Publications by Patrick Rhodes
Massive Increase in Ethanol Production
Description: Yearly production of Ethanol in the United States since 1980. Data: http://www.ethanolrfa.org/ Analysis: When it comes to fuel – especially for transportation – oil is king. In 2010, the United States imported 180.8 billion gallons of crude oil which doesn’t include the amount produced locally. That’s a lot of oil! Althou...
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Airline Fares Decreasing Steadily
Description: Yearly average airline fare since 1995. Data: http://www.bts.gov/ Analysis: When taking the average price of domestic airline fares, there is a clear trend indicating that flying is becoming more affordable – when adjusted for inflation. This may seem impossible when you look at the current price of your ticket and see that it i...
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March Madness! Wanna Win?
Description: Winning percentage of all NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Champions. Analysis: Down by one, the ball spins in his hand as he dribbles up the floor. With tennis shoes squeaking, he feints left, then right. Glancing up at the clock, he sees only five seconds left. Out of the corner of his eye, he spies a teammate break towards the ...
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Nordic Countries Dominate the World in Internet Penetration
Something about that cold weather… The number of internet users in the Nordic countries has greatly outpaced the world by comparison. Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland – all in the elite echelon. These countries share a common ancestry – the ‘Vikings’ or the Norse peoples – we’ve all read about in history classes and seen d...
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U.S. Soldiers Died from What?
Prior to WWII, the majority of soldiers died from disease and infection. The Invisible Enemy Often Killed You Before Your Political Enemy Imagine the scene: thousands of military men laying on cots, makeshift beds, or the floor – any place that was available was filled with a wounded soldier. Understand that these aren’t the scratches you...
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Enjoy Low Income Tax Rates
Tax rates were higher in the past… Joe derisively snorted at the pay stub in his hand. Crumpling it into a ball, he wound up like a baseball pitcher and fast-balled the wad of paper across the room. It bounced unsatisfying off the wall and onto the floor, coming to a rest near his feet. “Guess I’m not cut out for the big leagues,” he...
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Flying: Boredom and Terror
Data represents all planes (not just commercial planes) for the United States “There are only two emotions on a plane: boredom and terror.” — Orson Welles, interview to celebrate his 70th birthday, The Times of London, 6 May 1985. For some people, flying represents their worst fears. Not only are you helpless if something goes awry, but y...
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Small Countries Stablize by Exporting High-Tech
Smaller countries lead the way. When you think of ‘high-tech’, which countries come to mind? What is ‘High-Tech’? Before continuing, what is meant by the term ‘high-tech’? As defined by the World Data Bank, high-technology exports are products with high R&D (Research and Development) intensity, such as aerospace, computers, pharmac...
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Live Longer – Choose Your Country Wisely (if you can)
Full democracy countries are the ones in which to live. This week’s story could start and end with the above graph with almost no further explanation. But that wouldn’t do it justice. So, like so many of the past articles on “Graph of the Week“, a bit of analysis will be provided based on collected data and research. Starting with what...
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Finding Earth II
By 2030, we will have found approximately 10,000 exoplanets. “If it is just us… seems like an awful waste of space.” — from the movie Contact (1997) based on the book Contact by Carl Sagan. By the year 2030, it’s possible that over ten thousand exoplanets (planets outside our solar system) will have been discovered if the above tren...
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