Financial crises surprisingly common, but few countries close their banks
In more than four decades, only seven countries have imposed the kind of limits on people’s access to their bank accounts that Greeks have been under since June 28.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Religion
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Most of the busiest U.S. airports have dedicated chapels
More than half of America’s busiest airports have dedicated chapels, and many of these facilities offer a variety of worship services for different faith traditions.
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5 facts for Pope Francis’ visit to South America
Pope Francis begins a highly anticipated seven-day South American trip on Sunday that includes stops in Ecuador, Bolivia and Paraguay. As millions of faithful Catholics prepare to welcome Pope Francis next week, here are key facts about his trip.
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Share of counties where whites are a minority has doubled since 1980
As of last summer, 364 counties, independent cities and other county-level equivalents (11.6% of the total) did not have non-Hispanic white majorities – the most in modern history.
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How the Supreme Court’s decision for gay marriage could affect religious institutions
Some legal scholars and others are trying to determine how a ruling granting same-sex couples a constitutional right to wed might affect religious institutions.
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Same-Sex Marriage, State by State
In June of 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled all state bans on same-sex marriage unconstitutional, allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry nationwide. This timeline highlights the changes in state policies leading up to that ruling.
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Same-sex marriage makes some legal gains in Latin America
While laws allowing same-sex marriage have become more common in European countries and in U.S. states, gay marriage advocates also have gained ground in some parts of Latin America. Most recently, the Mexican Supreme Court issued a ruling making it much easier for gay and lesbian couples to wed.
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Jindal followed a rare path, from Hinduism to Catholicism
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a newly declared Republican candidate for president, is hoping to attract support from conservative evangelical Christian voters. Jindal himself is a Catholic, and, as the son of immigrants from Hindu-majority India, was raised in the Hindu faith.
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What is each country’s second-largest religious group?
While either Christians or Muslims make up the largest religious group in nine-in-ten nations around the globe, the religiously unaffiliated rank second in size in most of the Americas and Europe, as well as in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
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Growth from Asia drives surge in U.S. foreign students
Asians, especially Chinese, are responsible for most of the sharp increase in foreign students at U.S. colleges and universities. Foreign students are more likely to study science, engineering and math than U.S. students as a whole, especially at the post-baccalaureate level.
