The last ten years

[andrewducker]

Larger version over here.

Interesting that US power consumption has actually dropped over the last ten years. And that 76% of the planet now has a cellphone. I assume that mobile broadband is more popular in developing countries, as they have less fixed infrastructure.

Comments

[flick]

I assume that mobile broadband is more popular in developing countries, as they have less fixed infrastructure.

Also Japan, I believe: relatively large numbers of young people who have mobile broadband that they use with their phones but don't also have a PC.

[birguslatro]

I know it's only comparing two random years, but three times as many earthquakes in 2010 as in 2000 seems a huge fluctuation!

Hmmm. Goes checking and finds that 2010's 8000+ earthquakes were special, the rest of the decade being in the 2000 to 4000 range.

I expect it just means that 2011 will be the year California separates from the rest of the US. You heard it here first...

[kmusser]

More on cellphone distribution: http://www.floatingsheep.org/2011/01/map-of-per-capita-mobile-phone.html

[andrewducker]

Thanks!

[anton-p-nym.livejournal.com]

Interesting that US power consumption has actually dropped over the last ten years.

That's probably from the recession; despite all those conservation messages directed at consumers, the big user of electricity is generally industry. If you have less heavy industry going on, you'll see a big drop in load on your power grid.

-- Steve remembers standing safety/security watches while the local auto plant renovated its huuuuuuge electrical transformer farm back in the '90s.* That auto plant is now a set of warehouses for a Big Box Store chain, which draws a heckuva lot less power.

* I understand that resetting the breakers on that farm was quite a show, requiring ze goggles, but that didn't happen on my shift.

[andrewducker]

Also, the price of oil has gone up by 130%, while inflation has only been 30% (depending on how you calculate it)

[danieldwilliam.livejournal.com]

There may also be a inpact on energy usage from economically driven efficiency measure either related or not to the recession.

[strawberryfrog.livejournal.com]

That figure of "Mobile phones per 100 people" really stands out - it's multiplied by about 9.5.

[drdoug.livejournal.com]

76% of the planet now has a cellphone

Careful! That's not at all the same as 76 cellphone subscriptions per 100 people. More than a trivial number of people have more than one phone (I know I have), and in many parts of the world it's common for there to be one phone shared between (or rented out for short periods to), say, dozens of people who each have their own SIM.

[strawberryfrog.livejournal.com]

Another estimate is that a bit over half the world population has one or more mobile phones

[khbrown.livejournal.com]

Why the threefold increase in the number of Earthquakes in the US? Just more recording of those of lesser magnitude, or another sign of the apocalypse? Dhole activity?

[stillcarl.livejournal.com]

A spike in 2010 for some reason...

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/year/eqstats.php

(See the bottom graph.)

Going by the steady rise in earthquakes in the 1.0 to 1.9 range, better recording may partly explain it, but only partly.