Even in the midst of the current economic recession, percentage of Americans who still believe that they are a people who dream big about accomplishing big ideas or great things, according to a poll conducted on behalf of Carpenter Co.: 85

On an individual level, percentage of Americans who say that they still have big dreams for themselves, despite the current economic uncertainties: 77

Percentage who do not: 21

Source: Carpenter Co.

Percentage of respondents who indicated that their first among several definitions of success is spending quality time with family, according to a survey by Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance: 88

Source: Reunions magazine.

Percentage of parents with children under the age of 18 who do not have any savings set aside for their children, according to a survey conducted for ING Direct: 27

Percentage of parents with children who have reduced the contributions they make to their children's savings: 34

Percentage of parents with savings set aside for their children who have taken money from their children's savings to cover bills or pay off debt: 18

Source: ING Direct's Sharebuilder 401(k).

Percentage of Americans who endorse government action to limit executive pay, according to a Gallup Poll: 59

Source: Gallup.

Number of people born between 1978 and 2000 in the U.S., known as the millennials, generation Y or the trophy generation -- a term itself reflecting a trend in competitive sports where nobody loses but everybody is rewarded with a "thank for your participation" trophy -- according to a study by Sibson Consulting: 76 million

Percentage of millennials who are currently in the workplace, though they are arriving in increasing numbers and with higher expectations than any generation before them: 33

Percentage of employers who said that attainment of sales goals by millennials was just as good or better than by non-millennials: 92

Source: Sibson Consulting.

Number of Americans who enjoy hiking each year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 31 million

Amount spent on walking shoes annually: $4.5 billion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

When asked to choose one area in which companies should concentrate most when developing new food products, percentage of North American consumers who cited "providing fresh ingredients," according to a study conducted by Ipsos Marketing for the Consumer Goods Sector: 26

Percentage who said companies should look at "providing additional benefits": 24

Percentage who said that packaging should be made more environmentally friendly: 21

Source: Ipsos Marketing for the Consumer Goods Sector.

Percentage of Americans who agreed that "we should make every effort to improve the position of blacks and minorities, even if it means giving them preferential treatment," according to a Pew Research Center values survey: 31

Percentage of African-Americans who favor preferential treatment to improve the position of blacks and other minorities: 58

Percentage of Hispanics who say the same: 53

Source: Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

When asked whether America should "stick with more traditional jobs in manufacturing and other long-standing industries" or "focus on high-tech and jobs in the service industry," percentage of respondents who opted for manufacturing and traditional industries, according to a Zogby poll: 28

Percentage who said they should focus on high-tech and service jobs: 50

Source: Zogby International.

Percentage of new car shoppers who said they thought gas prices would go much higher, according to a survey by Kelley Blue Book: 87

Percentage of those who saw gas prices increasing who also said they plan to change their spending habits if gas prices were to go much higher: 73

Source: Kelly Blue Book.

Idle Thought

"Men have slow reflexes. In general it takes several generations later for them to understand." -- Stanislaw J. Lec, poet (1909-1966)

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

Projected total consumer spending for Father's Day, according to industry research firm IBISWorld: $9 billion

Projected percentage rise in the sale of pampering services and products this Father's Day -- indicating many dads are going from handyman to dandy man: 35.7

Source: IBISWorld.

Percentage of workers who said a flexible schedule is the summer benefit they would most like to have, according to a survey by OfficeTeam: 38

Percentage who said they'd like to leave early on Fridays: 32

Percentage who look forward to summer activities such as a company picnic, pot luck, etc.: 6

Source: OfficeTeam.

Rank of the Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen TDI on the list of best cars for a cross-country road trip, according to the Kelley Blue Book: 1

Rank of the Porsche Cayman S on the list of best cars for a solo flight: 1

Rank of the Ford F-150 on the list of best vehicles for a towing trip: 1

Source: Kelley Blue Book.

Year that one of America's all-time favorite celebrities, Donald Duck, stepped into the entertainment world -- short, both in stature and temper, wears a sailor hat, has a tendency to fly into a squawking rage whenever things don't go just right, and whose long-term living arrangements with his nephews, Huey, Dewey and Louie, was unusual for the day, according to page 306 of "Chase's Calendar of Events 2009": 1934

Percentage of single parents today who are men, compared with 10 percent in 1970, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 16

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Amid concerns about the economy, estimated percentage of students who are looking at entering a different profession than they were before the economic collapse, according to a survey released by Higher One: 20

Percentage who are considering attending graduate school as a result of the economy: 20

Source: Higher One.

Percentage of leisure travelers who now use the Internet to plan some aspect of their travel (compared to 35 percent in 2000), according to the National Travel Monitorism: 66

Percentage who now report making reservations online: 56

Ranks of online travel agencies such as Expedia and Travelocity (42 percent), Web sites of specific airlines (41 percent), and meta search engines that compare fares (13 percent) on the list of sites that travelers visit first when selecting an airline: 1, 2, 3

Source: Ypartnership Public Relations.

Estimated number of types of food crops there once were, according to the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization: 10,000

Today, number of plant species that feed most of the world's population: 150

Number of crops that provide 80 percent of the dietary energy derived from plants: 12

Percentage of this dietary energy that is provided by rice, wheat, maize and potato alone: 60

Source: FAO.

With the employment market feeling the effects of a global recession, percentage of executives who have updated their profile on a public networking site in the last three months, according to recent research from ExecuNet: 71

Percentage who have updated their resume: 60

Source: ExecuNet.

Percentage of Americans who are getting 30 minutes of exercise five or more days per week, according to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index: 27

Percentage who report exercising for at least 30 minutes on three or four of the last seven days: 24

Percentage who report exercising for at least 30 minutes less than three days per week: 49

Source: Gallup.

Number of devastating natural disasters, those designated as Category 5 based on their financial and human impact, that occurred in 2008 -- the highest number on record, according to Worldwatch Institute and based on Munich Re's systematic recording of natural perils that began in 1974: 40

Percentage increase in the annual average number of hydrological disaster events occurring since the 1980s: 300

Source: WorldWatch Institute.

Idle Thought

"Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth. -- Oscar Wilde, writer

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

In 2009, estimated percentage of all e-mail traffic that is spam, according to a study from the Radicati Group: 81

According to the study's projections, amount of money a typical 1,000-user organization can spend a year to manage spam: $1.8 million

Source: Radicati Group.

In a typical workplace, percentage of employees who are actively motivated and engaged in their jobs, according to the Gallup Management Journal's Employee Engagement Index: 29

Percentage who are not engaged at all: 54

Percentage who are actively disengaged: 17

Source: Comcast.

Percentage more money that men need than women to be happy, according to research by smile.co.uk ("the Internet bank") from The Co-operative Bank: 27

Source: Co-operative Bank.

When respondents were asked to describe what they thought about their car, percentage who said that it gets them from point A to point B, according to a survey conducted for CarMax: 71

Percentage who said that their car has to do it all without breaking the bank: 30

Percentage who said their car defines who they are: 20

Percentage who said their car is a taxi service for their kids: 14

Source: CarMax Inc.

Average length of an American engagement, according to about.com: 14 months

Average cost of a diamond engagement ring: $6,348

During the engagement period, amount spent by couples on furniture: $4 billion

Amount spent on housewares: $3 billion

Source: about.com.

Percentage of infected computers globally that are located in the U.S., according to Finjan's Malicious Code Research Center (MCRC): 45

Percentage in the United Kingdom: 6

Percentage in Germany: 4

Percentage in France: 3

Source: Finjan's Malicious Code Research Center.

Percentage of parents who say their children are couponing, according to a study from CoolSavings.com: 60

Percentage of adults who said they began using coupons "within the past year": 28

Source: Q Interactive.

Percentage of all baby boomers who believe they look approximately 10 years younger than their actual age, according to a survey conducted by American Laser Centers: 31

Percentage of respondents who said they think the reason that they've stayed or become better looking as they've aged has less to do with their physical body and more to do with maturity and mindset, and cite a healthier self-image: 66

Percentage who said it is also because they've become more stylish: 50

Percentage who said it is also because they care less about what people think: 46

Source: American Laser Services.

Percentage of small business owners who are planning a summer vacation of at least a week, according to the American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor: 56

Percentage of those not taking a vacation who said the primary reason is that they can't afford it: 40

Source: American Express OPEN.

Year that the U.S. began rationing gasoline to 3 gallons per week to help the war effort -- kept in effect until the end of the war, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1942

National speed limit for the same period: 35 mph

Estimated number of gas stations across the U.S. today: 131,000

Estimated number of gallons of gas they sell each year: 175 billion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Idle Thought

"Power is only important as an instrument for service to the powerless." -- Lech Walesa, human rights activist, former president of Poland, Nobel laureate

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