birth rate – News Stories About birth rate - Page 4

Jan 16, 2008 10:38 AM CST

'06 a Mini Baby Boom for US

4.3M births highest in 45 years, go against trends in industrialized world

(Newser) - The US experienced a mini baby boom in 2006, with the largest number of children born since the 1960s. The AP reports 4.3 million births that year, giving the US a higher birth rate than Europe, Australia, Canada, or Japan. Hispanics accounted for a quarter of all US births,...

South Korea Bounces Reign of Baby Boys

Dec 23, 2007 10:10 AM CST

South Korea Bounces Reign of Baby Boys

Girls find new favor as sex imbalance begins to reverse

(Newser) - Shedding an age-old preference for sons, South Korea has in the last two decades become the first Asian country to reverse a large sex imbalance at birth. A radical shift in Koreans' attitude toward female babies—and toward working women—has brought down the rate of sex-selection abortion, the New ...

In Japan, Robots Tackle the Dirty Work

Nov 30, 2007 12:13 PM CST

In Japan, Robots Tackle the Dirty Work

As workforce shrinks, machines gain favor over immigrants

(Newser) - With the birthrate sinking and the government showing no inclination to loosen immigration restrictions, Japanese businesses are turning to science for help with the impending worker shortage. The London Times visits a Tokyo exhibition that showcases the possible answer: robots. "Robots do the D-work"--dirty, dangerous, and difficult--"that...

Russians Get Holiday to Multiply

Aug 15, 2007 5:38 PM CDT

Russians Get Holiday to Multiply

Couples get day off nine months before country's national day

(Newser) - The Ulyanovsk region of Russia will give its citizens a day off to procreate—nine months before Russia's national day of June 12; couples whose children are born on that day can even win prizes. The Russian population has been dropping since the early 90s, and President Putin has called...

Singapore Blossoms into Major City

May 27, 2007 8:00 AM CDT

Singapore Blossoms into Major City

Stern Asian capital set to emerge as a tourist haven filled with casinos, hotels, and amusement parks

(Newser) - Singapore is transforming itself from a dull metropolis famous for its draconian cleanliness into an exciting, vibrant, tourists' paradise, Time reports. Plans are percolating for casinos, skyscrapers, amusement parks, and a multi-billion dollar residential and commercial real estate development located downtown.