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42af1&m=3D01KCJ2H442C1N3RTXVDYWJD6K1&r=3D01KCJGS4PTV9PVV4101326AQQJ)
[USAFacts]([link removed])
Where do inventors come from?=C2=A0
Growing up in which state gives kids the best shot at becoming an inventor?=
Of the 7,473 people answered last week=E2=80=99s newsletter poll, 26% gues=
sed correctly: Minnesota. Why not celebrate with a can of Spam, which was i=
nvented in =E2=80=94 where else =E2=80=94 Minnesota.
[People (per 1,000) raised in each state who went on to file a patent](http=
s://usafacts.org/articles/where-do-inventors-come-from/)
- In a 2017 Opportunity Insights study that looked at people born between 1=
980 and 1984 (aka elder millennials), one of the strongest predictors of be=
coming an inventor is growing up near inventors. And Minnesota is home to m=
any more inventions than Spam, including the implantable pacemaker, Scotch =
Tape, Nerf balls, prosthetic heart valves, and microwave popcorn.=C2=A0
=C2=A0
- Kids born to inventor parents were about nine times more likely to become=
an inventor than other children were.=C2=A0
- Men were, on average, 4.5 times more likely to become inventors than wome=
n. But the gap narrowed when girls grew up around female inventors. =C2=A0
- Inventing tended to skew towards the affluent. Kids from the top 1% of ho=
usehold income were six times more likely to become inventors than kids fro=
m middle-income families.=C2=A0
[See the data]([link removed])
[USAFacts]([link removed])
[USAFacts]([link removed])
Unwrapping holiday spending trends=C2=A0
Your bank account might already know this, but we=E2=80=99re in the throes =
of the winter holiday season. According to the Census Bureau=E2=80=99s Mont=
hly Retail Trade Report, spending is up: retail spending in December 2024 w=
as the highest ever recorded (after, of course, adjusting for inflation). [=
Let=E2=80=99s unwrap those numbers]([link removed]
etail-spending/).
[USAFacts]([link removed])
- In December 2024, retail spending was over $600 billion (around $1,766 pe=
r person), up from the estimated $541.87 billion spent in November 2024.
- Even though overall spending has increased, December=E2=80=99s share of a=
nnual retail spending has dipped: December 2024 retail accounted for 9.8% o=
f all 2024 retail spending, compared to 10.3% in 2014 and 10.8% in 2004.=C2=
=A0
[December retail food sales as a percentage of total retail]([link removed]
ts.org/articles/holiday-retail-spending/)
- Americans spend around 19% more in December than the second-highest month=
of spending: November.
- February is usually the lowest-sales month of the year, and sales increas=
e incrementally from September to November. However, sales increased 18.5% =
from November to December.=C2=A0
[See the data]([link removed])
[USAFacts]([link removed])
Data behind the news
Washington state=E2=80=99s governor made an emergency declaration in respon=
se to storms and severe flooding last week. See how many [disasters are dec=
lared]([link removed]
us/country/united-states/) in the=E2=80=AFUS and your state.
=C2=A0
[The Federal Reserve]([link removed]
lained/) lowered interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point on Wedne=
sday.
Last week, health officials in South Carolina confirmed 27 new measles case=
s in an outbreak. Over 100 cases have been reported in the state in recent =
months. Cities along the Arizona-Utah border have recently reported more th=
an 200 confirmed cases. [Here=E2=80=99s the latest data]([link removed]
rg/answers/how-many-measles-cases-are-there-in-the-us/country/united-states=
/) on measles cases in the US.
Get ready: It=E2=80=99s time for the [weekly fact quiz]([link removed]
14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3Dff1bc9abb222ec965ded81e5e&id=3Df71d2cb43=
f&e=3D276aed3fee).=C2=A0
[USAFacts]([link removed])
One last fact
[There were 84.4% fewer attempted border crossings in September 2025 than t=
he year before]([link removed]
e-there-along-the-us-mexico-border/country/united-states/)
US Border Patrol detected about [8,400 attempted crossings]([link removed]
s.org/answers/how-many-migrant-encounters-are-there-along-the-us-mexico-bor=
der/country/united-states/) in September 2025, 84.4% fewer than in Septembe=
r the year prior.
=C2=A0
These attempted crossings, sometimes called =E2=80=9Cencounters,=E2=80=9D a=
re instances in which the Border Patrol apprehended or expelled someone att=
empting to illegally enter the US between official entry ports. This number=
does not represent individual people, as someone may be counted multiple t=
imes if they try to cross the border several times.=C2=A0
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