“…In a randomly distributed unbiased dataset of stock prices, for example, "1" is the first digit almost 30.1 percent of the time, whereas "9" occurs only 5 percent of the time (Corazza, Ellero, & Zorzi, 2010;Ley, 1996). This statistical phenomenon has been found in all unbiased datasets; studies have confirmed its existence on the basis of data from disparate fields (Abrantes-Metz, Kraten, Metz, & Seow, 2012;Benford, 1938;Leemann & Bochsler, 2014;Mir, 2012;Nigrini, 1996;Nigrini & Mittermaier, 1997). Although there is no universal mathematical explanation for this phenomenon, which is no different from the "bell curve" of normal distribution, its empirical validity is too striking to ignore (Patel & Read, 1982;Raimi, 1976).…”