Brief - The Hustle

Digits: Chicken talk, an aggressive Starbucks push, a new buzz phrase, and more

Written by Juliet Bennett Rylah | Jan 17, 2024 1:00:27 AM

~70%: Percentage of people who could correctly guess how a chicken was feeling based on its cluck, regardless of how much time they’d spent among chickens previously, per an Australian study. Chickens communicate via body language and sounds, which apparently includes screaming to celebrate the laying of an egg.

1k: How many cafes Tata Starbucks, a partnership between Starbucks and Tata Consumer Products, wants to open in India by 2028. India currently has 390 Starbucks stores, meaning Tata Starbucks must open a new one every three days to reach its goal, which CEO Laxman Narasimhan says is doable. Starbucks faces competition from both local chains like Blue Tokai and others, including Canada’s Tim Hortons.

3.8k%: Percentage increase in the use of the phrase “generational opportunity” during earnings calls since 2018. What does it mean? Well, it sounds like they’re using it to describe a rare or perhaps “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity, and The Financial Times would very much like them to stop.

240k: Average number of plastic pieces 100 nanometers in size or less that may be contained in a liter of bottled water, per a study using a new plastic detection technique. This is much higher than the ~10k particles per liter a 2018 study found, and particularly concerning considering nanoplastics are known to have negative health impacts on humans and animals.