Facts & Trends

American men are weighing in at an average of 196 pounds—16 pounds more than in 1990, a new Gallup survey has found.The average weight for women jumped 14 pounds—to 156 pounds— over the same period. Gallup estimates 62 percent of ...

"Women deprived of the company of men pine; men deprived of the company of women become stupid." - Anton Chekhov ...

According to the U.N., India has 13 of the world’s 20 most polluted cities. Low vehicle-emission standards, booming industrialization, crowded cities and the burning of trash means that the vast majority of Indians breathe unsafe air ...

Portion of the Indian Ocean that is underexplored by scientists because of pirates: 1/4 ...

A magnetic levitation passenger train set a world speed record of 375 m.p.h. (603 km/h) on a test track in Japan on April 21. Here are top operating speeds, in miles per hour, of some of the world’s other fastest ...

In 2011, the poorest 20 percent of Americans gave 3.2 percent of their income to charity.  The wealthiest 20 percent were far stingier, donating just 1.3 percent.  Researchers say those with less to share may have "higher empathy" because they're ...

Toxic air pollution in the Indian capital of Delhi has given some 2.2 million children irreversible lung damage, according to a 2010 study from the Kolkata-based Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute that surfaced this month. The report has raised fresh concerns ...

Delhi’s air now contains twice as much toxic matter as that of notoriously smoggy Beijing. The health impact has been disastrous, with children in Delhi now three times as likely as others in India to develop severe lung disorders ...

52: Number of unprovoked shark attacks in the U.S. last year (compared with 20 elsewhere in the world). None were fatal. 28: Number of attacks in Florida, the most of any state. Runners-up were Hawaii (seven), South Carolina (five), California (four) and ...

. . . painless budget cuts, after 14-year-old Suvir Mirchandani of Pittsburgh calculated that government agencies could save $370 million a year in ink and paper costs by printing all documents in the thinner Garamond typeface instead of Times New Roman ...