During 2016, amount of credit debt racked up by U.S. consumers, pushing outstanding balances to $978.9 billion, according to research by WalletHub, based on Federal Reserve data: $89.2 billion

Amount that the average indebted household now owes: $8,377

Source: WalletHub.

Percentage of workers who feel they do not get enough sleep each night, according to a new survey from CareerBuilder: 26

Percentage of all workers who say that a lack of sleep has negatively impacted their work: 60

Percentage who say thinking about work keeps them up at night: 47

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Year that the first practical automatic dishwasher was born (designed by Josephine Cochrane, a socialite, out of annoyance at how her domestic staff damaged her china), according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1839

Year that a patent was awarded: 1886

Today, of the nation's nearly 133 million housing units, number that have automatic dishwashers: 87 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

When dining with family, percentage of families who say they have a no cellphone policy at the table, according to a survey by Toluna: 50

When dining with friends, percentage who have a no cellphone policy at the table: 39

Percentage of Americans who have blocked family or a friend on social media without their knowledge: 44

Source: Toluna QuickSurveys.

Percentage of women who believe that communication is the most important thing in a relationship, according to a survey commissioned by epi24: 72

Percentage who said having fun together: 11

Percentage who said sexual attraction: 2

Source: epi24.

Percentage of Americans who plan to look for a better-paying job and increase overall savings over the next four years, according to an Experian survey: 43

Percentage who said they will decrease their spending: 39

Source: Experian Consumer Direct.

Percentage of IT executives who understand that the pace of IT change and transformation is increasing, according to the results of a survey by BMC: 86

Percentage of respondents who state that the share of IT budget spent on ongoing management and maintenance is growing: 55

Source: BMC.

Percentage of U.S. employers who are feeling the direct impact of prescription drug misuse in their workplaces, according to a survey by the National Safety Council: 71

Percentage of employers who agree that prescription drug misuse is a disease that requires treatment: 71

Percentage who feel it is a justifiable reason to fire an employee: 65

Source: National Safety Council.

Percentage of Americans who believe the average person should be taking concrete steps to reduce his or her environmental impact, according to a survey conducted by Knoxville-based Shelton Group: 90

Percentage who think that personal energy conservation habits can make a real difference in preventing climate change: 67

Percentage of Americans who correctly identified the No. 1 manmade cause of climate change -- the energy we use in our homes: 6

Source: Shelton Group.

Idle Thought

"Success is not final; failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts." -- Winston Churchill

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

Cost to get married in Manhattan, New York -- the most expensive place in the United States, according to the results of a study of U.S. brides and grooms by The Knot: $78,464

Cost to get married in Arkansas -- the least expensive place to get married: $19,522

Source: The Knot.

Estimated number of prime-age men in the United States who are no longer in the labor force, according to federal data reported by Novus Medical Detox Center: 7 million

Percentage of those not in the labor force who say pain prevents them from working a full-time job: 40

Percentage who take some type of pain medication, with a majority using prescription medication: 50

Percentage of labor force participation among men aged 25 to 54 in January 1948: 96.7

Percentage of participation in September 2016: 88.6

Source: Novus Medical Detox Center.

Percentage of high school students who pick their career based on something they saw on TV or in a movie, according to CareerBuilder research: 25

Percentage of full-time workers who regret the college major they chose: 33

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Percentage of women who are "very confident" in their ability to fully retire with a comfortable lifestyle, according to research by the Trans America Center for Retirement Studies: 10

Percentage of women who plan to retire after age 65: 40

Source: Trans America Center for Retirement Studies.

Percentage of American adults (and 91 percent of teens) who say say they have heard another person call someone a retard, according to a Harris Poll: 92

Percentage of adults (and 47 percent of teens) who say they have heard the derogatory phrase directed toward a person who has an intellectual disability: 56

Percentage of adults (and 27 percent of teens) who say there's nothing wrong with using the word "retarded" to describe a thing or situation: 38

Source: The Harris Poll.

Percentage of senior managers who said their employer organizes activities tied to sporting events like March Madness, according to research by OfficeTeam: 23

Among those firms that do get into the games, percentage of managers who say the top benefit is showing that the company supports a healthy blend of work and play: 39

Percentage who say it builds camaraderie among colleagues: 37

Percentage of employees who report celebrating sports events with office buddies: 53

Source: OfficeTeam.

Percentage of consumers who are expecting a tax refund this season, according to a survey by the National Retail Federation: 66

Percentage of those who will spend their refunds on everyday expenses: 21

Percentage who will use them for major purchases, such as a television, furniture or a car: 9

Percentage who will splurge on special treats like dining out, apparel or spa visits: 8

Source: NRF.

Percentage of the world's population that is made up of young people (16- to 24-year-olds), according to the findings of the Citi/Ipsos Global Survey: 16

Number of people this represents: 1.2 billion

Percentage of young people in developing markets who believe they will find opportunities to succeed in their preferred career, compared to 64 percent of their counterparts in developed markets: 79

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Year that the Massachusetts Bay Colony issued paper money (in the form of promissory notes from governing bodies) due to the shortage of coins, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 1690

Year that Congress passed the Legal Tender Act, fixing paper money as a means of paying the government's considerable Civil War bills with something other than gold or silver: 1862

Current estimate of the amount of U.S. currency circulating in the United States and the world: $1.5 trillion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of homeowners who are planning to spend money on home improvement projects in 2017, according to a survey by LightStream: 59

Ranks of outdoor projects, home repairs/technology, bathroom updates and kitchen remodels on the list of the top four projects: 1, 2, 3, 4

Source: SunTrust Banks Inc.

Idle Thought

"A rich man is nothing but a poor man with money." -- W.C. Fields

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

Percentage of workers who said that communication and diplomacy skills are areas where their managers most need improvement, according to a survey by Robert Half Management Resources: 30

Percentage who cited greater technical expertise was needed: 18

Percentage who said leadership: 17

Source: Robert Half Management Resources.

A decade after the emergence of smartphones, Facebook and Twitter, percentage of adults in the U.S. who report that they constantly or often check their email, texts and social media accounts, according to a American Psychological Association report: 86

On a 10-point scale, where 1 is "little or no stress" and 10 is "a great deal of stress," average reported overall stress level for constant checkers: 5.3

Average reported overall stress level for those who don't check as frequently: 4.4

Among employed Americans who check their work email constantly on their days off, reported overall stress level is even higher: 6.0

Source: American Psychological Association.

Percentage of U.S. adults who have trouble sleeping at least once a week, according to a Packaged Facts survey: 82

Number of "troubled sleepers" this represents out of 249 million adults in the United States: 206 million

Estimated annual cost of insomnia, with the majority being spent on indirect costs, such as poorer workplace performance, increased health care use and increased accident risk: $100 billion

Source: Packaged Facts.

Percentage of Americans who say they are planning on searching for a home to purchase within the next three years, including 13 percent who are currently in the process of looking, according to a study conducted for Zillow: 39

Percentage who are planning to finance the purchase with a mortgage: 81

Percentage who will buy the house with cash: 19

Source: Zillow.

Percentage of millennials who identify as savers, according to the TD Ameritrade Millennials and Money survey: 62

Percentage who have a budget: 80

Percentage who have an emergency fund: 51

Source: TD Ameritrade Holding Corp.

Percentage of human resources managers who said it's important for employees to have a high emotional quotient, because it helps them manage their own emotions and understand and react to the emotions of others, according to a survey by OfficeTeam: 95

Percentage of employees who believe EQ is more valuable in the workplace than IQ: 21

Percentage who said the two are equally important: 65

Source: OfficeTeam.

Percentage of women over the age of 25 who plan to have children but are postponing starting a family to focus on their career, compared to 79 percent of men, according to a CareerBuilder survey: 83

Rank of "wanting to earn and save enough money to provide for their family" on the list of the top reasons given by both women and men who plan to have children later on: 1

Rank of "the desire to become more established and get ahead in their career" on the list: 2

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

After safety in an accident, reliability, fuel economy and low running costs, percentage of the online population across 17 countries who see having the latest driver technology in a vehicle (e.g., steering or parking assist, adaptive cruise control, keyless entry or ignition) as "very important," according to global researcher GfK: 35

Percentage who say the same for the latest passenger technology (audio or video streaming, social network connectivity, etc.): 28

Source: GfK Custom Research North America.

Year that the case of Auguste Herman (born in Bohemia, in present-day Czech Republic, and not a British subject) became an item of government involvement as the Maryland colonial assembly approved his application for citizenship, potentially making him the first naturalized citizen in America: 1666

In today's population of over 322 million, estimated number of citizens who are foreign-born: 19 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Value of the global hybrid cars market in 2015, according to Transparency Market Research: $103 billion

Projected market value by 2024: $398 billion

Source: Transparency Market Research.

Idle Thought

"When a man is wrapped up in himself he makes a pretty small package." -- John Ruskin, author

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