Around the world, rank of the $100 bill on the list of the most popular "Made in America" products, according to research by Convergex: 1
As of the end of last year, estimated value of all $100 bills in circulation: $1 trillion
Number of countries on the planet that have a GDP of at least $1 trillion: 15
Percentage of the bills that are held outside the United States, according to the Federal Reserve: 65
Source: Convergex.
Whether out to dinner and sending a text, on vacation and searching the Web, or simply hanging at home and watching a show -- percentage of American adults who say unplugging for more than a few hours at a time is unrealistic, according to a Harris Poll: 37
Percentage who say it's difficult because their business never sleeps: 27
Percentage of Americans who indicate they make an attempt to unplug at some point during the year: 67
Percentage who say they try to unplug at least once a week: 45
Source: The Harris Poll.
Amount of money that can be saved by choosing an average used car instead of the average new car, according to research by Kelley Blue Book 2015: $13,500
After three years, percentage of the original price that your new car will be worth, according to Consumer Reports: 54
Because today's cars, trucks, SUVs and vans simply last longer, age (a record high) of the average car driving on American roads, according to IHS Automotive: 11.5 years By 2020, projected percentage rise in the number of 12-year-old vehicles still in operation: 15
Source: Kelley Blue Book.
Percentage of Americans who have looked for work in the last two years who utilized online resources, according to a survey by Pew Research Center: 79
Percentage who say these online resources were the most important tool available to them: 34
Percentage who made use of close personal connections: 66
Percentage who used professional contacts: 63
Source: Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends.
Total sales value of salty snacks in the United States during 2015, according to research from Packaged Facts: $22 billion
Rank of potato chip sales among all salty snacks: 1
Value of potato chip sales in 2015: $7.5 billion
Value of the second-ranked tortilla and tostada chips: $5.2 billion
Source: Packaged Facts.
Percentage of people who say they perform a random act of kindness daily, according to a survey by SKOUT: 65
Percentage who say they randomly do something kind for someone at least once per week: 83
Percentage of people who perform random acts of kindness who do so because it just makes them feel good: 56
Source: Skout.
Percentage of Americans who favor drafting women as well as men if the military draft was reinstated, according to a poll conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs: 63
Percentage who favored this notion in 2005: 42
Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.
Percentage of Americans who believe that intelligent aliens exist, according to a poll by YouGov: 54
Percentage of Americans who assert that there is no intelligent life outside of Earth: 25
When Americans who said smart aliens don't exist were asked to explain why, percentage who responded that it's because "humans were created by a God or another higher being": 66
Source: YouGov.
Rank of Wyoming as the best state for retirement, according to a report from Bankrate.com: 1
Ranks of South Dakota, Colorado, Utah and Virginia for retirement: 2, 3, 4, 5
Rank of New York as the worst state for retirement: 1
Ranks of West Virginia, Oregon, Arkansas and Louisiana as the worst states for retirement: 2, 3, 4, 5
Source: Bankrate.com.
In 2012, total election-related promotional product spending fueled by giveaways like bumper stickers, yard signs and candidate brochures, according to ASI estimates: $870 million.
Last fall, according to a campaign finance report, amount that candidate Donald Trump spent on branded merchandise, with his investment in promotional products outpacing his spending on any other single category in the quarter: $825,000
Source: Advertising Specialty Institute.
Idle Thought
"What a strange machine man is! You fill him with bread, wine, fish and radishes, and out comes sighs, laughter and dreams." -- Nikos Kazantzakis, poet and novelist
(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre@bwr.eastlink.ca.)
-u