oddities

Figuratively Speaking for June 30, 2013

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | June 30th, 2013

Average cost of a hotel's club sandwich in a Geneva, Switzerland -- the most expensive city in the world to buy the sandwich, according to the annual Hotels.com Club Sandwich Index: $30.45

Ranks of Paris ($27.45), Oslo ($26.72), Stockholm ($23.21), Copenhagen ($22.33) and Rome on the list: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Of the cities surveyed, rank of India's New Delhi, the cheapest destination to buy a hotel's club sandwich, with an average price of just $9.11: 28

Source: Hotels.com.

Percentage of millennial women (ages 18 to 29) who said they would want to be the No. 1 leader of a large or prominent organization, according to a survey commissioned by Zeno Group: 15

Percentage of millennial women who say the sacrifices women leaders have to make aren't worth it: 49

Percentage who agree that women leaders have to make more sacrifices than their male counterparts: 90

Source: Zeno Group.

Percentage of employees who are more motivated by recognition and virtual rewards compared to financial incentives, according to the results of a survey by Badgeville: 70

Percentage of employees who said recognition for contributions is more fulfilling than any rewards and gifts: 83

Source: Badgeville.

Rank of Asians on the list of the nation's fastest-growing race or ethnic group in 2012, according to the U.S. Census Bureau annual population estimates: 1

Current Asian population in the U.S. today, up by 530,000, or 2.9 percent, from the preceding year: 18.9 million

Percentage of this growth that came from international migration: 60

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Number of hot dogs eaten by Americans every year, according to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council: 20 billion

Number consumed on July 4 alone: 150 million

Rank of Iowa as largest per capita July 4 hot dog consumer: 1

Source: National Hot Dog and Sausage Council.

Average amount of money that car buyers spent on new car purchases in 2012 -- an all-time high, according to Edmunds.com's 2013 Car Shopping Trends Report: $30,803

Average amount of money (or about 7 percent above base prices) that was spent on optional equipment for those cars: $2,200

Source: Edmunds.com.

Percentage of adults who say they monitor the activity of children in their households on social networking sites such as Facebook, according to findings of a study by the USC Annenberg Center for the Digital Future: 70

Percentage who have password access to the children's accounts: 46

Source: Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.

With a below-average degree cost and a healthy median annual salary of approximately $80,000, number of years it is projected to take civil engineers to achieve student loan freedom, according to a study by Bankrate.com: 8.5 years.

Although doctors earn a comfortable salary ($172,020), the number of years it is projected for a doctor to pay off his/her student loans: 11

Estimated number of years that the typical lawyer will pay for his/her student loans: 13

Source: Bankrate Inc.

As digital streaming continues to be on the upswing in 2013, percentage of Americans who say that they stream at least once a week, according to a survey of 1,000 streaming media consumers commissioned by M-GO and Lab42: 84

Comparatively speaking, percentage of Americans who are "steaming it up" with their significant others with the same frequency, according to The Durex Global Sex Survey: 53

Source: Lab42.

Rank of Samsung in terms reliability, according to the Reliability Report, which now includes tablets based on U.S. Computer Market Share and RESCUECOM Computer Repair Share: 1

Ranks of Apple, Lenovo/IBM, Asus and Toshiba on the list: 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: RESCUECOM.

Idle Thought

"Art is the elimination of the unnecessary." -- Pablo Picasso

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

oddities

Figuratively Speaking for June 23, 2013

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | June 23rd, 2013

Projected mobile phone unit sales in 2013 as strong smartphone growth continues, according to CCS Insight Market Forecast: 1.86 billion

Year by which CCS Insight predicts that the combined number of mobile phones and tablets in use will exceed the world's population: 2017

Source: CCS Insight.

Percentage of Americans who agree that "staycations" are a thing of the past, with nearly half also agreeing that a vacation isn't a vacation unless you pack up and leave town, according to a survey by Kelton: 57

Percentage of American vacationers who set a budget: 81

Percentage of these folks spend more than they plan: 36

Source: Kelton Research.

Percentage of information workers who said using social tools -- defined as instant messaging, text messaging, video conferencing, news feeds, social networks and team sites such as SharePoint -- has increased their productivity, according to a poll of employees across 32 countries conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs on behalf of Microsoft: 46

Percentage who say these tools have reduced their efficiency: 9

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs RS.

Year that a patent was granted to inventor Americus Callahan of Chicago for something that most of us would rather not see -- an envelope with a transparent window in it, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1902

Estimated number of post offices there were in the United States the year Callahan's invention was introduced: 76,000

Estimated number of post offices there are today: 27,000

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of Americans who say religion is losing its influence on American life, according to a Gallup Poll: 77

Percentage of respondents who say American society would be better off if more Americans were religious: 75

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of global mid-market businesses for which the promise of superior data-driven decision-making is motivating them to either invest in or investigate "Big Data," according to Techaisle: 43

Of these mid-market businesses, percentage that are actively investing in Big Data-related projects: 18

Percentage who mention that they have either none or very limited capabilities of analyzing unstructured data: 70

Source: Techaisle.

Ranks of Vienna, Zurich, Auckland (New Zealand), Munich and Vancouver (Canada) on the list of 221 cities with the world's best quality of living, according to the Mercer 2012 Quality of Living Survey: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Ranks of Honolulu, San Francisco and Boston as the top-ranked U.S. cities for overall quality of living, on the list: 28, 29, 35

Source: Mercer.

Percentage of parents who knew that children 4 to 6 years old, weighing 40 to 60 pounds, should travel in a booster seat, according to a literature review appearing in the June 2013 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS): 46

Percentage of fatally injured children younger than age 5 who were completely unrestrained during motor vehicle crashes: 46

Source: American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

Percentage of adults who feel that credit cards are important to the U.S. economy, according to a poll conducted on behalf of the American Bankers Association: 72

Percentage of Americans who have at least one credit card (not including ATM or debit cards): 76

Percentage of those with at least one credit card who say that they personally use a credit card at least once a week: 57

Source: American Bankers Association.

Percentage increase in the number of people reporting a healthy work/life balance since 2011, according to an ongoing survey by Captivate's Office Pulse: 11

Percentage increase in respondents reporting working more than nine hours a day: 30

Source: Captivate.

Idle Thought

"It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech." -- Mark Twain

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

oddities

Figuratively Speaking for June 16, 2013

Figuratively Speaking by by John MacIntyre
by John MacIntyre
Figuratively Speaking | June 16th, 2013

Estimated number of fathers in America, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 70.1 million

Estimated number of "stay-at-home" dads in the U.S.: 154,000

Percentage of fathers with employed wives who were the primary caregiver for their preschooler: 20

Percentage of fathers who provided the most hours of care for their grade-school-aged child: 6

Estimated number of children who live apart from their biological fathers: 24 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of U.S. adults who agree that being able to borrow or rent someone's property or belongings online is a great way to save money, according to a poll conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs on behalf of Airbnb: 56

Percentage of respondents who agree that sharing one's property/belongings online is a great way to have an extra source of income: 47

Percentage of all respondents who have shared something online with someone they didn't previously know, such as skills (10 percent), tools (7 percent), a room in their home (6 percent), their car (5 percent), their entire home (3 percent) or something else (3 percent): 17

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of Americans who feel "very attached" or "somewhat attached" to their cars, according to a survey by autotrader.com: 70

Percentage who describe their vehicle as an "old friend": 36

Percentage who say they feel sad when they think about parting ways with it: 26

Source: Auto Trader.com.

Value of Dad's at-home household contributions this year, according to Insure.com's Father's Day Index, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data: $20,248

Percentage of American adults who believe businesses should be required to give paid family leave: 77

Percentage of dads who are the primary grocery shoppers in the family, up from 10 percent in 1995: 52

Source: Insure.com.

Percentage of fathers today who say they are spending more time with their children than their own fathers spent with them, according to a national survey by the Ad Council: 86

Percentage of fathers who reported feeling financial pressure in their role as a father: 81

Percentage of today's fathers who admitted they could improve their parenting skills: 70

Source: Ad Council.

Percentage of men who say they leave their desks one time or less in a workday, compared to 12 percent of women, according to a study conducted for CareerBuilder: 20

Percentage of all workers who say they get up from their desk 10 or more times per day: 40

Percentage who eat lunch at their desk every day: 39

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of today's millennials -- 18 to 30 years old -- who believe technology has made it easier to get a job, according to Telefonica's Global Millennial Survey: 73

Percentage who believe "technology creates opportunities for all," as opposed to a select few: 77

Percentage who believe technology brings people closer together: 65

Source: Telefonica.

Percentage of lawyers who cited "flexible work hours or telecommuting" as one of the best incentives for recruiting and retaining legal professionals, according to research by Robert Half Legal: 69

Ranks of "free or subsidized training or education" (50 percent), "on-site perks" (33 percent) and "higher compensation" (14 percent) on the list of the best incentives for recruiting and retaining legal professionals: 2, 3, 4

Source: Robert Half Legal.

Percentage of office workers who can name work habits that boost their chances of pain, according to research released by the American Osteopathic Association: 94

Ranks of hunching over a desk, sitting in an uncomfortable chair and staring at a computer monitor on the list of things that office workers are mostly likely to consider to cause pain: 1, 2, 3

Source: American Osteopathic Association.

Percentage of travelers who say free Wi-Fi is the No. 1 factor in choosing a hotel, even on leisure stays, according to a survey by accommodation booking service Hotels.com: 34

Percentage of respondents who said free Wi-Fi is their No. 1 must-have when traveling for business: 56

Source: Hotels.com.

Idle Thought

"The words a father speaks to his children in the privacy of the home are not overheard at the time, but, as in whispering galleries, they will be clearly heard at the end and by posterity." -- Jean Paul Richter, writer

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

Next up: More trusted advice from...

  • Nutrients Affected More by Quality, Variety Than Location
  • Daily Vitamins Can Supplement a Healthful Diet
  • Sea Salt Purity Standards Ensure Safe Products
  • A Vacation That Lasts a Lifetime
  • The Growth of 401(k)s
  • Leverage Your 401(k)
  • Last Word in Astrology for September 24, 2023
  • Last Word in Astrology for September 23, 2023
  • Last Word in Astrology for September 22, 2023
UExpressLifeParentingHomePetsHealthAstrologyOdditiesA-Z
AboutContactSubmissionsTerms of ServicePrivacy Policy
©2023 Andrews McMeel Universal