by Tom Standage
lithium 17–18
London 71, 72
longevity 125–6
Lozère 161–2
Lucas, George 208
M
McEnroe, John 197
McGregor, Andrew 204
machine learning 225–6
Macri, Mauricio 95, 96
Macron, Emmanuel 143
Madagascar 158
Madison, James 242
MagicLeap 182
Maine 216
Malaysia 56
Maldives 7
Mali 31
Malta 65
Manchester United 211–12
manufacturing
jobs 131–2
robots 171–2
summer holidays 239
Maori 34–5
marriage
child marriage 84–5
polygamy 5–6
same-sex relationships 73–4
see also couples
Marteau, Theresa 101–2
Marx, Karl 123
Maryland 85
Massachusetts
child marriage 85
Christmas 246
Matfess, Hilary 5, 15
meat
dog meat 91–2
packaging 103–4
mega-rich 53
men
career and family 77–8
housework 75–6
job tenure 129–30
life expectancy 125
polygamy 5–6
sexual harassment by 67–9
video games and unemployment 169
Mexico
avocados 89, 90
gay and lesbian rights 73
murder rate 44, 45
microbreweries 97–8
Microsoft
HoloLens 181–2
undersea cables 193
migration, and birth rates 81–3
mining
diamonds 13–14
sand 7–8
mobile phones
Africa 175–6
5G 173–4
Mocan, Naci 56–7
Mongolia 42–3
Mongrel Mob 34
Monopoly (board game) 199, 200
Monty Python and the Holy Grail 25
Moore, Clement Clarke 247
Moretti, Franco 228
Morocco 7
Moscato, Philippe 36
movies 207–8
Mozambique 73
murder rates 44–6
music, Christmas 243–5
Musk, Elon 168
Myanmar 118
N
Nadal, Rafael 197
national identity 223–4
natural gas 124
Netherlands
gender 66
national identity 223–4
neurostimulators 167
New Jersey 85
New Mexico 157–8
New York (state), child marriage 85
New York City
drink-driving 179–80
food trucks 99–100
New Zealand
avocados 89
gang members 34–5
gene drives 154
water pollution 149–50
new-year resolutions 233–4
Neymar 203, 204
Nigeria
board games 199–200
Boko Haram 5, 15–16
population 54–5
Nissenbaum, Stephen 247
Northern Ireland 218
Norway
Christmas music 243
inheritance tax 119
life expectancy 125, 126
sex reassignment 65
Nucci, Alessandra 36
O
obesity 93–4
oceans see seas
Odimegwu, Festus 54
O’Reilly, Oliver 9–10
Ortiz de Retez, Yñigo 32
Oster, Emily 25–6
ostriches 163, 164
’Oumuamua 185–6
P
packaging 103–4
Pakistan 5
Palombi, Francis 161
Papua New Guinea
languages 219–20
name 32
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) 203
Passover 237
pasta 31
pay, gender pay gap 115–16, 135–6
Peck, Jessica Lynn 179–80
Pennsylvania 85
Peru 90
Pestre, Dominique 228
Pew Research Centre 22
Phelps, Michael 163–4
Philippe, Édouard 230
phishing 189
Phoenix, Arizona 177
Pilgrims 241
plague 157–8
Plastic China 159
police, body cameras 191–2
pollution
air pollution 143–4
water pollution 149–50
polygamy 5–6
pornography
and Britain’s gay population 70–72
and Hawaii missile alert 63–4
Portugal 145
Puerto Rico 45
punctuation marks 229–30
Q
Qatar 19
R
ransomware 190
Ravenscroft, George 101
Real Madrid 211
religious observance
and birth rates 81–2
and Christmas music 244
remastering 207–8
Reynolds, Andrew 70
Rhodes, Cecil 13
rice 109–10
rich
high-net-worth individuals 53
US 113–14
ride-hailing apps
and drink-driving 179–80
see also Uber
RIWI 73–4
robotaxis 177–8
robots 171–2
Rogers, Dan 240
Romania
birth rate 81
life expectancy 125
Romans 233
Romer, Paul 227–8
Ross, Hana 23
Royal United Services Institute 21
Russ, Jacob 26
Russia
arms sales 20
beer consumption 105, 106
fertility rate 81
Rwanda 40
S
Sahara 31
St Louis 205–6
St Patrick’s Day 235–6
salt, in seas 11–12
same-sex relationships 73–4
San Antonio 100
sand 7–8
sanitation 155–6
Saudi Arabia 19
Scotland, witch-hunting 25–6, 27
Scott, Keith Lamont 191
Scrabble (board game) 199
seas
Arctic sea ice 147–8
salty 11–12
undersea cables 193–4
secularism, and birth rates 81–2
Seles, Monica 197
self-driving cars 177–8
Serbia 222
Serbo-Croatian 221–2
Sevilla, Almudena 75
sex reassignment 65–6
sexual harassment 67–9, 230
Sharapova, Maria 197
sharks
deterring attacks 201–2
racing humans 163–4
shipping 148
shoelaces 9–10
Silk Road 117–18
Singapore
dragon children 56
land reclamation 7, 8
rice consumption 110
single people, housework 75–6
Sinquefeld, Rex 205
smart glasses 181–2
Smith, Adam 127
smoking
black market for cigarettes 23–4
efforts to curb 151–2
smuggling 31
Sogaard, Jakob 135–6
Somalia 40
Somaliland 40–41
South Africa
childhood obesity 93
diamonds 13
gay and lesbian rights 73
murder
rate 45, 46
South Korea
arms sales 20
rice consumption 110
South Sudan
failed state 40
polygamy 5
space elevators 183–4
spaghetti 31
Spain
forests 145
gay and lesbian rights 73
job tenure 130
spam e-mail 189–90
sperm banks 61–2
sport
football clubs 211–12
football transfers 203–4
grunting in tennis 197–8
Sri Lanka 118
Star Wars 208
sterilisation 65–6
Strasbourg 26
submarine cables 193–4
Sudan 40
suicide-bombers 15–16
summer holidays 239–40
Sutton Trust 22
Sweden
Christmas music 243, 244
gay and lesbian rights 73
homophobia 70
inheritance tax 119
overpayment of taxes 51–2
sex reassignment 65
sexual harassment 67–8
Swinnen, Johan 106
Switzerland
sex reassignment 65
witch-hunting 26, 27
T
Taiwan
dog meat 91
dragon children 56
Tamil Tigers 15
Tanzania 40
taxes
death taxes 119–20
Sweden 51–2
taxis
robotaxis 177–8
see also ride-hailing apps
tennis players, grunting 197–8
terrorism 15–16
Texas 85
Thailand 110
Thanksgiving 241–2
think-tanks 21–2
Tianjin 143–4
toilets 155–6
Tok Pisin 219, 220
transgender people 65–6
Trump, Donald 223
Argentine lemons 95, 96
estate tax 119
and gender pay gap 115
and manufacturing jobs 131, 132
Tsiolkovsky, Konstantin 183
Turkey 151
turkeys 33
Turkmenistan 6
U
Uber 128
and drink-driving 179–80
Uganda 40
Ulaanbaatar 42–3
Uljarevic, Daliborka 221
undersea cables 193–4
unemployment 169–70
Unicode 215–16
United Arab Emirates
and Somaliland 41
weapons purchases 19
United Kingdom see Britain
United States
and Argentine lemons 95–6
arms sales 19
beer consumption 105
chess 205–6
child marriage 84–5
Christmas 246–7
Christmas music 243, 244
drink-driving 179–80
drones 187–8
end of life care 141–2
estate tax 119
fertility rates 79–80
food trucks 99–100
forests 145
gay and lesbian rights 73
getting rich 113–14
Hawaiian porn consumption 63–4
job tenure 129–30
letter names 218
lithium 17
manufacturing jobs 131–2
murder rate 45, 46
national identity 223–4
new-year resolutions 234
plague 157–8
police body cameras 191–2
polygamy 6
robotaxis 177
robots 171–2
St Patrick’s Day 235–6
sexual harassment 67, 68
sperm banks 61–2
Thanksgiving 241–2
video games and unemployment 169–70
wealth inequality 121
unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) see drones
V
video games 169–70
Vietnam
weapons purchases 19
wheat consumption 110
Virginia 85
virtual reality (VR) 181, 182
Visit from St Nicholas, A (Moore) 247
W
Wang Yi 117
Warner, Jason 15
wars 5
Washington, George 242
Washington DC, food trucks 99
waste 159–60
water pollution 149–50
wealth
getting rich in America 113–14
high-net-worth individuals 53
inequality 120, 121–2
weather, and Christmas music 243–5
Weinstein, Harvey 67, 69
Weryk, Rob 185
wheat
consumption 109–10
genome 107–8
Wilson, Riley 79–80
wine glasses 101–2
Winslow, Edward 241
wireless technology 173–4
witch-hunting 25–7
wolves 161–2
women
birth rates 79–80, 81–3
bride price 5
career and family 77–8
child marriage 84–5
housework 75–6
job tenure 129–30
life expectancy 125
pay gap 115–16
sexual harassment of 67–9
suicide-bombers 15–16
World Bank 227–8
World Health Organisation (WHO)
and smoking 151–2
transsexualism 65
X
Xi Jinping 117–18
Y
young people
crime 47–8
job tenure 129–30
video games and unemployment 169–70
Yu, Han 56–7
Yulin 91
yurts 42–3
Z
Zubelli, Rita 239