Understand the world (September 7)
We live in the golden age for interesting content from diverse voices that help us better understand the world. Finding these insights, however, requires wading through an overload of information, some of which is misleading, unnecessarily negative and sensationalist, and tribalistic.
This newsletter aims to deliver insights and updates about what’s important in the world - whether or not the topic is in the ‘news.’
Contents
Millions in the US lose unemployment benefits.
The current US jobs rebound is on a much faster pace than that following the Great Recession.
Support for labor unions may be on the rise, though parties are split.
The climate is changing across a multitude of measures.
Mexico’s Supreme Court votes to decriminalizes abortion.
Significant progress still to be made in accepting homosexuality worldwide.
Teen pregnancy, incarceration, and drug use is down.
Office use is still only 20-50% of of pre-pandemic levels in major US cities.
A map of the colonization of Africa.
Investment in plant-based meat companies is accelerating.
What are the odds of a vaccinated person becoming infected with COVID-19 in the US?
A thread on vaccinating the world.
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Millions in the US lose unemployment benefits.
More than 10 million out-of-work people across the United States lost jobless benefits yesterday or had them cut as three federal programs expired (Washington Post). The chart below shows the breakdown of unemployed people whose benefits were reduced in August and yesterday.
Over the summer, about half of all states announced that they would end federal benefits in hopes that it would boost employment. One study found, however, that for every eight workers who lost benefits, only one found a new job.
Further, people who lost benefits significantly reduced spending. The chart below shows how decreased spending outpaced increased earnings - research found every dollar of benefits lost was offset by 7 cents in increased earnings.
The current US jobs rebound is on a much faster pace than that following the Great Recession.
The chart below shows that it took more than 6 years for employment to fully rebound from the 2007 recession, while the current rebound appears to be on a pace more similar to previous economic downturns (though with a long way to go).
Support for labor unions may be on the rise, though parties are split.
The following chart shows rising support for labor unions across each political party since 2011, with much higher support among Democrats. It finds that overall support is now at 66%.
A separate poll, however, finds that support among Republicans may be on the decline. (The polls have slightly different wording “do you have approve/disapprove of labor unions” vs. “do you think labor unions have a positive effect on the way things are going in the country”).
The climate is changing across a multitude of measures
The following graphic collects a range of climate trends including the 41% rise in C02 and 1.1 degrees C above pre-industrial levels, and 4% humidity over land increase since the 1970s.
Mexico Supreme Court votes to decriminalizes abortion.
Following the US Supreme Court refusing to halt a ban on abortions after 6 weeks in Texas last week, Mexico’s Supreme Court has decriminalized abortion. The New York Times states it “opens the door for Mexico to become the most populous Latin American country to allow abortion.”
Significant progress still to be made in accepting homosexuality worldwide.
The following charts from Reddit (r/dataisbeautiful, posted by u/soratoumigashow) show the percentage of people of different age groups agreeing that homosexuality should be accepted. Acceptance is lower among people 50 or older (the first chart) than people aged 18-29 (the second chart).
Teen pregnancy, incarceration, and drug use is down.
The charts in the tweet below show significant declines across several metrics for US teens. One chart shows teen pregnancy rates in 2015 were around half of rates in 2006. (The tweeter suggests this may be related to technology use)
Use of marijuana among college students seems to have supplanted binge drinking:
A map of the colonization of Africa
The following map (in Spanish) shows the colonization of Africa by France, the UK, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, Italy, and South Africa, and the date of each African Nation’s declaration of independence. (Sourced from this tweet)
Office use is still only 20-50% of of pre-pandemic levels in major US cities.
Office utilization rates are still well below pre-pandemic levels, though they’ve been gradually increasing (with the exception of blips in late 2020/early 2021, and slight declines in June/July 2021). Utilization rates in Austin, Dallas, and Houston are significantly higher than in other major US metros.
Investment in plant-based meat companies accelerating.
According to Bloomberg Intelligence, “sales of plant-based dairy and meat alternatives reached $29.4 billion in 2020, and could increase to $162 billion by 2030, comprising 7.7% of the global protein market.”
The chart below shows the dramatic increase in funding for plant-based meat companies.
What are the odds of a vaccinated person becoming infected with COVID-19 in the US?
The article referenced in the tweet below suggests the odds of a ‘breakthrough’ infection among a vaccinated person are around 1 in 5,000 or 1 in 10,000 per day, which would amount to about a 1-2% chance of infection over 3 months.
The article also shows that people not fully vaccinated were ten times more likely to test positive than unvaccinated people during July and August in the Seattle area.
A thread on vaccinating the world
The thread below from Andy Slavitt (Former Biden White House Senior Advisor) discusses slowing vaccine rates in the US and vaccine inequality worldwide. He suggests the primary challenge in speeding vaccinations in low income countries (in particular in rural areas) is not supply but distribution.
He also suggests that some scientists including Dr. Fauci believe getting a booster shot may make it very likely that vaccinated people will no longer be able to be contagious.
The chart below provides context on vaccination rates worldwide:
Here is the tweet thread: