What is Digg?210 Comments
- jdroth, on 10/14/2007, -11/+120This chart is completely misleading. The first balloon represents the number 45,000 and the final balloon represents the number 77,552. The second number as about 1.7x the first number. But in the chart, the balloon representing the final number is MANY times the size of the first balloon. In fact, if my calculations are correct, the volume of the last balloon is about ten times the volume of the first balloon. That's quite a distortion. That's lying with charts.
- inactive, on 10/14/2007, -2/+43But I'll be damned if it doesn't look pretty.
- AliasHandler, on 10/12/2007, -8/+31Not to mention doesn't this just mean more kids are going to college and the loans are doing what they are supposed to be doing?
- igknighted, on 10/12/2007, -4/+25Worst. Chart. Ever.
Being a math person who focuses in statistics, I died a little inside when I saw that. Let me guess, it's a USA Today chart? - holzp, on 10/14/2007, -4/+24Well if Ballooning school was not so damn expensive, there would not be so much debt. Damn Big Helium!
- WinGeek, on 10/15/2008, -6/+25College is not that expensive if you go to a state school.
State School: $7,500 year
Private School: $22,000 year
Alternatively you could work your ass off in high school and go to college for free on a scholarship. - mason194, on 10/11/2007, -1/+17Because you will never have to pay for it in the form of higher taxes. The funding comes from the magic money tree.
- keyboardduder, on 10/11/2007, -0/+16proof that digg needs a "proof that digg nees a ____ section" section
- davewashere, on 10/11/2007, -4/+17I think the chart was made for non-college graduates or liberal arts majors who wouldn't understand the numbers without big balloons, even if they aren't drawn to scale. The point is the balloon is bigger now than it used to be. And look at the pretty colors!
- Travisty2012, on 10/11/2007, -0/+12That could be some of it...but I've heard that tuition is sky rocketing also. Wish I had some info handy but I know the school I went to starting in 2000 has doubled in price since then...
- drcato, on 10/11/2007, -0/+11Nothing is free. Canadians pay for school, just not directly. I'm not saying the Canadian or U.S. system is better, but saying that you pay $180 a year for school is misleading.
- diggface5000, on 10/11/2007, -0/+8hmm that's funny because if you get a 3.5 gpa and 1270 (out of 1600 on the old SAT) the state of florida DOES pay for your college. and $300 for books. plus after you meet your graduation requirements in high school you can take as many classes at the local university as you want to for free. plus free books. (i had about 60 college credits by the time i graduated high school) the state lottery pays for it, not increased taxes.
- blakeage, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10Student loans are the devil. They were the biggest mistake I made in college. Now I'm stuck in a job paying them off, with fewer options than if I hadn't gone to college in the first place.
- mt066, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6Buried. Should be in the balloon section.
- mason194, on 10/11/2007, -3/+9The lotto pays for it? I can't think of any better way to pay for people to train for higher paying jobs than by preying on the ignorant poor.
- FuzzyBunny, on 10/11/2007, -1/+7That was my first thought as well. Most financial advisors will tell you that student debt is typically a 'good' kind of debt to have. Meaning it usually has very low rates and the initial investment pays for itself many times over with the better job opportunities it grants. The fact that student debt is up isn't in and of itself a bad thing. Even if it's because tuition is up it's still not necessarily a wholly bad thing.
- danconia, on 10/11/2007, -3/+9Before anyone even starts to talk about Hillary Clinton's $5k for school plan just look in your Econ 101 book and realize that it would increase demand for college and as a result college tuition would just go up in price that much more.
And this is coming from someone (me) who is going to owe boatloads of money because I'm a Trojan. - minorthreat, on 10/11/2007, -1/+6Im not trying to argue or be an ass, but how about going to college for the fact of learning. Sure you can do it on your own.. but the number of people who do that is far far less than those who actually learn in college. You know... I would much rather be 40,000 in debt and have the knowledge/experience as well as what college really teaches you(the ability to learn) than be an independent business owner who makes a living but there thinking/learning skills are seriously lacking. Why does everything have to be about the money. It's not about the money to me...
- NolanFinn, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5now you're thinking fourth dimensionally
- tdelet, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5Somewhere, Edward Tufte is shedding a tear.
- markp93, on 10/11/2007, -4/+9Whoever knew ballooning school was so expensive?
- wiirdo, on 10/11/2007, -4/+9It would be much higher if they had to pay for their own music.
- bkedersha, on 10/11/2007, -1/+5Forget about the Military-Industrial Complex, we now have the Educational-Industrial Complex.
- Otto, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4Nah. The suckers who buy lotto tickets are beyond helping.
- biliabong6, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4Now how hard would it be to take all the money invested in Iraq and help out American citizens instead who want to be educated? The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few...and who im America is really benefitting from the war when our citizens are growing poorer and poorer to due these interest rates and initial high costs.
Please US Government, help your own people out! - baggedlunch, on 10/12/2007, -10/+14Proof that Digg needs a chart section.
- TheFinaleofSeem, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4Nobody makes anyone buy a lottery ticket. There's no "preying" on anyone unless it's the gullible.
- bilbravo, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4I don't want to be a negative Nancy here, but while it is a good indicator that young people are going to college, one must remember that student loans can be used to pay for all sorts of things. There are regulations on what can be purchased, but it is difficult to enforce those regulations.
I paid for my rent, books, a new PC, and tuition--all good things. However, remember that the student is not required to return any unspent monies so that they can be used for other "educational" expenses. It is very possible to buy things like video games, iPods, etc. I'm not saying those things are inherently bad, but using a student loan to acquire them is no better than using a credit card--except that you have a lower interest rate. - Otto, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3If you go to college because it gets you a job, then you're going for the wrong reasons.
College is not vo-tech. - geddon, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3You missed a zero: "Academic fees [in Canada] are set by the individual institution and can range from $1,800 to $3,300 for an eight-month academic year, depending on the college and the program of study."
http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/higher-education ... - clothmonkey, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3$65? Lucky bastard...
- jmpeagle, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4falling interest rates cause taking on debt to become cheaper, many moew kids are going to school, and inflation had devalued the dollar by 20% in purschasing power between 2001 and 2006. This isn't surprising.
- ipodman, on 10/11/2007, -2/+5Choose your college wisely, http://www.smartcollege.org shows you tuition and retention rate by major, including fees/room & board. You can pick a major and compare colleges. It's a good starting point.
- clothmonkey, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4Well, you could fund Big Hydrogen instead, but that might blow up in your face.
- allioupe, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4Maybe college would have taught you better grammar?
- Navicerts, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3I went to a couple of different state schools (both in state), 1998 - 2003 - it was around 10k/year for both of them.
- bilbravo, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3I'm not trying to argue, but a lot of employers require a degree. Why? Not because it means you know more, but it shows you aren't lazy. (I'm not justifying that generalization either). I know people who have a degree and are by no means as advanced with their programming skills and/or other skills than some of my friends who did not go to college, but who's got a good job and who is still looking.
- Paroparo, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4University in Finland is so damn expensive. Just a few weeks ago I had to pay this year's student body-whatever fee of 87€ (the closest thing we have to tuition fee, not strictly required, but gets me that cool student card with discounts to everywhere), and the monthly student grants are only 260€ + 80% of my rent. Luckily it'll only be another six years or so before I graduate. =(
- Otto, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Yes, because nothing expands your mind like sitting alone reading books. /sarcasm
You cannot learn anything when you're inside a bubble. You have to get out there, interact with other people, and actually see opposing viewpoints. College matures people, expands their horizons. That's the reason to go to college, it's not just for all that book-learnin'. ;) - brainScan, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3The biggest distortion is that the numbers in the balloon reflect the number of students that graduated with debt. Basically, this tells me that more students are graduating, not that a greater proportion of students are saddled with debt.
- bilbravo, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3BUT... $300 towards $800 in books is better than $0 towards $800 in books. :-) I've been out of college for 3 years, and it looks like your number is probably 1.5 times what I paid. It seems the price increases more than more every year! The biggest problem though is that the book publishers are now releasing a new edition sooner and sooner. It was very difficult to buy used Comp Sci. books.
I feel for college students, I really do. After all, I've been there. - nmckinlay, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3You're all *****. I go to the University of Toronto. Because I'm in business, my tuition costs me about $10,500/yr. This is NOT including any residence fees, textbook costs, or transportation costs. Simply tuition + incidental fees. I live at home and spend approx. $600/semester on textbooks. It sucks. And no, like many upper-middle income families, I don't get OSAP (student financing).
Our normal (non-Commerce/BBA/CompSci) programs run approximately $4,500/yr... not too bad but nowhere near as small as what you are referring to. The only Canadian Universities worth mentioning are really UToronto, UWO, Queens, Mac, McGil, Carleton, etc... and they all have tuitions that run about the same. Community college is maybe half the price. - cavemanf16, on 10/11/2007, -2/+5Well, now I know who not to trust with statistics: GOOD. That graphic is nearly blasphemous. The "balloons" don't accurately represent anything! The numbers in the balloons I suppose are accurate, but if you measure the diameter of the 2000 balloon, it's about 1" wide, whereas the 2006 balloon is 4" wide! As HoneyNutz' calculation above reveals, thats a far cry from the true numerical differences listed in each balloon. But unlike HoneyNutz, I disagree that this is showing a trend accurately. I'm sure it's hidden in there (either the height of the people or the balloons - who can tell?!), but that doesn't matter when the visual representation of the entire chart is CLEARLY focused on the size of each balloon. I hate when pundits use bad statistics and graphics to bolster their own opinions. It causes the morons in our society to scream: "Won't somebody PUH-LEASE think of the children!" without stopping to think about what they're being told.
- slothlovechunk, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Volume scales by a cube of radius.
Maybe just the radius is 1.7 times as big? - tororosso, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3University studies are heavily subsidized in continental Europe, depending on your grades you can get paid to go to school (merit scholarships + stipends) for your undergrad studies. However, once you graduate and start working, you will be paying up your nose in taxes... So, Americans could go do their undergrad studies in Europe, then go back to the US for grad studies or to enter the work market, they would have a good time in Europe, maybe pick up a foreign language, increase their markebility in this increasing global economy, and be much better off financially ;)
- trulymadly, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2the chart sucks, but
1) it is adjusted for inflation
2) the number of students more than $40,000 in debt has nearly doubled in 6 years
3) the number of universities and colleges hasn't doubled in the same time period
4) the chart ISN'T adjusted for interest rates, or cost of living increases.
safe to say that students are much deeper in debt than just a few years back, and if you looked another 6 years back i'd bet the trend continues. the average bachelor's degree at the university of california now costs $100,000 once you factor in rent. a law degree costs $200,000. there's nothing good about this; once students get out they are handcuffed in what careers they can pursue. start a business? fuggedabout it -- you'd go into default on your loans. student loans are the only type of debt that can't be discharged in bankruptcy. all the funding for higher education has gone away to wars and tax cuts for the wealthy, animated by aggressive lobbying by companies that make a bundle off student loans. sucker libertarians have eaten it up hook-line-sinker as good public policy. -
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