Alright, now we are getting somewhere!  Not only does Lighttpd use less memory to server the static files, but the additional memory needed for an additional connection is LESS than what Apache needs for the same additional connection!  Infact, Lighttpd uses about the same amount of RAM at 35 connections, that Apache does at 1 connection!!!  There's one more key statistic as to why Lighttpd is faster...

        Now this is where things get interesting.  Lighttpd is using almost no CPU to generate around 900 requests per second, while Apache uses between 2 and 3 times the CPU power to throw out 650 requests per second!  Now that is a difference!