This post is basically a tribute to the sometimes undeservedly underrated branch of science known as statistics, which is all about collecting, analyzing, presenting, and interpreting data. From governmental census data to financial data and planning, business, sports and weather forecasting and much more, statistics is used in virtually every aspect of our lives.
It keeps us informed and in touch with current events by giving a unique perspective on facts and their relation with each other.
So in order to show us all how it was not worth it to skip stats class back in high school, we are diving into some of the most interesting threads on Reddit where people shared the most intriguing, random and mind-blowing statistics. Get yourself a cuppa and enjoy this entertaining bunch of random data below!
#1
20% OR MORE of pregnancies end in miscarriage. 20% is just "known pregnancies" and doesn't take into account all the women who just think "oh, my period was a day late, weird" without realizing they've actually had a very early miscarriage.
That is stunningly high compared to what we've been led to believe. If you think of all the women you know who either have or have tried to have children, there's an excellent chance that several of them have had a miscarriage before.
When you realize exactly how common it is, it makes it that much more sad that it is so stigmatized. If we talked about it more, maybe it wouldn't catch so many people off guard.
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342points
#2
One million seconds is less than 11 days.
One billion seconds is more than 31 years.
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277points
#3
The percentage of the Chinese population living in extreme poverty (living below 1.90$ a day) went from over 80% in the early 80's to 1.4% in 2014. In fact, it was still 23.1% just 10 years before that, in 2004. It's the most massive lift out of extreme poverty in world history.
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277points
#4
If the oldest living person is 115 years old, then 116 years ago there was a totally different set of humans on earth.
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277points
#5
95% of the ocean and 99% of the oceans floor remains unexplored
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239points
#6
Only 2 percent of people truly enjoy their jobs. The rest are in it to eat. So the next time you hear some a*****e on TEDTalk tell you to follow your dreams and your passions, remember that he is probably part of that very small percentage of people who have that luxury to fail.
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237points
#8
During the battle of the Somme in WW1, the British Army lost 20,000 men...on the first day.
Whole generations and towns were wiped out in the space of hours
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225points
#10
8% of people pronounce Wi-Fi as wiffy...8%. I don't know who you are, but I will find you...
220points
#11
The average person in canada has a higher net worth than the average person in the USA. The median income for canadians is about twice the median income for americans.
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215points
#12
Astronomer here! One that has blown my mind is statistically it is now believed that every star has extrasolar planets around it. It turns out every one near us does, at least. At the very worst case, Kepler has shown that 70% of all stars have a planet orbiting its parent star at Earth's distance or closer.
Further, per the Kepler mission data it is now believed 17% of all stars have an Earth-sized planet around it.
I mean, we knew there were a lot, but this means there's at least a trillion planets in our own Milky Way galaxy. The thought makes me giddy!
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213points
#13
The leading cause of death among pregnant women in the United States is being murdered, and most often by a current or former romantic partner.
https://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20010320/number-1-cause-of-death-in-pregnant-women-murder
https://www.webmd.com/baby/news/20010320/number-1-cause-of-death-in-pregnant-women-murder
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209points
#14
Around half of all trans people attempt suicide at least once
Also something like 1/3 of women with mental disabilities are sexually assaulted
Edit: so about the trans statistic this does not imply that being trans is a mental illness!! The shocking part is how awful and widespread transphobia is, and it’s consequences.
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205points
#15
Cleopatra lived closer to the invention of the iPhone than to the building of the great pyramids.
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197points
#16
Someone in the world [passes away] of starvation or malnutrition every three seconds.
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182points
#17
If you picked a random Swede and a random Canadian, the Swede would be more likely to speak English than the Canadian.
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182points
#18
There is a fence in Australia that stretches the equivalent distance of London to New York.
zangor, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dingo_Fence#/media/File:Sturt_National_Park3_-_Dingo_Fence_-_CameronsCorner.jpg
Report175points
#20
If the earth was the size of a basketball then the atmosphere would be about as thick as a coat of paint. The only thing that separates us from the cold, harsh, vacuum of space is this comparably tiny layer of gasses that are held in place by gravity.
Another interesting one is that the only thing preventing the Earth from becoming a barren rock not unlike Mars is the fact we still have a molten core that generates a magnetic field that shields the atmosphere from being swept away by the solar wind. When the core eventually stops spinning it's game over.
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158points