Percentage of credit card holders who will use rewards points to pay for their summer vacations, according to a report from CompareCards.com: 64

Percentage of credit card holders who said they expect credit card rewards to cover more than half of their summer vacation costs in 2019: 20

Source: CompareCards.

Percentage of U.S. millennials who say it's important to live in the moment, according to a Kahlua survey: 90

Percentage who say they have missed an important moment because they were trying to capture it on social media: 60

Percentage who say it is important to them that their photos get likes: 60

Percentage of millennials who check for likes a minute or less after posting: 34

Source: Kahlua.

Percentage of managers who were "confident that all employees had a clear understanding of the company's mission and vision," according to an industry-wide survey by Betterworks: 33

Percentage who felt their senior leaders lived the stated values: 39

Source: Betterworks.

Percentage of Americans who get into fights about household chores, according to the results of a survey by TaskRabbit, conducted in partnership with Wakefield Research: 78

Percentage who have gotten into an argument with a roommate, friend, family member or significant other over "the right way" to clean things: 46

Percentage who reported heated debate about the right way to assemble furniture: 27

Percentage who struggled to find common ground on the best way to fold laundry: 23

Source: TaskRabbit.

According to a Harris Poll/LEGO survey conducted in the U.S., U.K. and China, percentage of children age 8 to 12 who say they are interested in space exploration, with 90% responding that they'd like to learn more about it: 86

Percentage of parents (averaged across the three countries) who participated in the survey who believe their children are interested in space, citing teachers and the internet as primary learning sources: 83

Source: The LEGO Group.

Estimated number of people who did not have enough to eat in 2018 -- 1 in 9 people -- according to the annual report The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World: 821.6 million

Number in Asia: 513.9 million

Numbe in Africa: 256.1 million

Number in Latin America and the Caribbean: 42.5 million

Number of people who are moderately or severely food insecure: 2 billion

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Percentage of Americans who prefer quick getaways of three nights or less vs. a longer vacation, according to a survey by online travel site Hotwire: 90

Percentage who prefer a quick weekend trip to a quick roll in the hay: 75

Source: Hotwire.

On average, amount more that IT professionals with critical skills are earning this year, compared to 2018, according to findings in the Global Knowledge 2019 IT Skills and Salary Report: $5,000

Percentage of professionals who said that after completing certification training, their expertise is more sought after within their organization: 52

Percentage who report that they have implemented efficiency projects: 45

Source: Global Knowledge.

Percentage of users of ad blockers who say they would avoid a company's website if that company targeted them with ads, according to a new survey report from portfolio website Visual Objects: 45

Percentage of ad blocker users who say data collection in online advertising is an invasion of privacy: 63

Source: Visual Objects.

Percentage of employers who said they are more open to hiring interim workers to bridge gaps while looking for a full-time employee than they were two years ago, according to a Robert Half survey: 53

Percentage of managers who would consider a long period of consistent work as comparable to full time when evaluating applicants: 71

Source: Robert Half Management Resources.

Idle Thought

"It's best to give while your hand is still warm." -- Philip Roth, novelist

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

Ranks of Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Orlando on the list of the most visited American destinations, according to a study by PGAV Destinations and H2R Market Research: 1, 2, 3

Ranks of Disney World, Disneyland, the Grand Canyon, the Statue of Liberty and New York City on the list of the top five attractions that inspire a foreign traveler's visit to America: 1, 2, 3, 4 (tie)

Source: PGAV Destinations/H2R Market Research.

Percentage of Americans who said that they cook every single day, according to the Cooking at Home Report by June: 20

Percentage who said that they cook four or more times per week: 50

Percentage of men who said they considered cooking a desirable quality in a date: 86

Percentage of women who agreed: 89

Source: June.

Percentage of workers who save their vacation time for June, July and August, according to an Accountemps survey: 58

Average number of days respondents plan to take off this summer: 10

Source: Accountemps.

Percentage of Americans between the ages of 18 and 53 who went into debt to pay for their wedding, according to a study by Lending Tree: 45

Of those, percentage who say they argued about wedding-related expenses with their partner: 76

Percentage of those who avoided wedding debt who said the same: 20

Source: Lending Tree.

Percentage of homeowners who do not know what their homeowners insurance policies cover, according to a study by ValuePenguin.com: 47

Percentage who wrongfully think their policy covers flooding: 34

Percentage of homeowners who have never reviewed their policies, even at the point of purchase: 18

Source: ValuePenguin.com.

Percentage of people who are already weighted blanket believers, according to a survey by Tranquility: 10

Percentage of respondents who say they would try a weighted blanket to help them relax and sleep better: 22

Percentage of people who self-identify as snugglers, vs. only 12% who say they are definitely not a snuggler: 59

Source: Tranquility.

Percentage of the most popular summer vacation destinations this year that are made up of hot spots like Las Vegas, Orlando, San Diego and Los Angeles, according to an Expedia survey: 25

Whether a road trip, or a flight with family or a significant other this summer, number of hours that travelers are willing to spend in transit: 5 to 10

Source: Expedia.

Estimated percentage of Americans who have a favorable view of NASA, according to a poll conducted by Ipsos on behalf of C-SPAN: 75

Percentage who agree that space exploration "is necessary": 66

Ranks of scientific discoveries, inspires young people and helps monitor natural disasters on the list of reasons to continue the space program: 1, 2, 3

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Rank of The Leela Palace in Udaipur, India, on the list of the world's best hotels, according to the Meredith Corporation's Travel and Leisure's "World's Best Awards 2019": 1

Ranks of Hoi An, Vietnam; San Miguel de Allende, Mexico; and Chiang Mai, Thailand, on the list of the world's top cities for travel: 1, 2, 3

Ranks of Mexico City, Mexico; Ubud, Indonesia; Tokyo, Japan; Kyoto, Japan; and Florence, Italy, on the list: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

Source: Meredith Corp.

Percentage of employees who say they are likely to participate in an employer-provided job retraining program, according to a survey report by Clutch: 70

Ranks of classes and workshops (19%), tuition assistance for classes (19%) and job shadowing (13%) on the list of job development opportunities employees desire: 1 (tie), 3

Percentage of employees who are offered job retraining who say they are satisfied with the programs their employer provides: 70

Source: Clutch.

Idle Thought

"It is better to prevent crimes than to punish them." -- Cesare Beccaria, philosopher and politician

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

Percentage of Americans who have helped entertain other travelers' children, according to a survey by Expedia: 21

Percentage who believe politely speaking with a seat kicker is the best way to address this annoyance: 45

Percentage who wouldn't even do anything because they assume it's not intentional: 16

Source: Expedia.

Percentage of people responding to a survey by Realtor.com who indicated that they would choose to save their sanity by compromising various home features, including lot size, square footage and style of the home, in order to reduce their commute time: 85

Percentage of the respondents who are looking to reduce their commute time by up to 45 minutes: 40

Source: Realtor.com.

Percentage more of their time that employees say they spend on collaborative work than they did 20 years ago, according to research from Eagle Hill Consulting: 50

Percentage of American workers who say that projects take longer and are more frustrating when working on teams: 55

Percentage of workers who indicate team projects yield better outcomes: 68

Percentage who say they are more fun: 61

Source: Eagle Hill Consulting.

Percentage of Americans who admit to binge drinking on the Fourth of July, according to Alcohol.org: 57

Percentage of American men who admitted to driving while blackout drunk, compared to 12% of women who said the same, according to a study on drinking and driving habits by American Addiction Centers: 24

Percentage of respondents who admitted they were a passenger of a drunk driver: 50

Source: American Addiction Centers.

Percentage of medical residents who would prefer to practice in communities of 10,000 people or fewer, according to a report by Merritt, Hawkins and Associates: 1

Percentage who would prefer to practice in communities of 25,000 people or fewer: 2

Percentage who would prefer communities of 250,000 or more: 65

Source: Merritt, Hawkins and Associates.

Percentage of parents who have not been able to save anything for their child's education, with 4 in 10 parents admitting that having a child is more expensive than they anticipated, according to a survey from Country Financial: 30

Percentage of parents who predict/report that their contribution will cover 81 to 100 percent of their child's education: 18

Percentage who said they predict they'll be able to cover, or were able to cover, 60 percent or less of their child's college education costs: 60

Source: Country Financial.

Percentage of U.S. travelers who are planning road trips this summer, according to a survey by TripAdvisor: 60

Percentage who will be heading to a beach/ocean, the most popular trip type: 22

Source: TripAdvisor.

Percentage of American adults who identify a civility problem in society, according to a survey by Weber Shandwick and Powell Tate: 93

Percentage of Americans who say that, in their experience, the impact of social media on civility has been more negative than positive: 63

Percentage of Americans who work with others who describe their place of employment as very or somewhat civil: 89

Source: Weber Shandwick.

Estimated number of people who are suffering from drug use disorders that require treatment services, according to a study from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime: 35 million

Estimated number of people who injected drugs in 2017, 1.4 million of whom are living with HIV, and 5.6 million with hepatitis C: 11 million

Estimated amount of cocaine manufactured (chiefly in South America) in 2017, an all-time high: 2,000 tons

Estimated number of people worldwide who used drugs in 2017: 271 million

Number of reported synthetic opiod overdoses in the U.S. in 2017, centered around Fentanyl and similar drugs: 51,000

Source: UN News Centre.

Percentage of CFOs who expect an economic downturn by the end of 2020, according to a Deloitte survey: 84

Percentage who expect it to be mild: 80

Percentage who say they expect a U.S. downturn in the next two years: 97

Source: Deloitte.

Idle Thought

"Don't ask me who's influenced me. A lion is made up of the lambs he's digested, and I've been reading all my life." -- Giorgos Seferis, writer, diplomat, Nobel laureate

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