Somewhere in L.A. at 4:46 a.m. local time on Tuesday, a baby boy with Mexican parents is expected to become the 300 millionth person in the U.S.
The newborn will mark a population milestone and reflect the dramatic changes that have reshaped the region and the country.
Today, a growing portion of the U.S. population is Latino, L.A. has emerged as a key population center, there are more births than new immigrants, and baby boys outnumber girls.
“That 300 millionth baby boy is symbolic of where America is going in the 21st Century melting pot,” said William Frey, a demographer with the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., who predicted the profile of resident No. 300 million.
U.S. Census experts have extrapolated the exact time the U.S. will hit the milestone based on estimates that the U.S. population adds one person every 11 seconds.
That means one birth every seven seconds, one death every 13 seconds and one immigrant entering the country every 31 seconds.
And the growth has been accelerating since America hit the 100 million mark in 1915.
It took 52 years–until 1967–for the population to add another 100 million residents. But it’s taken just 39 years since then to add 100 million more.
And the demographic changes have been just as rapid. Experts say in some fundamental ways the country is cycling back to its origins.
“We’re going back to our melting-pot roots,” Frey said. “We’re entering a stage that’s more like the 1915 100 million era than the 1967 200 million era.”
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Then and now
The U.S. population is expected to hit the 300 million mark on Tuesday, 39 years after Life magazine declared that Atlanta newborn Robert Ken Woo pushed the nation to the magical 200 million mark in 1967. He’s now an Atlanta attorney.
A lot of things have changed since then. Here’s a look at the country then and now.
–Cox News Service
Newborn necessities
1967
– Wind-up stuffed animal that played Brahms’ “Lullaby”
– Bassinet from Sears and Roebuck
– Dr. Spock’s “Baby and Child Care”
– Black and white hospital snapshot of baby
2006
– iPod loaded with self-help podcasts by Dr. Phil
– Bassinet from IKEA
– MySpace page to announce newborn
– YouTube video memorializing birth
Baby names
The top names now are Jacob and Emily, according to the Social Security Administration. The top names 39 years ago were Michael and Lisa.
Music
No. 1 singles in 1967 included:
– “Ruby Tuesday,” The Rolling Stones
– “Love is Here and Now You’re Gone,” The Supremes
– “Penny Lane,” The Beatles
– “Respect,” Aretha Franklin
No. 1 singles in 2006 include:
– “SexyBack,” Justin Timberlake
– “London Bridge,” Fergie
– “Promiscuous,” Nelly Furtado featuring Timbaland
– “Hips Don’t Lie,” Shakira featuring Wyclef Jean
Source: Billboard
TV
Top five shows in 1967
– “The Andy Griffith Show”
– “The Lucy Show”
– “Gunsmoke”
– “Family Affair”
– “Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.”
Top five shows in 2006
– “Grey’s Anatomy”
– “CSI”
– “Desperate Housewives”
– “Lost”
– “Dancing With the Stars”
Source: Nielsen
