Percentage of surveyed school superintendents who believe that arts training is crucial to developing creativity, according to key findings from a report by the Conference Board and Americans for the Arts, in partnership with the American Association of School Administrators: 99

Percentage of surveyed employers who agree: 97

Rank of problem identification and articulation that employers identify as the most important talents indicating creativity: 1

Source: Conference Board.

Given free choice, percentage of Americans -- both men and women -- who say they would prefer to have a job outside the home, according to Gallup's annual Work and Education survey: 58

Percentage of women who say they would rather hold a job outside the home: 50

Percentage of men who say the same: 68

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of U.S. financial advisers who say their clients are still planning a timely retirement, despite current financial woes, according to a survey conducted by Brinker Capital: 46

Of those U.S. financial advisers who say their clients are off track, percentage who attribute this to their clients' starting saving too late: 63

Percentage of U.S. financial advisers who say their clients plan to work past age 65: 54

Source: Brinker Capital.

Percentage of the U.S. managerial work force that is comprised of women, according to a survey by the Simmons School of Management: 51

Estimated percentage of board membership of large, publicly traded U.S. corporations that are women: 15

Ranks of social network building (88 percent), self-promotion (61 percent) and career progression (56 percent) as the actions identified by women that they could take to increase their chances for board membership: 1, 2, 3

Source: Simmons School of Management.

Number of lifetime victories achieved by Cy Young, still baseball's winningest pitcher, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 511

Percentage of games he won in his 22 seasons: 62

When Cy Young retired, number of people who went to major league baseball games: 6.5 million

Estimated number who go today: 78 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of affluent U.S. households (households with $500,000 or more in investable assets) that are likely to change their budget and spending habits due to the current economic climate, according to data from Spectrem Group: 42

Percentage who fear they'll lose their jobs: 6

Source: Spectrem Group.

Ranks of the Bible, "Gone With the Wind," the "Lord of the Rings" series, the "Harry Potter" series and "The Stand" as Americans' favorite books, according to the results of a nationwide Harris Poll: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Harris Interactive.

Percentage of small business owners/managers who say they still look for help with their taxes, according to a survey conducted by American Express Small Business Monitor: 79

Percentage who say they do their taxes themselves: 17

Percentage who do them by hand with a pen and paper: 6

Source: OPEN: The Small Business Network -- American Express.

Percentage of the world's heroin and other opiates that originate in Afghanistan, according to the magazine Newsweek: 93

Estimated number of Afghan families who support themselves by raising poppies, according to the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime: 500,000

Estimated total amount those growers received for their crops in 2007: $1 billion (about $2,000 per household)

Source: Newsweek.

Percentage of U.S. consumers who say they are more likely to do business with a company that offers the flexibility to interact using self-service -- whether via the Internet, on a mobile device or at a kiosk or ATM, according to a survey by NCR and BuzzBack Market Research: 86

Percentage of respondents who say their likelihood to use self-service has increased over the past year: 56

Source: NCR Corp.

Idle Thought

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has." -- Margaret Mead

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

Percentage of prospective graduates who expect to "boomerang" and spend at least some time living with their parents, according to a survey conducted by MonsterTrak: 48

Percentage of 2007 graduates who are still living with their parents: 43

Of this group, percentage who say it is due to limited financial resources: 75

Source: MonsterTRAK.

Percentage of travelers who said money is the biggest barrier when it comes to taking family vacations, according to TripAdvisor's Family Travel Survey: 51

Percentage of respondents who take trips with their children who said the hardest part of taking a family vacation is staying on budget: 30

Source: TripAdvisor.

Percentage of job-seeking executives who said they would be comfortable setting their sights on new employment opportunities even while on their current employers' payrolls, according to a survey by Accountemps: 75

Source: Robert Half International.

Percentage of Americans who classify themselves as "early birds," according to a survey conducted by Braun Research for Panera Bread: 46

Percentage who say they are "night owls": 24

Source: Panera Bread.

Year the comic strip "Mutt and Jeff" first appeared in the nations' newspapers, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1908

Estimated number of daily newspapers that were printed at that time: 2,600

Estimated number printed today: 1,450

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of homeowners who have received reverse mortgage loans who said they needed the funds because their budget was too tight, according to a survey conducted by Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta: 19

Percentage who said they needed more liquid assets on hand: 16

Percentage who said the money was needed for repairs and maintenance: 15

Percentage who needed to care for dependents and/or pay medical bills: 8

Source: Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta Inc.

Percentage level of employee engagement -- measured as overall satisfaction with their jobs, pride in working for their employers, whether they would recommend their organizations as a place to work and their willingness to put forth extra effort -- by traditionalists, those employees 63 and older, according to research by Sirota Survey Intelligence: 84

Percentage employee engagement level of baby boomers (ages 43 to 62): 77

Percentage employee engagement level of Generation X (ages 28 to 42): 78

Percentage employee engagement level of Generation Y (ages 27 and younger): 80

Source: Buchanan Public Relations.

Percentage of C-level U.S. executives (CEO, CFO, CIO, owner/partner) who say they want to take their business completely virtual in the next five years, according to a survey conducted by TIE Commerce and The Mishra Group: 53.4

Percentage of U.S. executives who say they are familiar with the advantages of e-commerce: 80.8

Percentage of U.S. executives who say that they would take their company virtual right now if their business could afford the cost: 30.1

Source: TIE Commerce.

Percentage of Americans who say that fashion shows are "over the top" and that they wouldn't wear any of what they see on the catwalk, according to a survey conducted by BIGresearch: 86

Source: BIGresearch.

Percentage of Americans who say that they would rank spending to raise energy efficiency and develop alternative fuel technology as a top priority for future investment, according to a survey conducted by the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority in Virginia: 37

Percentage of Americans who say that they would rank spending for medical breakthroughs as most important: 30

Percentage who rank spending on the environment as the most important: 14

Source: Fairfax County Economic Development Authority.

Idle Thought

"To want to be what one can be is purpose in life." -- Cynthia Ozick

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600

Percentage of hiring managers who agree with the statement, "Today's youth do not have the same work ethic as previous generations have had," according to a survey conducted for SnagAJob.com: 56

Source: SnagAJob.com.

Ranks of birthdays, someone else's birthday, Social Security numbers and wedding anniversaries among the numbers most important to Americans, according to a survey conducted by ING: 1, 2, 3 (tie)

Percentage who said their birthday or someone else's birthday is the most important number to them, respectively: 26, 22

Percentage who said their Social Security number or wedding anniversary is the most important to them, respectively: 16, 16

Percentage who said a phone number: 12

Source: ING U.S. Financial Services.

Percentage of Americans who say they know someone who has an unfaithful spouse, according to the March 14-16 USA Today/Gallup Poll: 54

Percentage who say they would publicly stand by their spouse at the podium if that spouse were an elected official who had to face the media to answer questions about an affair: 36

Percentage of Americans who would tell their elected-official spouse to face the media alone: 61

Source: Gallup Organization.

Percentage of U.S. employees who say they have taken "mental health days" to recover or recharge, according to a survey conducted by ComPsych: 82

Percentage who say family and relationship issues are the most likely cause: 30

Percentage who say work stress/workload: 20

Percentage who say personal issues (financial, legal, other): 15

Source: ComPsych Corp.

Percentage growth for 2007 in the number of U.S. households with a net worth of $1 million or more (not including primary residence), according to a report, "Affluent Market Insights 2008," released today by Spectrem Group: 2

Percentage growth in the number of these households in 2006, 2005 and 2004, respectively: 8, 11, 21

Total number of these households: 9.2 million

Source: Spectrem Group.

Percentage of U.S. workers who say women have made important advancements in the workplace over the past 10 years, according to a study conducted by Adecco: 95

Percentage of U.S. workers who say the glass ceiling still exists nonetheless: 86

Source: Adecco.

Percentage of U.S. citizens ages 19 to 39 who say they are "financially independent," according to a survey conducted by AARP: 57

Percentage of U.S. citizens ages 19 to 39 who say they receive financial support from family and friends: 33

Source: AARP.

Year that Wanamaker's, one of the most famous department stores in America, opened for business, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1877

Year that a major renovation of the store created the Grand Court, including the installation of a huge pipe organ that today is the largest in the world: 1910

Estimated number of traditional department stores in the U.S. today: 3,700

Estimated value generated by these stores in annual sales: $87 billion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of working adults who believe it is important that companies offer employees wellness programs by pairing personalized coaching with employee wellness initiatives to maintain a healthy lifestyle, according to a poll by Workplace Options: 76

Number of times more likely that coaching will bring success to patients in reducing total cholesterol and other coronary risk factors compared to patients who were prescribed medication but not coached, according to the Cardiovascular Review and Report by Yale University: 2

Source: Workplace Options.

Percentage of workers who returned to the workforce in the last 12 months after taking at least one year off who said they found a job in less than one month, according to a survey from CareerBuilder.com: 45

Percentage who said they found a job in one to six months: 33

Percentage who said their job hunt lasted more than a year: 14

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Idle Thought

"When I do good, I feel good; when I do bad, I feel bad. That's my religion." -- Abraham Lincoln

(Readers can contact John MacIntyre at johnmacintyre(at)bwr.eastlink.ca.)

4520 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111; (816) 932-6600