Percentage of the nation's top divorce attorneys who say they have seen an increase in the number of cases using electronic data as evidence during the past five years, according to a survey of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers: 88

Percentage who cited e-mail as the main source and most commonly used form of technological evidence: 82

Percentage who reported an increase in the frequency of Internet browser histories being used as evidence in divorce cases during the past five years: 79

Source: American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers.

Percentage of executives in the U.S. and Canada who feel that they would benefit from an international etiquette course (that is when and whether one should shake hands, give a kiss on the cheek or bow when greeting an overseas colleague), according to the results of a survey by OfficeTeam: 62

Source: Robert Half International.

Percentage of American executives who say they are at least somewhat concerned about their CEO's compensation, according to a survey conducted by Korn/Ferry International: 34

Percentage who said the same in 2007: 21

Percentage who said their CEO compensation matched their organization's performance: 42

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

Percentage of all Americans who are very happy, according to a Harris Poll: 35

Percentage of people who describe themselves as "very religious" who consider themselves as very happy: 45

Percentage of people who describe themselves as "not religious" who consider themselves as very happy: 28

Percentage of people in the 18 to 24 age bracket who are very happy according to the survey: 29

Percentage of people age 65 and older who are very happy: 47

Source: Harris Interactive.

Percentage of the U.S. population that is considered to be clinically obese (a body mass index greater than 30), according to IBISWorld: 34

Annual estimated direct health costs attributable to obesity: $75 billion

Estimated annual expenditure on weight-loss products and services, including medical procedures and pharmaceuticals: $44 billion to $55 billion

Percentage of that spending garnered by weight-loss centers: 6 to 12

Source: IBISWorld.

Year that Congress designated the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1914

Percentage of women age 40 to 44 who are mothers: 81

In 1976, percentage of women in that age group who were mothers: 90

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of U.S. employees who say they know someone who has taken Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave, according to a survey conducted by Tell It Now and ComPsych Corp.: 77

Percentage of U.S. employees who say a colleague's reason for FMLA leave was "questionable": 6

Source: ComPsych Corp.

Percentage of Americans who oppose the federal government taking steps to help prevent major Wall Street investment companies from failing, according to a Gallup Poll: 60

Percentage of Americans who support having the federal government take steps to help prevent people from losing their homes because they can't pay their mortgages: 56

Source: Gallup.

Of 16 major nations surveyed around the world (including the U.S.), number of countries where majorities think that oil is running out and that governments should make a major effort to find new sources of energy, according to a WorldPublicOpinion.org poll: 15

Ranks of South Korea (97 percent), France (91 percent), Great Britain (85 percent), Mexico (83 percent) and China (80 percent) as the countries where the largest majorities endorse this view: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Percentage of the U.S. population that endorses this view: 76

Source: PIPA/WorldPublicOpinion.org.

Value of the soy food and beverage market in 2007, according to a report from Packaged Facts: $2 billion

Percentage rise from 2006: 7

Source: Packaged Facts.

Idle Thought

"A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval." -- Mark Twain

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

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

Percentage of workers in the U.S. and Europe who report Sunday night sleep loss, according to a Monster.com poll that asked whether the thought of going to work on Monday affects their Sunday night sleep: 78

Rank of work as the most frequent source of stress, according to a poll conducted by the American Psychological Association: 1

Source: Monster.com.

Percentage of Americans who prefer a dollar bill to a coin, according to a Harris poll: 76

Percentage who favor abolishing the penny: 24

Source: Harris Interactive.

Percentage of Americans who complain that they pay too much in federal income taxes, according to Gallup's 2008 Economy and Personal Finance survey: 52

Percentage who say they pay the right amount: 42

Percentage who say they pay too little: 2

Source: Gallup.

Ranks of manager (20 percent) and educator (11 percent) as the two most prevalent careers among the $1 million to $5 million group of millionaires, according to a report by Spectrem Group: 1, 2

Ranks of entrepreneur/business owner (30 percent) and senior corporate executive (17 percent) as the most prevalent careers in the $25 million and higher category: 1, 2

Source: Spectrem Group.

Percentage of employees who are stressed due to financial concerns, according to a national survey of working adults commissioned by Workplace Options: 75

Percentage of respondents who report that their financial stress makes it harder for them to do their job: 45

Source: Workplace Options.

Ranks of bankruptcy, litigation, and ethics and corporate governance as the areas of law that will experience the most growth in the next 12 months, according to a survey by Robert Half Legal: 1, 2, 3

Source: Robert Half International.

Percentage rise in the number of facelifts performed for patients age 40 and over from 2006 to 2007, according to American Society of Plastic Surgeons statistics: 14

Estimated number of procedures performed in 2007: 116,200

Number of Botox procedures performed in 2007: 3.6 million

Source: ASPS.

Percentage of parents and teens who agree that kids are not as careful as they should be about information they give out online, according to a survey by McAfee: 80

Estimated percentage of 13- to 17-year-olds who have received messages online from someone they didn't know: 70

Percentage of teens who use social networking sites: 55

Source: McAfee Inc.

Percentage of Americans who say spending time outdoors makes them feel refreshed, healthy and excited, according to a Miracle-Gro Survey: 83

Percentage who admit they don't take enough advantage of the restorative powers of nature: 61

Source: Edelman.

Because of the impact of globalization, percentage of organizations that have already expanded the scope of their diversity and inclusion training programs, according to a survey of senior HR and training executives in the U.S. by Novations Group: 41

Percentage that had expanded their diversity and inclusion programming in 2005: 15

Source: Novations Group Inc.

Idle Thought

"It is better to sleep on things beforehand than lie awake about them afterwards." -- Baltasar Gracian, philosopher and writer (1601-1658)

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

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

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