The first Chinese student to graduate from an American college was Yung Wing, a naturalized American who received his bachelor of arts degree from Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut this month in 1854. That year, some 16,000 Chinese immigrants arrived in California, though ensuing restrictions greatly reduced the annual arrivals for decades thereafter. Today, there are about 3.7 million Americans of Chinese descent, and they are no longer a rarity on college campuses. Over 46 percent of school-age Chinese-Americans are enrolled in college or graduate school, while 27 percent of adults have graduate or professional degrees. You can find more facts about America’s people, places and economy from the American Community Survey at www.census.gov.
Saturday, June 21st. Our love of music has driven the recording industry over the years to come up with better ways to store and retrieve our favorites. One man’s devotion to classical led to a major breakthrough. He was Dr. Peter Goldmark of CBS Labs, who developed the long-playing record — first shown to the public on this date in 1948. A similar revolution occurred in the 1980s, as CDs replaced LPs. Since the 1990s, digital downloads of music have driven down CD sales. Because of this greater consumer choice, music purchases have fallen from nearly $12 billion in 2003 to just over $7 billion in 2012. But that’s still enough to sustain over 1,700 sound recording studios in the U.S. Profile America is in its 17th year as a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.
Sunday, June 22nd. Among the assorted observances in June is one that will be welcomed by most of the U.S. population — especially youngsters. It’s National Candy Month. From fancy bon-bons to licorice and candy bars, it’s time to enjoy a treat. In the world of candy, chocolate is the clear winner. There are nearly 1,150 firms in the U.S. making chocolate and cocoa products worth $13.5 billion a year. Another 440 locations make nonchocolate confection. Together, there are well over 35,000 Americans employed in manufacturing sweets and treats. Today, there are more than 3,300 candy stores across the nation selling all forms of confections. Americans consume an average of around nine pounds of candy annually. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at www.census.gov.