The world in focus; fast facts on 192 countries.

Statistics look like a series of cold, hard facts. But every number tells a story. The 39 under the "Life Expectancy" column for Malawi, for instance, means that men in that African nation are dying very young. The $800 per person GDP for Afghanistan tells you that nation is extremely poor (Compare it with the U.S. and see.)

These tables describe each of the world's 192 countries with 13 kinds of data. Once you know how to Interpret them, they can offer great insight into a nation and Its challenges. The sample entry for Russia (at right) will help you figure out how to use them.

Russia

Area and Population: Taken together, these figures allow you to calculate population density (population divided by area), an important indicator of such things as crowdedness.

Moscow

Urban Population: The percentage of the total population living in urban areas. Urbanization has skyrocketed in developing countries, as people leave rural areas in search of work.

Population Growth: A high rate of population growth could signal a nation that is struggling to feed its people, while a low rate might be a sign that a nation could run short of workers.

Major Languages Spoken: There are some 6,000 languages in the world, not counting local dialects. Many nations have more than one language.

Form of Government and Head: Governments are classified according to who holds power. In democracies, people elect their leaders; dictatorships keep power away from the people.

Literacy Rate: The percentage of people (male/female) who can read and write. Date of Origin: The year a nation was formed, gained independence, or established its present form of government.

Per Capital GDP: The Gross Domestic Product--the value of all goods and services produced in one year--divided per capita, meaning per person. It is one way to gauge a nation's wealth.

Percent of Population Under Age 15: Developing countries with a high percentage of young people may have trouble providing jobs, schools, and food, thus risking political unrest.

Life Expectancy: The age to which a newborn (male/female) can expect to live. Improvements in medicine, diet and environment have helped people live longer.

HDI (Human Development Index): This number measures economic and human well-being on a scale of 0 to 1. It combines life expectancy, literacy, and purchasing power into one number.

RELATED ARTICLE: Focus: statistics teach about key economic, political, and social trends.

TEACHING OBJECTIVES

To help students see how statistics help understanding of important social, economic, and political developments.

Discussion Questions:

* Suppose you were in charge of putting together a collection of data on the world's countries, What additional information, if any, would you include in your collection?

* Why do you think that literacy rates are different for men and women in most countries?

* Experts on developing countries say one of their greatest problems is the flow of people from rural to urban areas. Why do you think this could be a problem for such countries?

CLASSROOM STRATEGIES

Analyzing Data: Some students may regard statistics as a jumble of numbers. You can make a link to their frame of reference by reminding them that statistics are also a vital part of the worlds of sports and pop music. But unlike home runs and CD sales, these global statistics offer an easy way to compare the strengths and weaknesses of countries around the world.

You can help students understand these comparisons by asking them to search the tables for countries with Human Development Indexes in the 0.9 range and the 0.3 range. As the key explains, this index combines different economic and social indicators to show a level of well-being. How do countries in the 0.9 range compare to those in the 0.3 range in literacy and life expectancy? What connection is there between income and heath and education? (With a few exceptions, there is a direct correlation between income and literacy and life expectancy.) Tell students that people with money tend to have better access to health care and nutrition.

History Link: The data also provide clues to history. Look at languages in Africa. Note that French is spoken in more than 25 countries. What does this suggest about European colonization of Africa? Next, look at African independence dates. Ethiopia's independence is 1000 B.C., while most countries cluster in the 1960s. What does this suggest about Ethiopia's history? (Except for a period of Italian occupation, 1936-1941, Ethiopia resisted colonization.)

COUNTRY AREA (SQ. MI) (1)/ URBAN POPULATION (1) POP. (%) (1)/ POP. ANNUAL RISE (%) (1) NORTH AMERICA Antigua 170/ 37/ and Barbuda 100,000 1.6 Bahamas 5,359/ 84/ 300,000 1.5 Barbados 166/ 38/ 300,000 0.5 Belize 8,865/ 49/ 300,000 1.9 Canada 3,849,670/ 78/ 31,000,000 0.3 Costa Rica 19,730/ 45/ 3,700,000 1.8 Cuba 42,803/ 75/ 11,300,000 0.6 Dominica 290/ 71/ 100,000 0.8 Dominican 18,815/ 61/ Republic 8,600,000 2.1 El Salvador 8,124/ 58/ 6,400,000 2.3 Grenada 131/ 34/ 100,000 1.3 Guatemala 42,042/ 39/ 13,000,000 2.9 Haiti 10,714/ 35/ 7,000,000 1.7 Honduras 43,278/ 46/ 6,700,000 2.8 Jamaica 4,243/ 50/ 2,600,000 1.5 Mexico 756,062/ 74/ 99,600,000 1.9 Nicaragua 50,193/ 57/ 5,200,000 3.0 Panama 29,158/ 56/ 2,900,000 2.1 Saint Kitts 139/ 43/ and Nevis 40,000 0.9 Saint Lucia 239/ 30/ 200,000 1.3 Saint Vincent 151/ 44/ and the 100,000 1.2 Grenadines Trinidad 1,981/ 72/ and Tobago 1,300,000 0.7 United States 3,717,796/ 75/ 284,500,000 0.6 COUNTRY CAPITAL MAJOR LANGUAGES (1) NORTH AMERICA Antigua St. John's English, local and Barbuda dialects Bahamas Nassau English, Creole Barbados Bridgetown English Belize Belmopan English, Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna Canada Ottawa English, French Costa Rica San Jose Spanish, English Cuba Havana Spanish Dominica Roseau English, French patois Dominican Santo Spanish Republic Domingo El Salvador San Salvador Spanish, Nahua Grenada St. George's English, French patois Guatemala Guatemala Spanish, City Amerindian dialects Haiti Port, Creole, French au-Prince Honduras Tegucigalpa Spanish, Amerindian dialects Jamaica Kingston English, Creole Mexico Mexico City Spanish, Mayan, other indigenous languages Nicaragua Managua Spanish, English, Amerindian Panama Panama City Spanish, English Saint Kitts Basseterre English and Nevis Saint Lucia Castries English, French patois Saint Vincent Kingstown English French and the patois Grenadines Trinidad Port-of-Spain English, Hindi, and Tobago French, Spanish United States Washington, English, Spanish, D.C. others COUNTRY FORM OF GOVERNMENT DATE OF AND HEAD (1) ORIGIN/ % POP. UNDER 15 YEARS (1) NORTH AMERICA Antigua Dominant party; 1981/ and Barbuda Prime Minister Lester Bird 28 Bahamas Parliamentary democracy; 1973/ Prime Minister Hubert 31 Ingraham Barbados Parliamentary democracy; 1966/ Prime Minister Owen Arthur 23 Belize Parliamentary democracy; 1981/ Prime Minister Said Musa 41 Canada Parliamentary democracy; 1867/ Prime Minister Jean Chretien 19 Costa Rica Presidential-legislative 1821/ democracy; President Miguel 32 Angel Rodriguez Echeveria Cuba Communist one-party state; 1902/ President Fidel Castro Ruz 22 Dominica Parliamentary democracy; 1978/ Prime Minister Pierre Charles 33 Dominican Presidential-legislative 1844/ Republic democracy; President 35 Francisco Flores Perez El Salvador Presidential-legislative 1821/ democracy; President 36 Hipolito Mejia Grenada Parliamentary democracy; 1974/ Prime Minister Keith Mitchell 38 Guatemala Presidential-legislative 1821/ democracy; President Alfonso 44 Portillo Cabrera Haiti Presidential-legislative 1804/ democracy; President 43 Jean-Bertrand Aristide Honduras Presidential-legislative 1821/ democracy; President Carlos 43 Roberto Flores Facusse Jamaica Parliamentary democracy; 1962/ Prime Minister Percival 31 James Patterson Mexico Presidential-legislative 1810/ democracy; President Vicente 34 Fox Quesada Nicaragua Presidential-legislative 1821/ democracy; President Arnoldo 43 Aleman Lacayo Panama Presidential-legislative 1903/ democracy; President Mireya 31 Moscoso Saint Kitts Parliamentary democracy; 1983/ and Nevis Prime Minister Denzil Douglas 31 Saint Lucia Parliamentary democracy; 1979/ Prime Minister Kenny Anthony 33 Saint Vincent Parliamentary democracy; 1979/ and the Prime Minister Ralph 32 Grenadines Gonsalves Trinidad Parliamentary democracy; 1962/ and Tobago Prime Minister Basdeo Panday 26 United States Presidential-legislative 1776/ democracy; President 21 George W. Bush COUNTRY LITERACY PER CAPITA RATE (%) (1)/ GDP (1)/ LIFE HDI (1) EXPECTANCY (1) NORTH AMERICA Antigua 90/88 / $8,200/ and Barbuda 68/72 NA Bahamas 99/98 / $15,000/ 70/75 0.820 Barbados 98/97 / $14,500/ 70/75 0.864 Belize 70/70 / $3,200/ 70/74 0.776 Canada 89/99 / $24,800/ 76/81 0.936 Costa Rica 95/95 / $6,700/ 75/79 0.821 Cuba 96/95 / $1,700/ 73/77 NA Dominica 94/94 / $4,000/ 70/76 NA Dominican 82/82 / $5,700/ Republic 67/71 0.722 El Salvador 74/70 / $4,000/ 67/73 0.701 Grenada 98/98 / $4,400/ 63/66 NA Guatemala 69/59 / $3,700/ 63/68 0.626 Haiti 48/42 / $1,800/ 47/51 0.467 Honduras 73/73 / $2,700/ 64/68 0.634 Jamaica 81/99 / $3,700/ 70/73 0.738 Mexico 92/87 / $9,100/ 73/78 0.790 Nicaragua 65/67 / $2,700/ 66/70 0.635 Panama 91/90 / $6,000/ 72/76 0.784 Saint Kitts 97/98 / $7,000/ and...