Short Reads

The three countries on the pope’s itinerary -- Uganda, Kenya and the Central African Republic -- all have sizable Catholic populations. But they also have seen violent clashes in recent years.

A large majority of Americans (78%) feel a strong sense of gratitude or thankfulness on a weekly basis, while only 6% of Americans say they seldom or never experience these feelings.

Only about half of Millennials say they believe in God with absolute certainty, and four-in-ten say religion is very important in their lives.

Americans are deeply cynical about government, politics and the nation's leaders.

That's compared with 27% of Gen Xers and 24% of Boomers who say the same.

China’s rapid economic development, its urbanization and its culture will continue to play a role in family size and the population’s gender makeup.

Public opinion data going back to the 1930s shows that generally speaking, Americans oppose large numbers of refugees entering the country.

With so much new infrastructure, 62% of urban areas in China with populations over 100,000 have become less crowded -- even as most gained in total population.

Most American adults say a family member is caring for their aging parent who needs help handling their affairs or caring for themselves. And if they’re not already helping out a parent, most expect to do so someday.

In principle, most people around the world support freedom of expression. But there is a fine line between general support for freedom of speech and support for specific forms of expression.