Percentage of Americans who are more likely to name China than the United States as the leading economic power in the world today, according to a Gallup Poll: 52

Percentage who named America as the leading economic power: 32

Percentage who named Japan: 7

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of people who say they prefer to make a date via e-mail, text message or social networking instead of the old-fashioned phone call, according to Zagat's 2011 Dating & Dumping survey: 34

In contrast, in 2009, percentage of respondents who preferred to initiate a date in person: 53

Today, percentage of respondents who confessed to "Googling" a prospective date: 52

Source: Zagat.

Estimated percentage of restaurants that are now owned by women, according to research from the National Restaurant Association: 50

Percentage increase in Hispanic ownership of restaurants in the past five years: 42

Source: National Restaurant Association.

Ranks of reducing debt (28 percent) and boosting savings (21 percent) on the list of Americans' financial priorities, according to a Country Financial survey: 1, 2

Percentage of Americans who currently do not utilize a household budget: 49

Percentage who say they rely on credit to pay their monthly bills: 13

Source: Country Financial.

Percentage of advertising and marketing executives who said hugging colleagues is at least somewhat common in the United States, according to a national survey developed by The Creative Group: 30

Percentage of executives who said embracing co-workers in a business setting is inappropriate: 70

Source: The Creative Group.

Percentage of high school students who think it's their responsibility to help fund their college education, according to a survey of 16- and 17-year-olds headed for higher education, according to a study by the College Savings Foundation: 72

Percentage who are planning to use their own funds to pay for college: 65

Percentage who will cover more than one-quarter of their college costs, compared to 52 percent last year: 58

Source: College Savings Foundation.

Estimated percentage of today's college students who hold jobs, according to a survey released by Cengage Learning: 50

Percentage of students who report being distracted by external responsibilities, such as raising families or by financial issues, including paying for school or debt: 30

Source: Cengage Learning.

Percentage of consumers who are looking for products that are healthy, according to the BrandSpark and Better Homes and Gardens American Shopper Study: 80

Percentage of consumers who are trying to reduce their consumption of processed foods: 70

Percentage who are looking for food products that can reduce the risk of major health issues: 60

Source: Better Homes and Gardens.

Percentage of American taxpayers who plan to spend their anticipated federal and state tax refunds on vacations -- up dramatically from 16 percent when a similar poll was first taken in 2006 -- according to a survey commissioned by Taxsoftware.com: 30

Percentage of Americans who expect to receive tax refunds: 59

Source: Taxsoftware.com.

When comparing large cities with red-light cameras to those without, percentage reduction in the fatal red-light-running crash rate, according to a 2011 study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: 24

Percentage reduction in the rate of all types of fatal crashes at signalized intersections attributed to these devices: 17.6

Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Idle Thought

"Nothing is so firmly believed as what is least known." -- Michel de Montaigne, essayist

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

Percentage of adults with annual household incomes between $100,000 and $149,999 who say they could live comfortably on something less than their current income, according to a Gallup Poll: 40

Percentage of those with incomes between $50,000 and $99,999, who say the same: 11

Percentage of those with incomes between $30,000 and $49,999 who say they could live comfortably on something less than their current income: 5

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of couples considering divorce or separation who have now put off those plans due to the recession, according to research from the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia: 38

Percentage of all couples studied who said that the recession has deepened their commitment to their marriage: 29

Source: National Marriage Week USA.

Ranks of staying up late, watching TV in bed, sleeping late and eating dessert before dinner on the list of special privileges kids enjoy while on vacation, according to a survey of kids between 6 and 17 years of age conducted by Ypartnership: 1, 2, 3, 4

Ranks of sharing the car with brother/sister, sitting too long, not having control of the stereo, dad threatening to turn around and dad not asking for directions on the list of problems kids have while driving to a vacation: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Ypartnership Public Relations.

Year that Richard Drew of the 3M Co. noted that workmen painting two-tone cars were having trouble keeping the colors separated along a straight line, developed an easy-to-peel, glue-backed masking tape to ease the job, and ended up inventing one of the world's most practical items, Scotch Tape: 1925

Estimated number of office supply and stationery stores across the nation: 15,000

Estimated value of merchandise sold annually by these stores: $21 billion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of workers who say they have dated someone they worked with over their career, according to CareerBuilder's annual office romance survey: 37

Percentage who report they went on to marry a person they dated in the office: 30

Percentage of workers who currently work with someone whom they would like to date: 8

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of world fish stocks that are estimated to be overexploited, depleted or recovering, and that urgently need to be rebuilt, according to the "State of the World's Fisheries and Aquaculture" report produced by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: 32

Overall, number of people (8 percent of the world population) who depend on fisheries and aquaculture for their livelihoods: 540 million

Rank of fish products on the list of the most-traded food commodities, worth a record $102 billion in 2008, up 9 percent from 2007: 1

Source: FAO Lowrey.

Percentage of workers who have witnessed, or know someone who has been a victim of workplace bullying, according to a survey by Workplace Options: 47

Percentage of respondents who say they have personally been a victim of bullying in the office: 31

Percentage who say harassment from superiors is the most debilitating form of bullying in the workplace: 23

Source: Workplace Options.

Ranks of "The King's Speech," "True Grit" and "Toy Story 3" on the list of people's movie choices for a best-picture Oscar, according to a Zogby poll: 1, 2, 3

Ranks of Colin Firth in "The King's Speech," Jeff Bridges in "True Grit" and James Franco in "127 Hours" on the list of those most likely to win the best actor Oscar: 1, 2, 3

Ranks of Natalie Portman in "Black Swan," Annette Bening in "The Kids Are All Right" and Nicole Kidman in "Rabbit Hole" on the list of those most likely to win for best actress: 1, 2, 3

Source: Zogby International.

Percentage of seniors who are receiving lower Social Security checks this year compared to 2010, according to an annual survey of elderly Americans by The Senior Citizens League (TSCL): 44

Percentage of seniors who estimate their expenses have increased by at least $80 per month compared to last year: 61

Source: Senior Citizens League.

Percentage of respondents between the ages of 18 and 35 who said interviewing is the one skill they need to improve most to help land a job, according to a poll of young adults conducted by Everest: 40

Percentage who said "polishing a resume" is important: 29

Percentage who said that following up with the employer is the skill they need to improve: 15

Source: Everest, L.C. Williams and Associates.

Idle Thought

"What we think, or what we know, or what we believe, is in the end of little consequence. The only thing of consequence is what we do." -- John Ruskin

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

Percentage of first-time managers who said their promotion isn't what they thought it would be, according to a study from Development Dimensions International: 57

Percentage of managers who still don't understand what it takes to be successful: 30

Percentage who regret taking the job altogether due to lack of preparation and/or not knowing how to succeed: 33

Source: Development Dimensions International.

Year that the first ATM in the U.S. was installed at Rockville Centre on Long Island by the Chemical Bank of New York City, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1969

Percentage of U.S. households that use ATMs: 80

Across the nation, estimated number of ATM transactions that take place each year: 6 billion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Due to the nationwide blizzards and snowstorms of Jan. 10-13, 2011, the percentage by which total national television viewing increased, according to Nielsen ratings: 8

Source: Nielsen Media Research.

Percentage of Americans who say they own a digital camera, according to a survey by Ipsos Public Affairs: 67

Percentage who have a laptop computer: 64

Percentage who own an MP3 player or iPod: 49

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of workers age 60 and over who said they are putting off retirement because they can't afford it financially, down from 72 percent who said the same last year, according to a survey from CareerBuilder: 65

Percentage who plan to retire within the next two years: 28

Percentage who don't think they'll ever be able to retire: 10

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of unemployed adults in the U.S. today who report they are either falling behind on their bills or facing more serious financial difficulties, such as bankruptcy or foreclosure, according to a USA Today/Gallup Poll: 26

Percentage of underemployed Americans who say the same: 21

Percentage of adults who are neither unemployed nor underemployed who say the same: 8

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of "best men" who said they didn't have a budget and were willing to organize whatever and wherever the stag requested, according to a survey by DesignaVenture: 27

Percentage who said that they would discuss with the other stags to see what everyone fancied doing before firming anything up: 21

Source: DesignaVenture Ltd.

In the face of the prolonged recession, percentage of American men who think society is moving in the wrong direction, according to the results of a survey by Euro RSCG Worldwide of American male adults: 70

Percentage of men who think Americans aren't willing to consider other people's points of view: 64

Percentage who think the recession has reminded people of what's important in life: 63

Percentage of American men who are actively trying to figure out what makes them happy: 44

Source: Euro RSCG.

Percentage of consumers with multifunction devices -- MFDs include the iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Android devices, etc. -- who have increased their reading habits, according to research from iModerate Research Technologies and Brock Associates: 66

Percentage who have been inspired to read more books in print: 46

Ranks of convenience (80 percent), the ease of purchasing e-books (61 percent) and the backlit screen (41 percent) on the list of reasons MFD users prefer reading on their device as opposed to a hard copy book: 1, 2, 3

Source: iModerate.

Despite lingering concerns about the U.S. economic recovery, percentage of Americans who worry more about having their online privacy violated than declaring bankruptcy (23 percent) or losing their job (22 percent), according to a survey by YouGov aimed to uncover what concerns people have for their online safety and privacy: 25

Percentage of Americans who use antivirus solutions to protect their privacy: 79

Despite concerns over privacy violations, percentage who report that they use safe passwords: 61

Source: Opera Software.

Idle Thought

"Inquiry is fatal to certainty." -- Will Durant, historian

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