Are You Smarter Than an American?

• By Philip Bump and Allie Jones
• September 6, 2013
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The Pew Research Center released its "What the Public Knows" study Thursday, illustrating that pretty much everyone in America recognizes that one photo of Edward Snowden, and nobody knows what's going on with the Dow Jones Index. Pew asked a wide range of respondents 13 "news IQ" questions, to determine how well Americans know what's going on in the world. Majorities got 5 out of 13 right on the quiz, which asked about public policy, geography, tech innovations, and famous people. It seems like Pew tried to throw a few more toughies in there this time — most people did a lot better on Pew's January quiz (majorities got 11 out of 13 questions right).

Pew asked about respondents' education levels, and unsurprisingly, those with a college degree were "more likely than those with a high school degree or less to answer every question correctly." Pew also notes that on past quizzes, younger people were less likely to know about current events. On this quiz, however, the results were more mixed. For example, people under the age of 30 more often correctly identified those states that have legalized gay marriage.

Read more and take the quiz at The ...

6 Behaviors That Can Ruin Your Career

• By Steven Mundahl
• September 6, 2013
• comments

Read the news headlines on any given day and you'll see examples of powerful, influential leaders whose risk-taking behavior left destruction in its wake. New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez, New York City mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner, and hedge fund manager Steven Cohen are a few recent examples. Wherever there are leaders, there are fallen heroes, whether it's in the world of business, government, entertainment, athletics or religion. 

Why do leaders who have it all then risk it all by making such poor decisions? Behavioral scientists, neuroscientists and psychologists have been studying the phenomenon for years, and have identified several attitudes, beliefs and other factors that contribute to risky behavior. Here are six of them:

1. The amygdala hijack. Psychologist Daniel Goleman coined the term “amygdala hijack,” which describes how the brain under stress is poorly equipped for self-control. The amygdala is the part of the brain that rules the fight, flight or freeze responses of the parasympathetic nervous system, which takes over for the part of the brain in the neocortex that is responsible for rational decision-making. It is crucial to learn how to manage stress because if you don't, you’re more vulnerable to making poor choices ...

Why Fewer Students in College Is Good for the Economy

• By Amanda Erickson
• September 5, 2013
• comments

Across the country, higher education enrollment is plummeting. There were nearly half a million fewer students enrolled in college and graduate school in fall 2012 than there were a year earlier, according to a new Census release. That decline is all the more startling when you consider this: between 2006 and 2011, graduate and undergraduate enrollment grew by 3.2 million. The biggest decline, by far, came from students over 25. Their enrollment fell by 419,000; younger students dropped by 48,000.

The reason? The recovering economy, according to Terry Hartle, senior vice president at the American Council on Education.

Higher education enrollment has risen over the last 20 years, Hartle says, but the trend is counter-cyclical. During bad economies, people rush to finish a degree or pick up new skills. That's why 2007 and 2008 saw a 13 percent increase in enrollment, the biggest jump in 25 years.

Read more at The Atlantic Cities. 

(Image via hxdbzxy/Shutterstock.com)

What Edward Snowden Has Taught Us About Hiring

• By Tom Monahan
• September 5, 2013
• comments

Almost lost amid the ongoing saga about former federal contractor Edward Snowden is an important story line with broad implications for executive boards and CEOs across all sectors.

Last week’s Wall Street Journal provides further evidence that some critical elements of Snowden's hiring process -- notably, a background check -- were performed poorly, if at all. Coupled with previous revelations about his background and skill level, a broader picture emerges: Snowden was, at best, a marginal hire for the role he filled. There’s little evidence that he had the ideal technical capability, track record, or behavioral profile for the work he was hired to do.

Let’s be clear: No one set out to make a bad hire. The job specs might have called for a certain level of technical capability, security clearance, and professional and personal behavior, but when push comes to shove a hiring manager needs someone to start work. The job description for an NFL franchise’s quarterback might call for a Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, but ultimately, when the whistle blows, many teams settle for someone else.

Simply put, for whatever reason -- salary, location, assignment, corporate reputation -- the right candidate wasn’t available for ...

Service To America Medal Finalists: National Security And International Affairs

• By Lara Shane
• September 5, 2013
• comments

Each year numerous unsung civil servants respond to global crisis involving defense, military affairs, diplomacy, foreign assistance and trade.

On Oct. 3, the Partnership for Public Service will present the prestigious Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal for National Security and International Affairs to one of the four finalists profiled below, individuals whose accomplishments include heading a U.S. humanitarian relief effort in the Horn of Africa, leading a successful campaign to eradicate polio in India, devising methods to protect humans and livestock overseas from disease-carrying insects and providing Chinese citizens with accurate information about the full extent of air pollution in their cities.

These public servants are among 31 medal finalists honored in seven categories ranging from justice and law enforcement to science and environment. Here are the stories of the Service to America Medal finalists for National Security and International Affairs.

Cara Christie: Led USAID humanitarian to drought crisis in Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia

The African nations of Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia were reeling in 2011 and 2012 from the region’s worst drought in 60 years. Malnutrition and death rates soared, crops failed, livestock died and food prices skyrocketed. At the height of the crisis, more ...