Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Frequent use of social media is not directly related to higher stress. But stress can be contagious through social media channels: Social media users are often more aware of the stressful events in others’ lives, and this awareness itself can lead to higher stress.
The healthcare industry, food and drink establishments and temp services have driven most of the jobs growth since Barack Obama took office nearly six years ago.
Almost one-in-five members of the House and Senate are a racial or ethnic minority, making the 114th Congress the most diverse in history. However, Congress remains disproportionately white when compared with the U.S. population, which has grown increasingly diverse in recent decades.
Some political observers predict that Obama will be using his veto pen a lot more in his last two years in office than he did in the first six. Recent history indicates that presidents do veto more bills when both houses of Congress are controlled by the opposing party.
While Facebook remains the most popular social media site, other platforms — like LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter — saw higher rates of growth over the past year. In 2014, 52% of online adults used two or more social media sites, up from 42% in 2013.
The new GOP-controlled Congress takes office at a time when the American public sees partisan rifts in the country getting worse.
The wealth of material from this non-scientific, opt-in canvassing of experts resulted in seven reports about what trends might emerge in online life between now and 2025. Here are some key takeaways.
Despite a generation of threats and competitors, email ranks as the most important digital tool for workers who use the internet. Only 4% of these networked workers cite social media as very important on the job
Online American workers say the internet and email are very important tools for doing their jobs, rating them higher in importance than landline phones, mobile phones, and social networking sites. Just 7% say the internet makes them less productive at work.
An unusually active lame duck session enabled the 113th Congress to avoid its predecessor’s record for legislative unproductivity.
