US population will ring in the New Year by topping 315M on Jan. 1

Maybe it doesn't seem like it if you've been to the DMV or stuck in airport security recently, but the U.S. isn't growing as fast as it once was. However, that doesn't mean you don't have a whole bunch of people up in your space. The country’s population is projected to top 315 million on New Year's Day. That's a 0.73 percent increase in 2012, and while the world has a net gain of 2.37 persons born every second, only one every 17 seconds is coming from the U.S. Still, don’t rule out building that cabin in the woods to get away from it all: The 400-million mark will be reached shortly after 2050.