The week of January 24, 2014 was: Latinos all up in the news. It turns out they are a) not all exactly the same (NO ME DIGAS) and b) taking over Cali. Also, Asians are the thinnest Americans.

Mash-Ups in the News:

Latinos Overtake Whites in California Demographics

In March, Latinos will become the largest demographic group in California. Apparently this was supposed to happen last year but they forgot to make enough babies. Also, it looks like we need more babies in Cali for “economic development”. Get to it!

via LA Weekly

The Thinnest Americans are Asian Americans, CDC Data Show

Well well well, while this isn’t SURPRISING, it’s some kind of stark shit. 38.6% of Asian American adults are considered overweight compared with 66.7% of whites, 76.7% of blacks and 78.8% of Latinos. Apropos of nothing, the article states that “72.1% of Asian Americans attended school beyond high school.”

via LA Times

Poll Focuses on Views from Wide Array of Latinos

Results from a Harvard and NPR poll of a large group of Latinos came out this week and it shows the variations between different regional groups. Data on how age, region of origin and whether they are native born make a big difference. Some tidbits: most people polled don’t care if they are called Hispanic or Latino (interesting!). Puerto Ricans are most likely to speak only English at home and Central Americans the most likely to speak only Spanish at home. Cubans are the most educated, but also say they are the most concerned about their finances.

via NPR

The ‘Ax’ Versus ‘Ask’ Question

Why do some black people say ‘ax’ instead of ‘ask’? Why do other people then assume they are illiterate? This article, by a linguist, explores the history of the word and the cultural context in the black community. Some things we learned: ‘axe’ was how people pronounced it circa Chaucer, the word ‘fish’ used to be ‘fisk’, but more interestingly ‘ax’ and ‘ask’ have slightly different meanings when used.

via LA Times

Twitter Users’ Diversity Becomes an Ad Selling Point

Twitter has some flava and they are working it. Black, Latinos and Asians make up 40% of Twitter users (compared with 34% of Facebook users). Marketers are building super-smart campaigns using the firehouse of data Twitter has about each user.

via The Wall Street Journal

Is There a Biological Reason for Sexually Preferring a Certain Race?

Gawker asks 3 scientists for their opinion on this super-charged question. This piece is simultaneously interesting and very irritating. The answers are inconclusive (DUH) but essentially say we have evolved to have some sexual preferences but certainly a lot is culturally conditioned.

via Gawker

Check it: We are the 15 Percent

A great site this week of images and stories from interracial families.