Ocean · Puzzle #4 · Saturday, October 3

Ocean: the answers

Four questions, each with one true number. Here they are with their answers, how to reason each one out, and where the number comes from. Play today's Ocean.

1. 1. About 5.8 million visitors flew to Oahu, home of Waikiki Beach, in 2024. On an average day, how many visitors were on the island?

   

   The answer: about 112,000. The average Oahu visitor stayed about 7 days.

   1. 5.8Mvisitors a year
   2. ×6days a stay
   3. ÷365days a year

   ≈95.3kvisitors

   Source: Hawaii Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism, 2024 Annual Visitor Research Report

2. 2. How many surfers are there in the world, according to the count the International Surfing Association gave the IOC in 2012?

   

   The answer: about 35 million. The ISA's breakdown put 13.5 million of those surfers in the Americas and 6.5 million in Oceania.

   1. 8Bpeople on Earth
   2. ÷250people for every surfer

   ≈32Msurfers

   Source: SurferToday (citing the International Surfing Association), How many surfers are there in the world?

3. 3. How many pounds of shrimp did Americans eat in 2020?

   The answer: about 1.65 billion. Shrimp is America's most-eaten seafood, ahead of salmon and canned tuna.

   1. 330Mpeople in the US
   2. ×12shrimp meals each a year
   3. ×0.3pound a meal

   ≈1.19Bpounds

   Source: Frozen Foods Biz (National Fisheries Institute figures), Shrimp Tops Per Capita Consumption List in US, Followed by Salmon & Tuna

4. 4. On an average day, how many lives does the US Coast Guard save?

   The answer is hidden while this question is still in play: it comes round again within 14 days.

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