October 2024

1 | Around 45% of people worldwide are governed by democracies.

2 | Approximately 60% of global reserves are held in U.S. dollars.

3 | Coffee’s name originated from the Arabic word qahwa (قهوة), meaning wine.

4 | Earning £2000 monthly places you in the top 10% globally​.

7 | Folding a paper 103 times exceeds the observable universe’s size.

8 | About 30% of the global population doesn't complete secondary school​.

9 | Road traffic accidents are the top accidental killer, with 1.19 million deaths​ annually.

10 | Sharks are older than trees, having existed for over 400 million years.

11 | Over 80% of Earth's oceans remain unexplored and unmapped by humans.

14 | Around 10-12% of the world's population is left-handed.

15 | Chess has more possible iterations than atoms in the observable universe.

16 | Half of the world's population earns under £270 each month.

17 | Light from the Sun takes about 8m20s to reach Earth.

18 | Approximately 13-16% of the global population is illiterate.

21 | Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backward.

22 | There are about 70-80 cat breeds and 340-400 dog breeds.

23 | Australia is wider than the moon.

24 | Around 30% of the global population is currently short-sighted​.

25 | About 26% of the world lacks access to clean, safe water​.

28 | Around 7% of all humans who have ever lived are alive today.

29 | The Han Chinese are the largest ethnic group, at 19% globally.

30 | To be in the global top 1%, you need at least £1million.

31 | Bananas are berries, but strawberries aren't.