56 amazing facts about the country, citizens and customs

The United States is in many ways a nation like no other. During its history, the United States has accumulated all kinds of notable distinctions.

From its status as a global military superpower and one of the wealthiest nations on the planet to the residence of one of the most diverse populations and the world's No. 1 entertainment exporter, really remarkable things are not lacking. United States.

The United States is the country with the largest number of extremely wealthy people, but overall, its residents are not the wealthiest in the world. Here is the city in each state with the most billionaires, and here are the richest countries in the world.

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To give a small sample of notable American deeds and exploits, 24/7 has compiled a list of 56 exceptional, unusual, and historical achievements related to the United States.

1. The United States is great

The United States is the third largest country in the world in terms of land mass almost as large as the entire European continent.

2. World class athletes

American athletes have won more Olympic medals than athletes from any other country.

3. Climate diversity

The United States is the only country to have the five climatic zones of the Earth: tropical, dry, temperate, continental and polar.

4. Magnet for international tourism

The United States is the third country most visited by international tourists after Spain and France.

5. Fresh water supply

Lake Superior, on the Canada-US border, is the largest body of freshwater in the world by area. The lake covers 31,700 square miles.

6. Office space

The Pentagon, headquarters of the Ministry of Defense, is the largest office building in the world by area.

7. Space exploration

The only people to walk on the surface of the moon were Americans.

8. Destination of immigration

The United States is home to nearly 45 million more immigrants than any other country in the world.

9. Music central

Much of the music the world listens to jazz, rock & # 39; n & # 39; roll, hip-hop, country, folk, R&B, soul and gospel come from the United States.

10. Hollywood is dominant

The U.S. film industry is the largest, oldest, and most profitable film industry in the world. According to research company IBISWorld, the U.S. film industry generated about $ 33 billion in 2019.

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11. slice of paradise

More than nine in ten Americans have eaten pizza in the past month. It is estimated that Americans consume approximately 100 acres of pizza each day.

12. Government property

In the United States, almost a third of all land, or about 650 million acres, belongs to the federal government.

13. Fast food nation

In the United States, every day, approximately 84.8 million adults, 37% of the adult population consume fast food, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

14. America does not belong entirely to the Americans

According to the USDA, foreign investors own at least 28.3 million acres of American farmland, an area the size of Ohio.

15. President

The United States was the first nation to use the title of "president" for its head of state.

16. Inventions

The United States is at the center of global invention. Planes, computers, cell phones, chips and the light bulb are just a few examples of American ingenuity.

17. Americans love dogs

There are approximately 75.8 million dogs in the United States, more than double the number in Brazil, the country with the second largest number of dogs.

18. The US economy is massive

Although the United States is home to less than 5% of the world's population, it accounts for about 25% of the world's economic output.

19. Oil production

The United States has become the world's largest producer of oil over the past 10 years. The country produced 18.23 million barrels of oil per day in 2019, well above the daily production of Saudi Arabia, the world's second largest oil producer. Petroleum includes crude petroleum, all other petroleum liquids and biofuels.

20. Oil consumption

The United States is also the world's largest consumer of oil. Gasoline, distilled fuel oil, hydrocarbon gas liquids and jet fuel consumption combine for a total of 20.48 million barrels of oil consumed daily.

21. American flag

The current iteration of the American flag was designed by a high school student.

22. Second amendment

In the United States, there are more guns than 101 people per 100 people, according to some estimates. The country with the second highest possession rate is Serbia, where there are 58 weapons per 100 people.

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23. German influence

About 43 million Americans identify themselves as German ancestors, more than any other nationality.

24. Imperial measurement system

The United States is one of three countries that have not officially switched to the metric system. Liberia and Burma are the other two.

25. Duration of employment

In the United States, the typical employee has worked for their current employer for 4.2 years.

26. Green money

The government has chosen to color the American currency green as an anti-counterfeiting strategy. When the color was adopted in the 19th century, cameras could only take black and white photos, which made imitation invoices difficult to produce.

27. Concentration of the population

More than half of the American population lives in only nine states: California, Texas, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Georgia and North Carolina.

28. Americans love to travel

The number of passports held by Americans jumped to 21.4 million in 2017, the most ever recorded.

29. Belief in the individual

According to a recent study by the Pew Research Center, 57% of Americans believe that individuals control their own success in life, the largest share of all the countries studied.

30. Americans like to move

The United States is one of the most mobile countries on the planet. According to a Gallup poll, 24% of American adults said they had moved to the interior of the country in the past five years.

31. Tornadoes

In the United States, three out of four tornadoes worldwide occur.

32. Nobel Prize

The United States has received more Nobel Prizes than any other country.

33. Biodiversity

The United States ranks among the top 10 countries in the world for the number of mammal, reptile, fish, and vascular plant species.

34. Forest

The United States has more than 3.1 million square miles of forest land, the fourth after Canada, Brazil and Russia.

35. Americans love football

Super Bowl XLIX in 2015 was the most watched show in American television history, with approximately 114.4 million viewers. The 2019 Super Bowl LIII averaged 98.3 million viewers, the lowest in more than a decade.

36. Minority white

New Census Bureau projections predict that the U.S. will be "white minority" at 49.7% by 2045.

37. America is connected

It is estimated that 90% of Americans use the Internet, compared to about 54% of the world's population.

38. Generosity

The United States is one of the most generous countries in the world, behind Australia, Indonesia and New Zealand, according to the World Giving Index 2018, published annually by charities Aid Foundation, an international non-profit organization.

39. Lots of ribs

The United States has approximately 12,380 miles of coastline, more than all but eight other countries in the world.

40. Home of the world's largest employer

Founded in Arkansas in 1962, Walmart is the largest employer in the private world, employing 2.2 million people.

41. Chinatown in Manhattan

Manhattan's Chinatown is home to more Chinese residents than anywhere else in the Western Hemisphere.

42. Higher education

The United States has the strongest higher education system in the world and attracts more than one million international students per year, the largest number of any country.

43. Energy

The United States accounts for 21% of the world's energy consumption and has the highest per capita energy consumption in the world. America is second in the world in energy production.

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44. Breweries

Good news for beer lovers. The number of brewers in the U.S. rose to 7,450 in 2018, down from just 89 in 1978, fueled by the surge in craft beer.

45. American companies dominate

In the United States, nine of the 10 largest companies in the world by market capitalization are based. Most of the top 100 companies by market capitalization (54) are American.

46. ​​The service industry is the boss

According to the latest BLS report, 108 million people (71% of non-agricultural workers) were employed in the service sector.

47. Native American influence

More than half of the 26 states have names of Native American origin.

48. Hurricanes

The United States, with its vast coastline, has had more hurricanes (nearly 300) since 1851 than any other country, according to data from the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration.

49. Americans love hot dogs

Americans bought 871.8 million pounds or about $ 2.3 billion of hot dogs in supermarkets in 2019. Los Angeles is the best dog for the francs, consuming about 30 million pounds a year.

50. Belief in God

A Pew Research Center study from 2011 to 2013 found that about 54% of Americans said religion was very important in their lives, compared to 24% of Canadians, 21% in Australia and 21% in Germany.

51. Basketball

Although baseball is the American national pastime, it borrows a lot from the game of British cricket. Likewise, football is largely based on the British sport of rugby. Invented in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1891, basketball is the most popular American game.

52. Longest border

The United States shares the longest land border in the world with its northern neighbor, Canada, more than 5,500 miles. The border is divided between the northern border of the 48 lower states and the eastern border of Alaska.

53. Agricultural center

The United States produces more corn than any other country in the world, accounting for more than 366 million metric tonnes during the 2018-2019 season. The next closest country, China, has exceeded corn production in the United States by more than 100 million tonnes.

54. Business center

According to Forbes, of the world's 2,000 largest companies, 575 are based in the United States. China and its special administrative region of Hong Kong are home to 309 of the 2,000 largest companies.

55. Golf access point

Being such a large country, the United States has ample space to build high-end golf courses. Among the top 100 golf advisers in the world, 52 are located in the United States.

56. Most billionaires

CNBC reported that the United States is home to far more billionaires than any other country, with 705 more than the next four combined. Seven of the 10 richest worlds are American.

24/7 Wall Street is a USA TODAY content partner offering financial news and commentary. Its content is produced independently of the USA TODAY.