The “Typical” Billionaire Has $3.1 Billion and Other Fun Facts About the World’s Wealthy Elite
Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images
By: Alison Griswold
1) How do we know how many billionaires there are? What evidence would help us determine why the average age of a billionaire has gone up? How have historical trends of wealth changed in America? How do you know?
2) Who might have a more favorable opinion of billionaires: a student in southwest Missouri or a student in New Delhi, India? Who might have a less favorable opinion of billionaires: An employee of Warren Buffet or your father?
3) In what ways is being a billionaire like getting an A on a test? How is different? How is wealth connected to philanthropy? Is it only for the wealthy?
4) What would a list from 10 years ago look like? 1000? What would happen if there were no barriers to wealth accumulation (if there exist any at all)? What would happen if wealth was capped at $999,999,999?
5) How is this relevant to you? How is it relevant to a stockholder in Berkshire Hathaway?
Extension Activities:
1) Students can research the ways in which the richest person from each decade of the 20th century made their money and find commonalities and differences.
2) Students can explore gender/racial/ethnic/generational issues of wealth accumulation and predict the next woman/African/Chinese/millenial billionaire.
3) Students can create a list of ways to spend a billion dollars in a fixed amount of time effect the most change.
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