Blog Posts by Book of Odds

We reported not long ago on a steep increase in the odds an adult will file for personal bankruptcy-up from 1 in 207.2 in 2007 to 1 in 158.6 in 2008. Today, after a slight improvement in 2009, the numbers are again going in a worrisome direction, despite other signs of improvement in the economy.

Just look at Teresa Giudice, star of Bravo's The Real Housewives of New Jersey. She has just owned up to the fact that she and her husband filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last fall. According to the New York Post, the Giudices owe nearly 11 million dollars-their creditors include the lenders holding mortgages on three homes plus the note on their Caddy, an assortment of upscale department stores, a fertility doctor, even the phone company.

You have to hope they don't own any BP stock. The oil giant's shares have tumbled-on bankruptcy rumors.

For 2009, the odds an adult will file for personal bankruptcy in a year were 1 in 161, a slight improvement over 2008. But in terms of total

School's out, summer's here, and it's a great time to be alive-literally: June, July, August, and September are when a person is least likely to drop dead. But that doesn't mean you can't still enjoy a good ER visit or two. It's the season to burn through your sunscreen, not to mention those accumulated vacation days, and in the process do some real damage to yourself.

So, for all you paranoids who can't relax without something to worry about, here's a nice list of summertime landmines-from horseshoes to hammocks to "happy hour"-that might land you and your flip-flops in the closest ER.

First up: the hammock. The symbol of relaxation, the rain-soaked adornment to many a backyard, the centerpiece of countless a retirement fantasy (given the economy, emphasis on fantasy). Whatever the hammock means to you, a comfy hammock can quickly lead to an uncomfy gurney. Every year, 1 in 85,350 people will visit an emergency department due to an accident in one. If you have never been

We all know the bride's parents traditionally pay for the wedding. But some customs change with changing times. In a tough economic climate, does that tradition still hold?

The custom of the bride's parents paying for the wedding is a vestige of the old dowry system, in which the bride's family gave the groom money or goods to compensate him for taking over the responsibility of supporting their daughter. In modern times, of course, a wife is no longer considered a financial burden, at least in Western societies. Old stereotypes like the bickering Bundys of Married with Children ("I hate work. That's why I got married" -Peg Bundy) are the stuff of satire.

Yet traditions often outlive their original purpose or symbolism. While only 1 in 6.62 brides is a virgin, the vast majority-1 in 1.15 (87%)-will wear a long white dress.

Social mores may have changed-1 in 1.41 marrying couples (71%) have lived together before marriage, for example-but weddings themselves remain

Rich or poor, famous or not, singles are often looking to meet "The One." But how best to go about it?

If you know people who know people (especially interesting and attractive ones), you might just stumble upon love. It also helps to be gorgeous and know accomplished and interesting people, even if they are not so gorgeous. Take the first lady of France.

In the mid-1980s, Eric Clapton fell in love with an Italian model-singer-centerfold named Carla whom he'd met through his girlfriend's friend. After a few romantic dinners in New York, Clapton took Carla to a Rolling Stones concert and Carla promptly fell for his friend, Mick Jagger. Today, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy is the wife of the president of France, the result of a whirlwind romance that began when she was seated beside President Sarkozy at a dinner party hosted by a mutual friend. Lesson: even for rock stars and glamorous beauties, new romantic relationships can be built on relationships that already exist.

Career

What are the odds you took a shower today?

The majority of American adults ( 1 in 1.59 , or 63%) shower at least once a day. And that doesn't count baths.

People love their showers. Fifty percent of mothers admit they use the shower as an escape. And a full 25% of the population admits to occasionally breaking into song. Some people like to daydream, but there are also the Type A's who insist on being productive even under the suds. Forty-eight percent of men and 64% of women compile their to-do lists while showering.

People in the Northeast out-shower those in other parts of the country. Men are more likely ( 1 in 1.43 , or 70%) than women ( 1 in 1.75 or 57%) to take a daily shower, but women stay in a tad longer. The average shower for a man lasts 12 minutes; add two more minutes for a woman (it's the hair!).

Like all human endeavors, showers have been studied and analyzed for their positive and negative qualities, and all is not perfect in the world of tiles and

Ever wonder why men seem to be able to drop the pounds just by cutting out the white bread, while women can limit themselves to carrot sticks and hardboiled eggs-and still be stung by the scale?

The odds a woman is trying to lose weight are 1 in 2.29 , and a man, 1 in 3.47 . When it comes to the size of the struggle, maybe men really are from Mars and women from Venus. Different planetary origins could explain the big differences between the sexes, at least when it comes to our appetites-and our fat cells. Because as it turns out, all fat is not equal. And that can make a big difference in how men and women lose weight.

Men tend to store fat in their bellies. Premenopausal women tend to store it in their hips. That's been known, and associated with differing health risks, for years. Belly fat is linked to heart disease and diabetes, for example, and men do indeed have these conditions in greater percentages. The odds a female has been diagnosed with diabetes are 1 in 18.52 ,

A couple of generations ago, cohabitation before marriage wasn't even on the table. "He won't buy the cow if he gets the milk for free," concerned mothers used to say to their daughters, in the days when living together before marriage was considered at worst sinful and at best just a stupid move on the woman's part. These days, couples are shacking up all the time before any rings have been exchanged. The odds a woman 25-44 has cohabited with a significant other are 1 in 1.65 (61%); for a man of the same age, the odds are 1 in 1.58 (or 63%).

What happens to these oh-so-intimate roommates? Does cohabitation generally lead to marriage, and if so, are those unions more-or less-likely to last?

Contrary to the fears of 1950s parents-that you'll never see that ring if you live together first-it turns out that cohabitation is, more often than not, a straight shot to the altar. Half of all cohabiting couples marry within three years, and 65% (1 in 1.54) do so within five years. But

People are liars-lying liars, as Al Franken might say. From white lies to whoppers, people lie and mislead and obfuscate about everything: sex and relationships, work and money, feelings, opinions, intentions. The odds a person will tell a lie in a day are 1 in 2.49.

Apparently, we evolved to lie: deception appears to have emerged among primates some 12 million years ago, which is probably why it's so difficult to detect. Yet in a dangerous world, distinguishing truth from deception can make the difference between life and death.

Of course, sometimes we expect and welcome lying, as with the little white social lies we tell every day, often to spare feelings or avoid conflict.

But sometimes we need to get at the truth. Is our spouse having an affair? Is a job applicant telling the truth about his qualifications? Has a defendant been falsely accused?

Ever since the first person suggested (wrongly) that people tend to avoid eye contact when they lie, we've been trying to