Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World

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Short-form data and analysis from Pew Research Center writers and social scientists. To view all our reports and publications, visit our main Publications page.

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  • short reads

    Online Shopping OK

    The majority of Americans see the growth of online shopping as a positive innovation over the last decade.

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    Handhelds Get Thumbs Up

    Handheld devices such as Blackberries and iPhones are seen as a good thing by most people.

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    The Marriage Dearth

    Scarcely more than half of American males ages 15 and older are currently married.

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    Splitsville

    Nevada has the highest share of divorced women (16%), although Maine is close behind at 15%.

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    The Tattoo Divide

    The public is divided about the impact of more people getting tattoos: 45% say it has not made much difference, 40% say it has been a change for the worse.

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    Beck Check

    Only 40% of U.S. adults overall — and 32% of Democrats — can correctly identify Glenn Beck as a talk show host.

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    Marrying Young

    Among the states, the lowest median age of marriage, 24, is found in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Idaho and Utah.

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    Alaska’s Empty Pews

    Only 22% of Alaskans say they attend religious services at least once a week.