News in Numbers
The number of new EV school buses that the Montgomery County, Md., Public Schools Board of Education has ordered, the largest single order of EV buses by any school district in the nation. The new buses will be implemented across the next four years.
The proportion of Americans 65 and older who do not have broadband at home, a percentage that increases for low-income and Black and Latino seniors. However, the pandemic has encouraged many to get more comfortable online: Americans 65 and older spent an average of $187 per month online in 2020, a 60 percent increase from the year prior.
The proportion of federal relief aid that would be sent to states that voted for Biden in November under the American Rescue Plan relief package. In total, the bill would provide $350 billion to state and local governments.
The estimated number of public Confederate symbols that were removed from public spaces in 2020.
The amount per kilowatt-hour that some Texans were charged as their variable-rate plans spiked to reflect the lack of supply across the state. The usual average price per kilowatt-hour for electricity in Texas in the winter is about 12 cents.
The number of state houses across the U.S. that allow guns in some form. Eight states allow only concealed carry while two states allow only open carry firearms.
The average number of years for U.S. life expectancy as of 2020, a one-year drop from 2019. The change in life expectancy varied by race and gender with Black and Hispanic males experiencing the largest drops of 3 and 2.4 years, respectively. White females saw the least amount of change, with an expectancy drop of only 0.7 years.
The amount that New Jersey will spend on reducing carbon emissions through the implementation of electric city buses, school buses, garbage and delivery trucks. Gov. Murphy has pledged the state will use 100 percent clean energy by 2050.
The estimated number of N95 masks that will be used for medical use in 2021. Before the pandemic, there was a national demand for 1.7 billion N95 masks each year and only 20 percent of that demand was for medical use.
The number of namesakes that George Washington has in counties, cities, towns and minor civil divisions across the country, the most of any president. Second place is held by Abraham Lincoln, with 72 places with his presidential moniker.
The estimated number of prisoners in Virginia who have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, which accounts for approximately half of the prison population. More than 470 have received their second dose.
California’s toll of coronavirus-related deaths on Thursday, which caused the state to surpass New York’s record of 45,312.
The estimated number of metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions that Bitcoin production generates every year, which is comparable to the amount that Jordan and Sri Lanka produce annually. The increasingly-popular cryptocurrency relies on high-powered computers to solve complex mathematical puzzles that are largely powered by coal.
The number of states that have introduced more than 100 bills in total to tighten the rules on voting, through new voter registration requirements, voter identification requirements and reducing vote-by-mail options. All of the bills have been proposed by GOP lawmakers.
The proportion of Americans who believe that democracy is not functioning as it should be, with just 16 percent saying that democracy is working extremely well.
The proportion of Americans who believe the Senate should vote to convict former President Trump in the impeachment trial which begins next week.
The proportion of the 147 Republican lawmakers who voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election who are now declining to either support or condemn the election fraud narrative that claims Trump won the election. While just two of the 147 total lawmakers still believe that the election was stolen, ten of them have said they do not believe the stolen-election claims and have cited other reasons for voting to overturn the election.
The number of executive orders that President Biden has signed since taking office just over two weeks ago. Many expect that Biden will surpass Franklin Roosevelt’s record of signing 30 executive orders in his first month in office.
The amount that the Biden administration has agreed to pay Ellume, an Australian company that has created the first at-home COVID-19 test that can send results to a smartphone within 15 minutes, to build a manufacturing plant in the United States. Once the manufacturing plant in the U.S. has been completed, the company expects they will be able to provide more than 500,000 of these at-home, rapid tests per day.
The estimated number of Colorado Republicans that changed their political party status in the week following the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol. After the insurrection at the Capitol, thousands of Republicans across the nation have defected from the Republican party by switching to unaffiliated statuses, other conservative groups or, in rare cases, to the Democratic party.
The proportion of vaccinations that have been administered to Black people in Mississippi, despite the fact that Black Mississippians account for 38 percent of coronavirus cases and 42 percent of deaths in the state. Recent data from 17 states reveals significant vaccine disparities by race and ethnicity.
The amount of money that Bernie Sanders’ Inauguration Day mittens and the accompanying meme have raised for charitable organizations in Vermont over the last several days through merchandise purchases. The marketing campaign, Chairman Sanders, sold out of its t-shirts, sweatshirts and stickers within the first 30 minutes.
The proportion of U.S. mayors who believe their police budgets last year were "about right,” according to the Menino Survey of Mayors. Most respondents didn’t support reallocating some or any police resources.
The current confirmed amount that California paid in fraudulent unemployment benefits last year, though an additional $20 billion in claims is currently under investigation.
The proportion of Americans who live in areas with only 15 percent of ICU beds available.
The number of states in which Walmart will begin providing COVID-19 inoculations starting next week. The retailer was already providing vaccinations in New Mexico and Arkansas, but will now expand into Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey, South Carolina and Texas. Walmart will also begin distributing vaccines in Chicago and Puerto Rico.
The number of jobs that Minnesota lost last month as new restrictions were placed on restaurants, bars and gyms. The state’s hospitality industry accounted for the majority of the loss, declining by 41,100 jobs.
The proportion of Americans who want lawmakers to pass legislation regarding social media companies’ content moderation policies, according to a new survey. Additionally, 65 percent of respondents believed that social media platforms had too much influence over U.S. politics and society.
The proportion at which election misinformation decreased after President Trump was suspended from his social media accounts. The research firm Zignal Labs reported that election fraud mentions dropped to 688,000 from 2.5 million after President Trump’s permanent suspension from Twitter.
The proportion of new U.S. electric grid capacity that will be carbon emission-free from power provided by solar, wind and batteries in 2021, according to new figures from the Energy Information Agency.
