Energy or Mining
Manuf or Comm.
Medical or Colleges
Enviro or Lifestyle
IT or Software
100
(A) Total demand for U.S. coal reached 1.05 billion tons in 2010 or (B) Coal accounts for about 50% of U.S. total energy production or (C) Each person in the US uses 3.4 tons of coal annually.
What is (B) Coal accounts for about 50% of U.S. total energy production. (It accounts for nearly 30%)
100
(A) The U.S. is the world's largest manufacturing economy, producing 21 percent of global manufactured products or (B) It takes six months to build a Rolls Royce…and 13 hours to build a Toyota or (C) 150,000 transistors are manufactured every second.
What is (C) 150,000 transistors are manufactured every second. (More than 1 MILLION are manufactured every second)
100
(A) In 2011, nearly 70% of high school graduates enrolled in college or (B) The term liberal arts generally refers to matters not relating to the professional, vocational, or technical curricula or (C) For post-secondary institutions, “national” accreditation is considered a higher accreditation than “regional”.
What is (C) For post-secondary institutions, “national” accreditation is considered a higher accreditation than “regional”. It’s the other way around. Better schools are regionally accredited (e.g. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, North Central Association, etc) Some nationally accredited schools’ credits don’t even transfer to regionally accredited programs (e.g. ITT Technical Institute).
100
A) Solar energy demand has grown an average of 30% annually for the past 20 years or B) The US is the largest on-grid solar market in the world or (C) In 2009, the photovoltaic solar industry generated $38.5 billion in global revenues.
What is B) The US is the largest on-grid solar market in the world (Germany is.)
100
(A) Over 90% of US companies suffered losses from cyber-attacks in 2010 or (B) Twitter is adding about 150,000 new users each day or (C) By the end of 2010, 1.2 billion people carried a device capable of mobile computing.
What is (B) Twitter is adding about 150,000 new users each day. (They add 500,000 new users each day.)
200
(A) In the next 5-10 years, the U.S. mining industry will need approximately 55,000 new miners to meet demand and to replace retiring employees or (B) Nearly 500,000 people work directly in the U.S. mining industry or (C) The U.S. is the second-largest producer of gold in the world.
What is (C) The U.S. is the second-largest producer of gold. (We are third)
200
(A) Telecommunications includes voice, video and internet communication services or (B) Employment in telecommunications is expected to decline due to industry consolidation and strong price competition or (C) The first webcam deployed was in the U.S., to monitor a small nuclear reactor.
What is (C) The first webcam deployed was in the U.S., to monitor a small nuclear reactor. (It was in England, at Cambridge University, to monitor a coffee pot.)
200
(A) The average yearly cost of one year of college at a four year institution has nearly doubled since 2000 or (B) The average weekly earnings of a person with a college degree is four times that of someone with no college degree or (C) In the U.S., there are nearly 4,500 institutions to choose from that grant degrees.
What is (B) The average weekly earnings of a person with a college degree is 4 times that as someone with no college degree. (It's actually 2 times that of someone with no college degree.)
200
(A) Every year, each American throws away about 1,200 pounds of organic garbage that could be recycled or (B) The US is the #1 ranked trash-producing country in the world, at 1609 pounds per person per year or (C) On average, it does cost a bit less the throw away garbage than to have it recycled.
What is (C) On average, it does cost a bit less the throw away garbage than to have it recycled (it costs $30 per ton to recycle trash and $50 per ton to send it to a landfill)
200
(A) Software as a service (SaaS) revenues topped $21 billion in 2011 or (B) The U.S. share of the international software market is 30% or (C) The software industry contributed $260 billion to the U.S. Economy in 2010.
What is (B) The U.S. share of the international software market is 30%. (it's 50%).
300
(A) Coal plants in the 21st century emit 40% less C02 than 20th century plants or (B) In 2010, there were over 15,000 injuries to mining workers or (C) Railroads move about two thirds of U.S. coal shipped annually.
What is (B) In 2010, there were over 15,000 injuries to mining workers. (There were only 8,525 injuries to mining workers in 2010, down from over 30,000 in 1990.)
300
(A) The variety of Aluminum used to manufacture airplane wings can withstand loads of more than 25,000 pounds per square inch. (B) A strong reason for green manufacturing is that it is estimated that a plastic container can resist decomposition for as long as 50,000 years or (C) The U.S. uses 70 million tons of cement every year--approximately one-fifth of the cement used worldwide.
What is (A) The variety of Aluminum used to manufacture airplane wings can withstand loads of more than 25,000 pounds per square inch.
300
(A) Assisted living emerged in the 1960s as an elder-care alternative where independent living is no longer appropriate but who do not need the 24-hour medical care provided by a nursing home or (B) Within the U.S., there is no nationally recognized definition of assisted living. Assisted living facilities are regulated and licensed at the state level. (C) Healthcare administration is broken into two sub-categories: healthcare quality and healthcare informatics.
What is (A) Assisted living emerged in the 1960s as an elder-care alternative where independent living is no longer appropriate but who do not need the 24-hour medical care provided by a nursing home (Emerged in the 1990's)
300
(A) 500,000 barrels of crude oil are used annually to produce the plastic used for bottled water or (B) Approximately 884 million people lack access to clean water or (C) 3.5 million people die each year as a result of water related disease, the equivalent to the city of Los Angeles.
What is (A) 500,000 barrels of crude oil are used annually to produce the plastic used for bottled water. (It is actually 1.5 million barrels.)
300
(A) The country of India's IT market generated nearly $20 billion for U.S. companies in 2011 or (B) 40% of U.S. companies plan to boost their spend on IT in 2012 or (C) Fighting cyber-crime is projected to be an $11 billion industry by 2017.
What is (B) 40% of U.S. companies plan to boost their spend on IT in 2012. (Over 60% do.)
400
(A) In 2011, Russia produced 12% of the world's oil, more than half the amount produced by the entire Arab League or (B) The U.S. has over 2% of the world's natural gas proven reserves, ranking it #5 in the world or (C) At the core of the Earth, radioactive decay causes temperatures to reach over 9,000 degrees. This "cooks" many energy related minerals.
What is (A) In 2011, Russia produced 12% of the world's oil, more than half the amount produced by the entire Arab League. (The Arab League produces 29% of the world's oil.)
400
(A) Competition between wireless and wired services will provide reliable cellular communications and faster internet service, blurring the lines between cable/ satellite TV, and wireless/wired telephone systems or (B) Of the 247 billion email messages sent every day, 32% are pure spam or (C) Worldwide mobile-game revenue was $5.6 billion in 2010. By 2014, it is expected to rise to $11.4 billion.
What is (B) Of the 247 billion email messages sent every day, 32% are pure spam.
400
(A) Medicinal products achieve their principal action by pharmacological, metabolic or immunological means, while medical devices act by physical, mechanical, or chemical means or (B) The global market of medical devices reached roughly $400 billion in 2006 and is expected to grow with an average annual rate of 6–9% or (C) Although not classified as supplements or medicinal products, medical devices are regulated through the FDA.
What is (B) The global market of medical devices reached roughly $400 billion in 2006 and is expected to grow with an average annual rate of 6–9%. (it's at $209 billion)
400
(A) A product that has “natural” on the label is also considered "organic" or (B) A recent survey found that 47% of Americans haven't updated their home decor in the last five years or (C) The average family of four is expected to spend $4,000 on a summer vacation.
What is (A) A product that has “natural” on the label is also considered "organic". In reality, products can say natural if they only have one natural ingredient, but they are not necessarily organic. This holds true for food and personal care.
400
(A) 74% of companies in the U.S. ran an ERP software solution in 2010 or (B) Smartphone penetration is expected to reach 50% by the end of 2012 or (C) "Business Intelligence" refers to techniques used to analyze business data and improve decision making.
What is (A) 74% of companies in the U.S. ran an ERP software solution in 2010. (Over 92% did.)
500
(A) In the late medieval period, coal was the new alternative fuel to replace wood. (B) Since the 1970s, Brazil' s ethanol fuel program has been the world's largest producer and exporter in the world, with the U.S. a close second or (C) When burned, wood emits the same amount of carbon it would emit if it degraded naturally.
What is (B) Since the 1970s, Brazil' s ethanol fuel program has been the world's largest producer and exporter in the world, with the U.S. a close second.
500
(A) More American steel is used to make bottle caps than to manufacture automobile bodies or (B) In 2010, the average U.S. manufacturing worker earned $56,000 annually. The average non-manufacturing worker earned $77,000 annually or (C) U.S. manufacturers perform two-thirds of all R&D in the nation, driving more innovation than any other sector.
What is (B) In 2010, the average U.S. manufacturing worker earned $56,000 annually, including pay and benefits. The average non-manufacturing worker earned $77,000 annually.
500
(A) EMR applies to converting paper data to electronic data and includes office equipment cost & inventory, office staff payroll and individual patient medical records or (B) Because of the sizable cost of clinical trials, they are often managed by an outsourced partner such as a contract research organization or (C) Biotechnology is not limited to medical/health applications, and can include such industries as agriculture.
What is (A) EMR applies to converting paper data to electronic data and includes office equipment cost & inventory, office staff payroll and individual patient medical records. (Patient records only)
500
(A) E-Commerce sales in the US in 2010 totaled over $165 billion or (B) The American Cancer Society recommends that people limit their alcohol intake to a maximum of 4 drinks per day for men and 3 for women or (C) Teen spending topped the $200 billion mark for the first time ever in 2011.
What is (B) The American Cancer Society recommends that people who drink alcohol limit their intake to a maximum of 4 drinks per day for men and 3 for women. (It’s actually a maximum of 2 drinks per day for men and 1 for women, due to smaller body size and the fact that women metabolize alcohol slower.)
500
(A) 15,000 megabytes of new electronic information is created everyday or (B) Data storage companies brought in more than $20 billion in 2011 or (C) Last year, there were more than 100 trillion emails sent.
What is (A) 15,000 megabytes of new electronic information is created everyday. (It's actually 15,000 TERAbytes, much bigger.)
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