Strength in Diversity

With more than 1.37 million people (according to the recent Census), San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and the second-largest in California. But did you know the median age in San Diego is around 35, with one quarter of the city’s population under 20 and only 12% over 64? That makes it one of the youngest big cities in the country. On top of that, nearly 41% of the people speak one of more than 100 languages at home — other than English.

Geek's Number Talk: Census shows growing diversity

In case you missed it: Last week, the U.S. Census Bureau released detailed results from its 2020 survey, and there were some interesting insights from the numbers. The total U.S. population stands at 331 million, with cities getting denser and rural areas becoming less and less populated.

More Americans identify as multiracial; the Black population grew over 5%; Asian and Hispanic communities grew by 35% and 23%, respectively; and the total white population shrank for the first time in the history of the Census.

But concerns persist that racial and ethnic populations were undercounted, primarily due to immigrants fearful of filling out the form despite the removal of the citizenship question. Nevertheless, America is more diverse than ever before, and that’s a reason to celebrate! Learn more from the AP.

Geek's Number Talk: Where are all the people going?

You may have heard that the Bay Area is experiencing a population decline for the first time in what seems like decades of consistent growth. According to early Census data, our regional population shrunk by 0.6% in 2020, and we’re down 0.8% from the peak of just two years ago.

As you can see, the biggest dip was right here in Santa Clara County, which dropped more than 15,000 residents last year alone. It’s no secret that the rising costs of housing are driving a population shift out of the Bay Area. But it’s yet to be seen how long this trend will hold.