Barometer | 18 July 2019

Mars missions

When will there be a manned Mars mission?

— As early as 1962, Nasa studied the practicalities of a mission to Mars, as part of its Project EMPIRE (Early Manned Planetary-Interplanetary Roundtrip Expeditions). The initial plan was to put a man on Mars by the early 1970s. However, budgetary restraints meant that the programme was limited to a flyby of Venus before being axed.
— The prospect of a manned mission to Mars has been revived several times since. However, two years ago Nasa announced that it is unlikely to happen before the 2030s.

Counting cups

England won the cricket world cup. Which country holds the greatest number of world cups? (‘Championships’ not included.)

5  Australia (rugby league, women’s rugby
league, indoor cricket, darts, netball)
4  New Zealand (rugby, women’s rugby, rugby 7s, women’s rugby 7s) USA (basketball, women’s football, volleyball, lacrosse)
3  India (blind cricket, blind T20 cricket, kabaddi)
2  Germany (indoor women’s hockey, fistball) Netherlands (women’s hockey, women’s darts)
1  Argentina (futsal), Austria (indoor hockey),
Belgium (hockey), Brazil (women’s futsal), England (cricket), Finland (floorball), France (football), Ireland (pitch and putt),  Spain (women’s roller hockey), West Indies (T20 cricket)

Where drugs kill

Scotland was claimed to have the highest death rate from drugs in the EU, at 21.8 deaths per 100,000 people. Which countries have the highest and lowest rates, according to WHO data? (Deaths per 100,000.)

Not born in the USA

President Trump told four Congresswomen to ‘go home’ if they didn’t like it in the US — though three of them were born there. Is the US still a land of immigrants?

% of US population which was foreign-born: