Charts of the Week: Donuts

Because June 7 is “National Donut Day,” here are some charts from Brookings research that remind us of the tasty fried dough treat. Enjoy!

CRULLER: DIGITAL KNOWLEDGE AN INCREASING REQUIREMENT FOR US JOBS

In their analysis of digitalization in the American workforce, a team from the Metropolitan Policy Program detailed the digital content of hundreds of occupations in the U.S. “Workers of every stripe,” they observed, “from corporate finance officers to sales people to utility workers and nurses—are now spending sizable portions of their workdays using tools that require digital skills.”

MINI-DONUTS: MILLENNIALS DELAY HOMEOWNERSHIP

While across the country homeownership rates have not shown long-term declines, William Frey noted that the housing bust of the Great Recession occurred just as members of the millennial generation were entering the housing market. “This tamped down their homeownership rate compared with young adults at earlier ages,” he said, adding that “this delay in homeownership may be robbing millennials of a head start toward a traditional means of wealth accumulation.”

HOLES: BROADBAND INTERNET ACCESS LAGGING IN RURAL AREAS

Experts documented the deployment of broadband internet services by metropolitan area. “Broadband, especially wireline broadband in American homes,” they wrote, “is the essential infrastructure for unlocking the internet’s economic benefits.” They noted that the largest gap at 25 Mbps speed is in rural areas.

Thanks to the social media team in the Brookings Office of Communications for inspiring this edition of Charts of the Week with this Twitter thread.