Rank of health care (32 percent), technology (32 percent), service (12 percent), agriculture (11 percent), retail (2 percent) and automobile (1 percent) on the list of industries that respondents considered as "best positioned to weather the current economic downturn": 1 (tie), 3, 4, 5, 6

When respondents were asked which nation was most likely to produce "the next Bill Gates," percentage who said the U.S.: 29

Percentage who said India: 28

Percentage who said China: 15

Percentage who said Japan: 11

Source: Zogby International.

Year one of the most notorious criminals in U.S. history -- John Dillinger -- was killed in a shootout with FBI agents outside the Biograph movie theater in Chicago, according to the Census Bureau: 1934

Estimated number of robberies that occur annually across the U.S., including an average of 28 bank robberies every day: 450,000

Average amount netted in a bank robbery today: $4,300

Source: Census Bureau.

Rank of first child, meeting partner, wedding day, buying first house and passing driving test on the list of happiest events for women, according to research by Smile the Internet bank from The Co-operative Bank: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Rank of first child, meeting partner, wedding day, passing driving test and sports team victory on the list of happiest events for men: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Co-operative Bank.

On a typical day, percentage of the adults in the United States who take a nap, according to a Pew Research Center Social and Demographic Trends survey: 34

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

Percentage of employers who said that attainment of sales goals by millennials (people born between 1978 and 2000) was just as good or better than by non-millennials, according to a study by Sibson Consulting: 92

Percentage of millennials who thought their sales performance was as good or better than the others: 79

Rank of ambition, lack of advancement opportunities and no loyalty as the reasons most often cited by employers with regard to why millenials leave: 1, 2, 3

Source: Sibson Consulting.

Percentage of retail investors who said they do their own extensive research before they buy a stock, according to a survey conducted by online broker Zecco: 51

Percentage by which news and television reports surpassed brokers as a source of information about particular companies: 58

Source: Zecco.

Percentage of male online daters who said they Googled their blind date before going out with them, according to a survey by Avalanche: 45

Percentage of women who said the same: 42

Percentage of men who admitted having lied in their online dating profile: 42.1

Percentage of women who said the same: 31.3

Source: date.com.

Percentage of Americans who feel that there should not be a tax placed on foods higher in fat, according to a study conducted by HCD Research: 68

Percentage who feel that the rise in medical costs has been moderately or highly impacted by the increase in obesity and obesity-related conditions: 76

Source: HCD Research Inc.

Percentage of fliers who will pay up to 10 percent over ticket cost to get five additional inches of legroom, according to a survey by TripAdvisor: 42

Rank of a TV at the seat, movies and power ports on the list of the most valued in-flight entertainment features: 1, 2, 3

Source: TripAdvisor.

Rank of Florida (34 percent), California (30 percent), Arizona and Hawaii (tied at 16 percent) on the list of states that reign as the dream destination for American leisure travelers: 1, 2, 3

Source: Ypartnership Public Relations.

Idle Thought

"We must respect the other fellow's religion, but only in the same sense and to the extent that we respect his theory that his wife is beautiful and his children smart." -- H.L. Mencken, writer, editor and critic

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

Ranks of strategic thinking, leadership, communication, developing direct reports and motivating people on the list of skills that middle managers need to improve, according to ClearRock, an outplacement and executive coaching firm: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Percentage of companies that viewed their middle managers as unqualified to be promoted to the next level: 33

Percentage that rated their middle managers as "very qualified": 6

Source: ClearRock.

Percentage of Americans who say that the best way to sell their car would be to do it privately, according to a survey conducted by on behalf of CarMax: 36

Percentage who would opt to trade it in at a dealership: 30

Source: CarMax.

Percentage of working dads who report that they spend two hours or fewer per day with their children during the workweek, according to CareerBuilder survey: 39

Percentage who said they have missed a significant event in their child's life in the last year due to work: 50

Percentage who have missed more than three: 28

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of travelers who have been camping, according to the results of TripAdvisor's camping and "glamping" survey: 88

Percentage who have been "glamorous camping," which may include electricity, beds and room service: 15

Percentage who claim to be familiar with the term glamping: 13

Of those who have never been glamping, percentage who said they were more attracted to the idea of glamping than traditional camping, once given a definition: 65

Source: TripAdvisor.

In reaction to the tough economic situation of the Depression, year the Penguin Publishing House brought out the first modern paperback book, a biography of the poet Shelley, and began publishing a cheaper softcover format, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1935

In spite of competition from television and computers, estimated number of books that Americans buy annually: 3 billion

Percentage of these that are in softcover: 50

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of workers who confirmed that their workplace perks had been taken away during the current recession, according to a survey by Quiznos: 70

Percentage who indicated that a paid vacation day is the compensation they'd most like to have in return for lost perks: 60

Source: Quiznos.

Percentage of Americans who agree that they currently have access to all of the health care services they need without it costing them more than they can afford, according to an Ipsos poll: 49

Percentage of Canadian adults who feel this way: 65

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Average annual saving in gasoline bills for those consumers who replace their clunker with a new fuel-efficient vehicle, according to CashForClunkersInformation.org's statistics from their "Clunker Report": $750

Percentage of clunkers traded in that are SUVs, trucks and vans with over 100,000 miles: 79

Average age of the trade-ins: 13 years

Source: Cars.com.

Percentage of Americans who would prefer to see their child lose the "big game" but display great sportsmanship, rather than come out on top, according to the national survey fielded for the Awards and Recognition Association by TNS: 94

Percentage of Americans from ages 20 to 80-plus who still think sportsmanship is worse now than in previous years: 85

Source: ARA.

Percentage of Americans who disapprove of the new law expanding the federal government's power to regulate the manufacturing and marketing of tobacco products, according to a Gallup Poll: 52

Percentage who approve off the new law: 46

Percentage of Americans who say smoking should be made "totally illegal" in this country: 17

Source: Gallup.

Idle Thought

"Life consists in what a man is thinking of all day." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

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

On the 40th anniversary of the moon landing and Woodstock, and the recent death of iconic CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite, percentage of U.S. adults who said that the historic legacy of the baby boomer generation (born 1946 to 1964) would be self-indulgence and consumerism, according to a Zogby poll: 42

Percentage who said they will be remembered for bringing lasting change in social and cultural values and ending a war: 27

Percentage who said "nothing at all": 11

Source: Zogby International.

Percentage of parents who are more prepared to talk to their children about drugs and alcohol than money and finances, according to a survey conducted for ING Direct: 39

Percentage of parents who are more prepared to talk to their children about the birds and bees or dating than money and finances: 27

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

Percentage of men who look for wife potential in a girlfriend, according to the results from the second annual AskMen.com "Great Male Survey": 84

Percentage who believe that they should pay for the majority of dates at least until a relationship is established: 85

Source: AskMen.com.

Percentage of senior executives who said that it is common for candidates with promising resumes not to live up to expectations during the interview, according to a survey developed by Robert Half International: 72

Source: Robert Half International.

Percentage of workers age 55 and older who were laid off in the last 12 months who found new jobs, the lowest of all age groups, according to a study from CareerBuilder: 28

Percentage of those ages 25 to 34 who found new jobs: 71

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of workers who say they do not have qualified managers, according to Randstad's annual World of Work report: 51

Percentage of workers who want nothing to do with climbing the corporate ladder to management: 49

While generation Y'ers most fear managing disgruntled employees, percentage of generation X'ers, boomers and mature workers for whom stress is the main deterrent: 82

Source: Randstad-USA.

Number of unmarried Americans (includes those who were never married, widowed or divorced) 18 and older in 2008, representing 43 percent of all U.S. residents 18 and older, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 95.9 million

Number of unmarried Americans 18 and older who were women: 53 million

Percentage of unmarried Americans 18 and older who had never been married: 61

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of Americans who say they wouldn't be able to pay their bills on time if they went more than one month between jobs, according to a survey by Country Financial: 49

Percentage who say they would tap their savings to cope with a shortfall in income if they lost their job: 50

Percentage who would rely on retirement accounts: 16

Source: Country Financial.

Percentage of Americans who are willing to make sacrifices for a free lunch, according to a survey for Quiznos: 75

Percentage who are even willing to commit "refrigerator theft," and have admitted to having taken a coworker's lunch out of the refrigerator: 14

Percentage of respondents who would attend an in-law's retirement party or a business meeting for a free lunch: 50

Percentage who said they would go on a blind date if it meant a gratis meal: 20

Source: Quiznos.

Percentage of senior executives and managers who work 41 to 60 hours a week, according to a worldwide survey conducted by NFI Research: 77

Percentage of business leaders who work 11 hours or more a day: 11

Percentage of businesspeople who work 10 or more hours a day: 40

Source: NFI Research.

Idle Thought

"How easy to be amiable in the midst of happiness and success." -- Madame Anne Sophie Swetchine

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