Posted on: 22nd Dec, 2009 01:32 pm
Does literacy count when it comes time to decide where to live? If it does, then more and more people are going to be wanting to live in Seattle, WA. In a study by Jack Miller, the President of Central Connecticut State University, Seattle has been judged the most literate city in the United States.
Dr. Miller considered six factors in determining which of our country's major cities ranked as the best: newspaper circulation, number of bookstores, library resources, periodical publishing resources, educational attainment and internet resources. He's been compiling his lists for seven years.
From his report, Dr. Miller comments, "This set of factors measures people's use of their literacy and thus presents a large-scale portrait of our nation’s cultural vitality. From this data we can better perceive the extent and quality of the long-term literacy essential to individual economic success, civic participation, and the quality of life in a community and a nation."
The top ten rankings: 1) Seattle; 2) Washington, DC; 3) Minneapolis; 4) Pittsburgh; 5) Atlanta: 6) Portland, OR; 7) St. Paul, MN; 8) Boston; 9) Cincinnati; 10) Denver.
For those who live in these metropolises, does literacy factor into your calculations when determining where you wish to reside? Dr. Miller says also that those high on the literacy scale also rate highly on other quality of life factors, such as safety, health, being walkable and having active singles' scenes.
Comments?
Dr. Miller considered six factors in determining which of our country's major cities ranked as the best: newspaper circulation, number of bookstores, library resources, periodical publishing resources, educational attainment and internet resources. He's been compiling his lists for seven years.
From his report, Dr. Miller comments, "This set of factors measures people's use of their literacy and thus presents a large-scale portrait of our nation’s cultural vitality. From this data we can better perceive the extent and quality of the long-term literacy essential to individual economic success, civic participation, and the quality of life in a community and a nation."
The top ten rankings: 1) Seattle; 2) Washington, DC; 3) Minneapolis; 4) Pittsburgh; 5) Atlanta: 6) Portland, OR; 7) St. Paul, MN; 8) Boston; 9) Cincinnati; 10) Denver.
For those who live in these metropolises, does literacy factor into your calculations when determining where you wish to reside? Dr. Miller says also that those high on the literacy scale also rate highly on other quality of life factors, such as safety, health, being walkable and having active singles' scenes.
Comments?
Thanks for posting George. The list is interesting...
- Seattle...home of what may be the worst food in the country.
- DC...the highest crime rate in the country.
- Two Cities in MN ?? They are burning the books there to keep warm.
- Pitt...the steel city with all of the blue collar work. Never would have picked that one.
I would think Boston and Denver would be slightly higher. What measures do they use I wonder?
- Seattle...home of what may be the worst food in the country.
- DC...the highest crime rate in the country.
- Two Cities in MN ?? They are burning the books there to keep warm.
- Pitt...the steel city with all of the blue collar work. Never would have picked that one.
I would think Boston and Denver would be slightly higher. What measures do they use I wonder?
it's literacy, eric - not food, crime, or other mundane enterprises. if you can be erudite and stomach lattes and "frappachino" the i suppose you need to be number 1. besides, don't they throw fish on camera in seattle?
This past year I've purchased approximately a dozen books to introduce myself to subjects I'm curious about, and all the books were written for Dummies. I don't know if that makes me literate, or stupid.
raymond just because you read books that were written for dummies doesn't make you one. now if they're hard for you to read, that might present a problem, but if they're working for you then i'd say keep on keepin' on!
i've never read through any of that series of books, though. are there serious gaps in explanations, so that it's just basics; or are they reasonably thorough although "dumbed-down" as it were?
i've never read through any of that series of books, though. are there serious gaps in explanations, so that it's just basics; or are they reasonably thorough although "dumbed-down" as it were?
>>there serious gaps in explanations, so that it's just basics
They cover all the fundamentals and sometimes go a little beyond that. The reason I use them is because they're designed to explain things in a gradual manner. I ask most of my clients to read Reverse Mortgages for Dummies, so they'll have the foundation they need to ask me the right questions - I must have purchased 3 or 4 hundred copies of that book within the past few years. I get 12 at a time from amazon.com and provide them to clients when I first start working with them.
They cover all the fundamentals and sometimes go a little beyond that. The reason I use them is because they're designed to explain things in a gradual manner. I ask most of my clients to read Reverse Mortgages for Dummies, so they'll have the foundation they need to ask me the right questions - I must have purchased 3 or 4 hundred copies of that book within the past few years. I get 12 at a time from amazon.com and provide them to clients when I first start working with them.
wow, raymond, the publishers and amazon both must LOVE you! of course, i understand it's a cost of doing business, but that's a powerful lot of buying you're doing.
thanks for the update - i actually purchased one for one of my sons years ago - cooking for dummies, i think - but i didn't actually leaf through it. i knew it would work on a variety of levels! haha
thanks for the update - i actually purchased one for one of my sons years ago - cooking for dummies, i think - but i didn't actually leaf through it. i knew it would work on a variety of levels! haha