We humans

By the numbers

May 2, 2014 /

 

numbers-v6

$1.26 million in change is tossed into Rome’s Trevi Fountain each year.
Legend has it that throwing a penny into the fountain guarantees the visitor a return trip to Rome. The city council donates the funds to Caritas, a major Catholic charity. [via Chicago Tribune]

1 ice cream shop serves all of Rwanda. Its name: Sweet Dreams.
Sweet Dreams started as a project to employ women but has since evolved into a project to tackle the country’s cultural taboo of eating on the street, says co-founder Alexis Miesen. [via NPR]

51 percent of Americans are skeptical that the Big Bang theory accurately explains the origin of the Universe.
A survey conducted by the Associated Press and GfK also found wavering confidence in research on global warming, the Earth’s age and human evolution. [via the AP]

20­40 Hz is the frequency at which brain waves synchronize smell and memory.
A team of Norwegian researchers has identified the process by which a smell can spark a memory. This latest study is a big step towards understanding how our noses and our brain work in tandem. [via Science Daily]

69.6 percent of all email sent in 2013 was spam.
Here’s the alarming thing about this figure: that’s down 2.5% on previous years — and it’s the first time in a long time it’s dipped below 70%. [via Kapersky Security Bulletin]

31 percent of Americans aged 18-34 still live with their parents.
The economic downturn hit young adults especially hard — only 62.9% of 20-24-year-olds had jobs in March of 2013, compared to about 70% in the spring before the recession hit in 2008. [via Trulia]