People List 54 Statistics That Made Them See The World In A Different Light

Remembering all the math I did in high school, I can only say that looking at numbers can be confusing. Or just boring. But sometimes, they can offer you a better understanding of the world than a news show. And in a much more entertaining fashion, too.

In October, Redditor u/alexbbtkd asked other platform users, "What's a crazy statistic?" and has received plenty of answers. We've combed through all of them and picked out the most surprising ones just to broaden your horizons. So put on your smarty pants, get a notebook, and enjoy!

#1

There are more combinations in a 52 deck of cards than stars in the known universe.

Image credits: GuccGunBushWacker97

#2

The top 10% of drinkers account 60% of all alcohol consumed in the US. And they drink the equivalent of 74 drinks per week.

So the entire alcoholic beverages industry is kept alive by severe alcoholics.

Image credits: WaTar42

#3

1 in 3 Australians will be diagnosed with a skin cancer by the time they're 70.

Edit. Google search actually says (multiple times) that "at least 2 in 3 will be diagnosed with skin cancer by 70"

F*ck.

Image credits: romilliad

#4

You are more likely to be bitten by a stranger in New York City than by a shark anywhere else in the nation.

You are more likely to be killed by a vending machine than by a shark.

What we can learn from this is that strange vending machines in NYC should be avoided at all cost

Image credits: rhett342

#5

That you can fit all the planets in our solar system between the Earth and the Moon and still have some room spare.

Mind blown

Image credits: Aggsthen

#6

We are closer in time to the birth of Cleopatra than she was to the construction of the Great Pyramid

Image credits: TonyHerbs

#7

If you were to compress earth’s existence into a 24 hour day, life would first appear at 4am, plants would first appear at 10pm, dinosaurs from about 11pm-11:40pm, and humans emerge at 11:59pm.

From Bill Bryson’s “A Short History of Nearly Everything”

Image credits: justf*ckinwitya

#8

39% of the world's population is overweight and that number is only getting "bigger"

Image credits: Crazylivykid

#9

There are approximately 78,000,000,000,000 000,000 atoms in a grain of sand.

Image credits: MinerDy

#10

Statistics show that men have about a one in two chance of developing cancer during their lifetime, while women have a one in three chance.

Image credits: LookingSuspect

#11

The most common cause of death for pregnant women is homicide

Image credits: possiblyhysterical

#12

In the US, you are more likely to be killed by a cow than you are to be killed by a coyote.

Image credits: [deleted]

#13

One third of adults still sleep with a comfort object

Image credits: real_Tfilms

#14

60% of people with Bipolar disorder are unemployed

Image credits: [deleted]

#15

More energy from the sun hits Earth every hour than the planet uses in a year.

Image credits: Redshift_1

#16

The U.S government has 'misplaced' six thermonuclear warheads. They were either lost or stolen in transit and at this juncture, one of the largest nuclear superpowers in the world has no idea where they are.

Image credits: CaptainExplosions

#17

Broccoli has more protein per calorie than a steak.

Image credits: NuttyNatterer

#18

Men are about 7 times more as successful at suicide than women.

Image credits: adamsbrad47

#19

That there are A LOT more empty homes in the US than there are homeless people.

Image credits: JethroKirby

#20

If you were born in 1923 in the Soviet Union as a male, you would have an 80% chance of dying in world war II.

Image credits: Proud-Pain-7064

#21

According to the FBI, there are currently more than 25 active serial killers in the US

Image credits: timelizard13

#22

One in 4 people have had sex at work

Image credits: FatesCause

#23

86% of British people live within 8 miles from where they were born.

Image credits: Jasonhopkins99

#24

More first responders and survivors have now died due to 9/11 related illnesses than the number lost at Ground Zero on the day of the attack. The number will continue to rise because of the huge amount of health problems caused by the dust and smoke that everyone in the surrounding areas inhaled when/after the towers fell.

Image credits: jodaqua

#25

40% of cops are domestic abusers

#26

That the Catholic Church hid a (now self) reported 8.4 child rapes per day for over 71 years.

Image credits: northsidemassive

#27

20% of produce and fruit in the usa is never sold and is left to rot

Image credits: qmrk346

#28

There is more actual lemon in Lemon Pledge cleaner than there is in Country Time lemonade

Image credits: jackof47trades

#29

Sharks predate trees by 100 million years…

Image credits: minnow99

#30

As many as 95 percent of millennials are "not saving adequately" for retirement

Image credits: Icy-Beach-5878

#31

One in seven Americans receives food from food banks or similar sources.

Image credits: deqb

#32

Statistically the deadliest job in the US is president

#33

The average drunk driver has likely drove under the influence 80 times before arrest.

#34

Humans only eat 40% of all the corn produced in the world. The remaining 60% is used in a wide variety of products, from fuel to toothpaste.

#35

The average person is a 28 year old Chinese man

#36

It is estimated that bears kill over two million salmon a year. Attacks by salmon on bears are much more rare.

Image credits: triclops47

#37

Human life expectancy has increased more rapidly in the past 50 years than in the past 200,000 years.

#38

One in 36 boys has autism

#39

You actually lose money when you put it in savings accounts because the apy (annual percentage yeild) does not match inflation of the dollar.

To put it simply. You put 100 dollars into a savings account on January 1 2020 with the national average apy of .05% and leave it for one year. Your interest will have gained you 5 cents. In that same year, the US dollar inflated (lost buying power) by 1.23% It may appear as if you had a gain as your balance shows 100.05 however that amount now has the same buying power as 98.82 one year ago.

#40

You spend about 2yrs being hungover.

#41

you are 5x more likely to get struck by lightning than be 7ft tall

Image credits: Zealousideal_Ear4423

#42

Our galaxy is about 100,000 light years across, and there are about 2 Trillion galaxies in the observable universe.

#43

The human brain processes visual information in 13 milliseconds, which is apparently 60,000 times faster than processing text

#44

35 percent of all US dollars were printed in the last 12 months

#45

40% of homeless are employed.

#46

Humans, (Homo sapien sapien), appeared on earth ~200,000 yrs. ago and didn't reach a population of 1 billion until 1804. About one hundred years later, 1920's, there were 2 billion. We now add a billion people to the planet every 12 years.

#47

The global rate for washing hands after using the toilet is under 20%

#48

1 out of 25 people are sociopaths. No automatic sense of empathy.

#49

How you are more likely to die in your bathtub than a roller coaster

#50

A fire will double in volume every 14 seconds given unlimited fuel.

#51

80% of Australia’s population live around the coastal areas.

#52

The United States "land of the free" incarcerates more citizens per capita than any other country: US: 629 inmates per 100,000 citizens

Compared to other countries: Cuba: 510, Brazil: 381, Russia: 326, China: About 250, Mexico: 169, UK: 131, France: 100

#53

From 1970 to 2000ish, US median household income and home prices were on an almost perfect straight line (r=0.997 and r=0.987 respectively). Using the regression line (y=ax+b), the predicted median income in 2021 was 75k and the median home price was 194k. Actual median income is 67k and median home price is 330k.

#54

"44% of older Millennials already have a chronic health condition."