"shaping the number" is a correct and usable phrase in written English.
It can be used when talking about influencing the quantity or size of something, or when discussing the process of determining a specific number. Example: The manager played a crucial role in shaping the number of employees hired for the project.
It could be that the mutation rates differ across cell lineages; it could be that selection pressures shape the number of mutations; or the number of mtDNA genome generations could differ across cell lineages.
Democracy is first to shape the question, number two to reply, and number three to adapt to the reply with some laws and decrees and so on.
They created a maze shaped like the number three to simulate a path out of the forest.
The players placed a wreath shaped in the number six of Jones's jersey on the centre-circle and lined up around it for a minute's silence.
This morning, millions of women have got up and put on a bra – push-up, plunge, balconette, in myriad colours and shapes (the number of sports bras in London is increasing daily).
In spite of the uniform pore size and shape, the number of active pores only gradually increased upon increasing transmembrane pressure.
This calls for a large-scale investigation, using a more efficient experimental design based on the various observations made throughout this study regarding the choice of the graphic shapes, the number of repetitions and the features to analyze.
In the present study 98% of all convictions were negotiated through plea bargaining, and not established by trial; accordingly, one can reasonably suspect feedback loops that shape the number and type of charges for which a defendant is convicted.
For a proper window shape, the number of removed points should not be large.
For objects with discriminative properties like the cube or yellow ball (color), the toy robot (shape) or the scissors (shape) the number of saved operations is much higher.
