Fires are natural - most of the time (click on image for larger view). Natural Global Fires Many plants and animals have evolved to depend on fires periodically occurring in certain parts of the world. This phenomenon has been occurring for... [Read more...]

Surprising results For purposes of this article, any mention of homicide rates refers to reported homicide rates. Open vs Closed In mostly open countries (full democracies), the homicide rates are rather low when compared to other types of... [Read more...]

The rushing game is slowly disappearing. Heave That Sucker When it doubt, chunk the pigskin. Whether you like it or not, NFL (National Football League) teams are relying upon passing more and more. Looking at the above chart, the average p... [Read more...]

By 2030, we will have found approximately 10,000 exoplanets. "If it is just us... seems like an awful waste of space." -- from the movie Contact (1997) based on the book Contact by Carl Sagan. By the year 2030, it's possible that over ten th... [Read more...]

Full democracy countries are the ones in which to live. This week's story could start and end with the above graph with almost no further explanation. But that wouldn't do it justice. So, like so many of the past articles on "Graph o... [Read more...]

Smaller countries lead the way. When you think of 'high-tech', which countries come to mind? What is 'High-Tech'? Before continuing, what is meant by the term 'high-tech'? As defined by the World Data Bank, high-technology exports ar... [Read more...]

Data represents all planes (not just commercial planes) for the United States "There are only two emotions on a plane: boredom and terror." -- Orson Welles, interview to celebrate his 70th birthday, The Times of London, 6 May 1985. ... [Read more...]

Tax rates were higher in the past... Joe derisively snorted at the pay stub in his hand. Crumpling it into a ball, he wound up like a baseball pitcher and fast-balled the wad of paper across the room. It bounced unsatisfyi... [Read more...]

Prior to WWII, the majority of soldiers died from disease and infection. The Invisible Enemy Often Killed You Before Your Political Enemy Imagine the scene: thousands of military men laying on cots, makeshift beds, or the floor ... [Read more...]

Something about that cold weather... The number of internet users in the Nordic countries has greatly outpaced the world by comparison. Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland - all in the elite echelon. These countries share a common ancestry -... [Read more...]

Description: Winning percentage of all NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Champions. Analysis: Down by one, the ball spins in his hand as he dribbles up the floor. With tennis shoes squeaking, he feints left, then right. Glancing up at the clock,... [Read more...]

Description: Yearly average airline fare since 1995. Data: http://www.bts.gov/ Analysis: When taking the average price of domestic airline fares, there is a clear trend indicating that flying is becoming more affordable - when adjusted for infl... [Read more...]

Description: Yearly production of Ethanol in the United States since 1980. Data: http://www.ethanolrfa.org/ Analysis: When it comes to fuel - especially for transportation - oil is king. In 2010, the United States imported 180.8 billion gallons ... [Read more...]

Description: Major League Baseball payrolls for all teams since 1985. The New York Yankees payroll is highlighted with results defined by the shape of the point.Data:http://www.baseball-databank.org/ Analysis: For years fans of Major League Baseball (MLB) have been crying 'foul!' at the New York Yankees regarding ... [Read more...]

Description: Number of blogs aggregated into the R-Bloggers news site. Data: https://www.r-bloggers.com/ Analysis: R-Bloggers is a website devoted to news and tutorials related to the R programming language. The content is generated by a growing ... [Read more...]

Description: Average age of passenger cars and light trucks in the United States since 1995. The gray area represents the possible variance of the trend line with 95% confidence. Data: https://www.polk.com/company/news/average_age_of_vehicles_... [Read more...]

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