An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.
— Benjamin Franklin
According to Pew Research Center, 47% of adult Americans read every day keep up with current events; 35%, for pleasure; 31%, for work or school; and 29%, to research topics.
The majority who don't read every day—for whatever reason—represent tomorrow's economic losers.
When their jobs are automated, they'll be tossed out on the street, unable to compete even for scut work against their robotic replacements.
It's a simple fact: most highly compensated people read—many for hours at a sitting (Warren Buffet reads five hours a day). They know knowledge—not effort—is the world's new currency.
Not many years from now, knowledge will be the human's value; effort, the robot's.
If you want to help someone this holiday season, give him a book. If you're at a loss for titles, check out these bookworms' picks: