Sunday, Jul. 02, 2006

Numbers

49,000 Estimated number of U.S. adults who died in 2005 of heart or lung disease associated with inhaling secondhand smoke, according to the Surgeon General

430 Estimated number of babies who died last year of a variety of sudden infant death syndrome caused by secondhand smoke

50 Age of the interstate highway system, authorized by President Eisenhower on June 29, 1956

$1,292 Estimated savings each year by the average U.S. consumer due to more efficient shipments on interstates than on local roads

$19,300 Average student-loan debt for the 62% of U.S. undergraduates who borrow to pay for college

6.54% Interest rate on federal loans for current undergraduate and graduate-student borrowers as of last week, up from 4.7% and the highest rate in six years

30,000 Average number of lighters the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) confiscates daily at airport checkpoints

80% Percentage of TSA-seized goods that are lighters, one of 68 items passengers are forbidden to carry on planes

Sources: U.S. Surgeon General (2); USA Today (3); ABC News; USA Today (2)