There are some things Syracuse promoters can't do anything about: the 112 inches of annual snowfall, the 24-degree average January temperature, and an impending claim by Onondaga Indians, alleging 18th-century treaty violations, to most of the city.

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The fact that Romania has an average January temperature in the mid-20s, the lowest per capita income in the European Union and is the home to both Dracula and Copsa Mica, one of the most polluted cities in the world, never entered into my thinking.

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People are fleeing the cold: there is a strong correlation between the average temperature in January and population growth, notes Edward Glaeser, a professor of economics at Harvard University.

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During the seven-month period from January to July, the average temperature was 56.4 degrees, or 4.3 degrees higher than the region's long-term average, according to NOAA. Besides the Pacific Northwest, which saw seasonally average temperatures, the country saw record or near-record temperatures during the seven-month period.

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You know, where the average low temperature in January is minus 10 degrees.

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