Percentage of Americans who haven't taken a vacation (defined as leisure travel of at least one week to a destination at least 100 miles from home) in the past 12 months, according to an Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of Allianz Global Assistance: 53

Among those for whom an annual vacation is important, percentage who haven't been on one for at least a year: 41

Source: Ipsos Reid Public Affairs.

Number of digital devices owned by the average American, according to a Nielsen report: 4

Percentage of consumers who report that they've bought or rented one or more TV shows digitally in the past six months: 50

Percentage of consumers who reported that they have shifted entirely to digital means for their TV and movie consumption: 12

Source: Nielsen Online.

Date that the American Bar Association was founded in Saratoga Springs, New York, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: Aug. 21, 1878

Number of attorneys from 21 states who were present at its first meeting: 100

Today, estimated number of lawyers there are in the U.S.: 1.28 million

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of Americans who have combined their finances in a current/past relationship who admit to committing "financial infidelity" against their partner, according to a survey conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of the National Endowment for Financial Education: 42

Percentage who say that when financial deceptions occur there is an effect on the relationship: 75

Source: The Harris Poll.

When Americans were asked, "What is your No. 1 cause of financial stress?" percentage who cited "paying off my debt" (i.e., credit cards, loans, etc.), according to a survey commissioned by GOBankingRates: 21

Percentage who were anxious about not being able to retire: 16

Source: GoBankingRates.com.

Known as "continuous candidates," percentage of employees across the globe who are always looking for their next job opportunity, according to a global study conducted by ManpowerGroup Solutions: 37

Percentage of continuous candidates in Mexico and the United States, far exceeding the global average: 50 and 41, respectively

Percentage of continuous candidates who are millennials (18 to 34 years old): 60

Source: Source: ManpowerGroup.

Percentage of students who have at least one credit card, according to a study from Sallie Mae and Ipsos: 56

Percentage of students who pay their bills on time: 77

Percentage who never spend more money than they have available: 60

Source: Sallie Mae.

When families were asked in advance of actual back-to-school shopping if they will follow a school-provided list, percentage of moms who said either "completely" or "very closely," according to a poll by Field Agent: 67

Percentage of moms who said clothing topped their shopping lists of items they intend to purchase for the new school year: 96

Source: Field Agent.

Number of smartphones in use today, according to CCS Insight: 3.3 billion

Estimated number in the year 2020: 5.4 billion

Source: CCS Insight.

Percentage of working Americans who state they are saving more for retirement than they were last year, the highest level reported in the past five years, according to research by Bankrate.com: 21

Number of working Americans this percentage represents: 31 million

Source: Bankrate.com.

Idle Thought

"Kindness is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." -- Mark Twain

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

Ranks of Germany ($53,619), United States ($48,270), Australia ($47,397), Netherlands ($45,626) and the United Kingdom ($39,946) on the list of countries with the highest salaries for new university graduates across the globe, according to an analysis of entry-level professional salaries by the Hay Group division of Korn Ferry: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Ranks of the Russian Federation ($8,448), Brazil ($11,306), China ($11,936), Mexico ($12,433) and the Czech Republic ($13,040) on the list of countries with the lowest salaries for new university graduates: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Source: Korn/Ferry International.

Estimated number of extra days of work per year put in by managers, effectively canceling out the typical holiday entitlement of 28 days, according to CMI's Quality of Working Life report: 29

Percentage of managers who say their working hours have a negative effect on their stress levels: 54

Source: Global Wellness Institute.

Percentage of Americans who feel immigration is good for the economy, the largest percentage to date, and a 13-point increase from 23 percent in 2011, according to the findings of the Ipsos Global @dvisor Immigration tracker 2011-2016: 36

Percentage of Americans who feel immigrants play a positive role in the community, up from 18 percent in 2011 and nearly six times that of Turkish and Hungarian citizens, where just 6 percent believe immigration has had a positive impact on their country: 35

Percentage of Americans who are confident that refugees will successfully integrate into the U.S.: 53

Source: Ipsos Public Affairs.

Percentage of senior managers who said they find it annoying when parents are involved in their kids' search for work, according to an OfficeTeam survey: 35

Percentage of respondents who prefer mom and dad stay out of the job hunt, but would let it slide: 34

Percentage who said this parental guidance is not a problem: 29

Source: OfficeTeam.

Number of foreign-born U.S. residents in 1967, with Italy as the leading country of origin, according to the U.S. Census Bureau: 9.6 million

Percentage of the population this represented: 4.7

Number of foreign-born U.S. residents in 2016, with Mexico as the leading country of origin: 42.4 million

Percentage of the population this represents: 13.3

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of workers who say they would struggle to meet emergency expenses of $400, according to a survey of household economics and decision making commissioned by the Federal Reserve Board: 46

Percentage who say they are juggling two or more jobs: 22

Source: Federal Reserve Board.

Rank of the back-to-school shopping season on the list of the largest shopping periods of the year in terms of consumer spending, according to the statistics company Statista: 2

Rank of the winter holidays: 1

Source: Statista.

Percentage of respondents who say they reach for a bottle after a breakup, according to a Harris Poll: 40

Ranks of wine (53 percent) -- with 38 percent reaching for sparkling wine and 37 percent for table -- liquor (46 percent) and beer (41 percent) on the list of drinks chosen when it comes to celebrating something special: 1, 2, 3

When it comes to a plain old really good day, ranks of beer (40 percent), wine (33 percent) and liquor (27 percent) on the list of drinks of choice: 1, 2, 3

Source: The Harris Poll.

Percentage of Americans who said they would be uncomfortable driving in a foreign country on the opposite side of the road, according to the results of the Expedia 2016 Road Rage Report: 68

Percentage who "somewhat or strongly agree" with the statement, "I treat my rental car worse than I treat my own car": 15

Percentage of drivers who resent having to share the road with bicycles: 13

Source: Expedia.

Rank of Vina del Mar, Chile, with an average annual high temperature of 66.2 degrees Fahrenheit and yearly average nighttime low of 55.1 degrees, and with only slight variation in temperature throughout all the months of a given year, on the list of the best weather places in the world for humans, according to an article by Ed Darack published in Weatherwise: 1

Ranks of Las Palmas, Gran Canaria; the northwestern coast of Morocco; Sassari, Sardinia, Italy; Barcelona, Spain; and Lisbon, Portugal, on the list of the Best Weather Cities around the world: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Source: Weatherwise.

Idle Thought

"I love America more than any other country in this world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually." -- James Baldwin, writer

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

Date that one of the engines of business and personal life in the 21st century, the World Wide Web, was announced by two innovators at the Cern Laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland, according to Profile America: Aug. 6, 1991

In 1994, number of sites that were on the web: 2,700

In 1997, number of sites: 1 million

Today, number of sites estimated to be on the web: 1 billion

Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Percentage of workers who said they are always able to see the connection between their duties and their firm's performance, according to a Robert Half Management survey: 47

Percentage who also said they want greater insights on how their efforts affect the bottom line: 53

Percentage of respondents who noted they rarely or never see how their work affects the organization: 14

Source: Robert Half Management Resources.

Percentage of U.S. car owners who would like a feature that enables a connected car to communicate with the Internet-connected devices in their home, such as smart garage door openers and door sensors, according to a survey by Parks Associates: 27

Source: Parks Associates.

Percentage of employers in information technology who have argued with a co-worker about political candidates, according to a survey on behalf of CareerBuilder: 47

Ranks of manufacturing (37 percent), professional and business services (30), financial services (29), health care (24) and retail (23) on the list of fields in which employers argue about politics: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Percentage of workers who believe the workplace has become too politically correct in America: 50

Percentage of employers who say the same: 59

Source: CareerBuilder.com.

On average, amount that parents will spend for clothing, accessories, school supplies, computers and other electronics for their children this year, according to the 2016 Back-to-School Survey by Deloitte: $488

Average amount spent for those who start shopping by the end of July, compared with $424 for those starting in August or later: $537

Source: Deloitte.

Percentage of Americans who said they planned to watch a "great deal" or "fair amount" of the 2016 Summer Olympics, according to a Gallup Poll: 48

Percentage of respondents who knew the Olympics would be held in Rio, with an additional 17 percent correctly identifying Brazil as the host nation: 46

Source: Gallup Organization.

Percentage of non-retired Americans who say they have saved at least a portion of their income in the prior year, according to the Federal Reserve Board: 68

Percentage of adults who report that their income varies to some degree from month to month: 32

Percentage who say their monthly expenses vary to some degree: 43

Percentage of those with volatile incomes or expenses who say they have struggled to pay their bills at times: 42

Source: Federal Reserve Board.

Even after he was announced as Hillary Clinton's pick for vice president, percentage of Americans who still hadn't heard of Tim Kaine, according to an Ipsos poll: 25

Percentage who hadn't heard of GOP VP hopeful Mike Pence: 25

Percentage who said they had heard of Mitch Kellogg, a fictitious public figure: 7

Source: Ipsos North America.

Percentage of Americans who say their mobile devices are digital portals to inspiration, according to research from AT&T: 71

Percentage of respondents who say mobile technology facilitates inspiration: 80

Source: AT&T Inc.

Idle Thought

"Hatred is the most accessible and comprehensive of all the unifying agents. Mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a God, but never without belief in a devil." -- Eric Hoffer, philosopher and author

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