Figuratively Speaking

3

MACINTYRE 7/31/11

Percentage of shift workers who believe that they are negatively impacted by their shift work and report issues associated with work productivity, negative emotions, concern about sex life and decreased time spent with family, according to the Men's Health Network: 79

Percentage of shift workers who want a change in job or hours, but who don't think it will be possible in the near future: 52

Percentage who feel that they will have the same job until they retire: 44

Source: Men's Health Network.

Year the ice cream sundae was introduced by Wisconsin druggist Edward Berners to skirt the strict Sabbath laws of the time, according to the Census Bureau: 1881

Year the ice cream cone became popular at the St. Louis World's Fair: 1904

Average number of pounds of frozen dairy products eaten by Americans each year: 25

Source: Census Bureau.

Number of coupons marketers distributed in 2010 -- the largest single-year distribution quantity ever recorded in the United States, according to a report released by Valassis: 332 billion

Percentage growth in grocery coupon redemption volume in 2010 compared to the prior year, and up 29.4 percent since 2006: 10

Source: Valassis.

Percentage of all Americans -- and even more parents -- who admit they can't afford to be sidelined by health issues for three months or more, according to an Anthem Blue Cross survey: 50

Estimated number of lost work hours per year in America, due to stress and health problems: 2.8 million

Odds that a new worker will experience a long-term disability before retirement, according to the Council for Disability Awareness: 1-in-3

Source: Blue Cross.

Percentage of adults who report that they recycle, according to a national survey conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs on behalf of Yesterday's News: 87

Percentage who say they recycle every day: 51

Percentage who admit that they never recycle: 13

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Rank of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2" on the list of films with the highest presale of all time, eclipsing all other movie releases, according to movietickets.com: 1

Number of other Harry Potter films on the top 10 list: 3

Source: Movietickets.com.

Amount lost by U.S. workers in earnings annually, including $7.2 billion in earnings from workers in the copyright industry or "downstream" retail industries, and $9.1 billion in earnings by workers in other U.S. industries due to offshore rogue websites distributing illegal, pirated content and counterfeit goods, according to the Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI): $16.3 billion

Estimated amount lost by the U.S. government in tax revenues annually, including $1.8 billion in personal income tax and $800 million in lost corporate income and production taxes: $2.6 billion

Source: Institute for Policy Innovation.

Average self-reported daily consumer spending in stores, restaurants, gas stations and online per day during June, according to a Gallup poll: $69

Average upper-income daily consumer spending (among Americans making $90,000 or more annually) in June: $124

Source: Gallup Organization.

Percentage of dieters who were unable to keep the weight off past six months, according to a national survey by the Calorie Control Council: 66

Over a 12-month period, percentage of all dieters who attempted two or more weight-loss efforts: 50

Rank of "not enough exercise" (69 percent), "metabolism slowing" (62 percent) and "too much snacking" (52 percent) on the list of obstacles to achieving a healthy weight: 1, 2, 3

Source: Calorie Control Council.

Idle Thought

"Lying to ourselves is more deeply ingrained than lying to others." -- Fyodor Dostoyevsky

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

In the past year, number of American adults -- 10 percent of the U.S. adult population -- who purchased a coupon from an online site such as Groupon or LivingSocial, according to a survey conducted for the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants: 23 million

Percentage of coupons that were used for needed items: 49

Source: American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Percentage of men who actually confessed to wearing their underwear two or three times between washes, according to a survey by the makers of Clorox Bleach: 12.5

Percentage of men who rely on a "sniff" test to determine if their clothes are fresh enough to wear, justifying their habit of wearing garments multiple times before washing: 49

Source: Clorox.

Percentage of travelers who think that people often violate some form of beach or pool etiquette, according to the results of the annual beach and pool etiquette survey by TripAdvisor: 74

Percentage who have asked a stranger to stop behaving rudely at the beach or pool: 26

Percentage of respondents who said blasting loud music is the most annoying poolside etiquette violation: 21

Percentage who said beach chair hogging: 18

Source: TripAdvisor.

When it comes to how well workers' education prepared them for their current position, percentage of full-time workers who said that while their education helped, they learned most of their skills on the job, according to an Ipsos Public Affairs-Randstad survey: 50

Percentage of workers who wished that they had more skills -- "hard skills" such as a degree or knowledge of a trade or industry and/or "soft" skills such as emotional, social, leadership and organizational intelligence: 62

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of motorists who cite checking tire pressure as a top fuel-saving tip: 75

Percentage of male motorists who properly check tire pressure: 20

Percentage of female motorists who properly check tire pressure: 9

Number of gallons of fuel wasted annually due to underinflated tires: 1.2 billion

Source: Rubber Manufacturers Association.

Percentage of adults who said they knew someone who had used paid sick time for reasons other than an illness, such as extending their summer vacation, according to a survey commissioned from Opinion Research Corp. and released by the Employment Policies Institute: 51

Percentage of respondents who said they had personally used sick leave for non-medical reasons: 21 (27 percent of males and 16 percent of females)

Source: Opinion Research Corp.

Century when roller coasters were first chronicled as ice slides in Russia, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 15th

In the U.S., year that the first modern roller coaster opened at Coney Island, N.Y., built by Lamarcus Thompson, and called "the gravity pleasure switchback railway": 1884

Number of minutes the ride lasted: 1

Today, estimated number of amusement parks across the nation: 634

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of pet owners who say they consider their pet to be a member of their family, according to a survey by Harris Interactive: 91

Percentage of pet owners who say they frequently let their pet sleep in the bed with them: 57

Percentage of pet owners who frequently purchase holiday presents for their pet: 33

Source: Harris Interactive.

Across all backgrounds, ranks of education, the state of the economy, an individual's own skills and a person's income level on the list of factors considered the most important for success in America: 1, 2, 3, 4

Percentage of respondents who believe that a person's racial or ethnic background is important: 2

Source: Allstate Insurance Co.

Percentage of non-retired U.S. investors (defined as those having $10,000 or more of investable assets) who say the cost of health care is a major determinant of when they retire, according to the Wells Fargo/Gallup Investor and Retirement Optimism Index poll: 72

Percentage of non-retired investors who say being located near good medical facilities will be a major factor in determining where they will live in retirement: 60

Percentage of non-retirees who said low state and/or local real estate taxes would have an impact on where they would retire: 52

Source: Gallup.

Idle Thought

"A candle loses nothing of its light by lighting another candle." -- Anonymous

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

Percentage of Americans who say the higher education system in the U.S. fails to provide students with good value for the money they and their families spend, according to a Pew Research Center survey: 57

Percentage who say college is too expensive for most Americans to afford: 75

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

Percentage of men who feel it is hard to get going in the morning, according a survey conducted by StrategyOne on behalf of Schick Xtreme3: 70

Percentage who indicate they don't wake up with a feeling that they are ready for the day ahead: 43

Percentage of men who say they need to be refreshed after putting in too many hours at the office: 58

Source: Strategy One.

Percentage of Americans who said that if they could have only one child, they would prefer that it be a boy, according to a Gallup Poll: 40

Percentage who would rather have a girl: 28

Percentage who have no preference: 32

Percentage of American men who favor a boy over a girl: 49

Percentage of American women who say they would prefer a boy: 31

Source: Gallup.

Percentage of managers who said they weren't ready to become a leader when they started managing others, according to a CareerBuilder survey: 26

Percentage who said they didn't receive any management training: 58

When asked what the biggest challenge is as a manager, percentage of managers who said dealing with issues between co-workers on my team: 25

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

Year of the first criminal case in the U.S. in which fingerprint evidence was admitted into court when burglary suspect Caesar Cella was convicted by prints identified by Detective Sergeant Joseph Faurot: 1911

Rank of the use of DNA samples from crime scenes on the list of the fastest growing area of forensic evidence: 1

Number of federal or state prisoners whose convictions were based this evidence: 1.6 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of senior leaders and hiring managers in America's Fortune 500 and other large companies (5,000 employees or more) who said their companies primarily engage in virtual teaming as a way to reduce travel and real estate expenses, according to a study conducted on behalf of Brandman University by Forrester Consulting: 61

Percentage who also use it as a way to recruit high-quality talent regardless of geography: 59

Source: Brandman University.

Percentage of advertising and marketing executives who said entry-level candidates have unrealistic career expectations, according to a survey by The Creative Group: 36

Percentage of respondents who said those who want to land a job should be prepared to ace the interview, as that meeting carries the most weight when evaluating applicants for entry-level advertising or marketing roles: 35

Ranks of resume, portfolio, references, social media presence and experience on the list of attributes considered most important when hiring an entry-level advertising or marketing professional: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Source: The Creative Group.

Percentage of U.S. consumers who report being aware of the recent news released by the World Health Organization that extensive cellphone use can increase possible cancer risk, according to a survey conducted by TNS: 80

Percentage of respondents who said they would decrease the overall usage of their cellphones: 8

Percentage who said they were now considering the purchase of a hands-free device: 8

Source: TNS.

Ranks of American, Spanish, Italian and Brazilian on the list of nationalities "best at making people laugh," according to a poll conducted by Badoo.com: 1, 2, 3, 4

Ranks of German, Russian and Turkish on the list of nationalities least able to make people laugh: 1, 2, 3

Rank of Americans on the list of the world's funniest nationality, as the folks who brought us not just sitcoms like "Friends" and "The Simpsons," but innumerable great comedians as well: 1

Source: Badoo.

While watching TV, percentage of Americans who also surf the Internet, according to findings of an Adweek/Harris Poll: 56

Percentage who read a book, magazine or newspaper: 44

Percentage who go on a social networking site: 40

Percentage who text on their mobile phone: 37

Source: Harris Interactive.

Idle Thought

"The liar's punishment is not in the least that he is not believed, but that he cannot believe anyone else." -- George Bernard Shaw

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