklin, 2007 Depicts 125,000 one-hundred dollar bills ($12.5 million), the amount our government spends every hour on the war in Iraq.

44. Running the Numbers An American Self-Portrait This project visually examines these vast and bizarre measures of our society, in large intricately detailed prints assembled from thousands of smaller photographs. Employing themes such as the near versus the far, and the one versus the many, I hope to raise some questions about the roles and responsibililties of the individual in a society that is increasingly enormous, incomprehensible, and overwhelming. ~chris jordan, Seattle, 2008 http://www.chrisjordan.com