What is the group number or name for elements between group 3 and 4 (F-block) on the periodic table?

Question

What is the group number or name for elements between group 3 and 4 (F-block) on the periodic table? I noticed when I look at a periodic table of elements, the elements of the F-block between group 3 and 4 doesn’t have a group number. Are they just refer as Lan­thanide,and Actinide or Inner Transition Elements, But why doesn't they have a group number, it least it appear that way.

Link to a wide version of Periodic table of Elements so you can see what I am talking about. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Periodic_table_%28wide_large%29

Answer 1

I suppose IUPAC hasn't bothered with group numbers for the lanthanides/actinides quite yet because there would only be two elements for each group, and because there are few vertical similarities among the f-block elements. The entire row of lanthanides behaves very similarly due to the 4f orbitals being anomalously compact and not being available for bonding or ionization. The first half of the actinides is quite different to the lanthanides, as the 5f orbitals there can actually participate in chemical interactions, though the second half becomes more similar as the 5f orbitals are once again strongly trapped to the atom, this time by the very high effective nuclear charge.