As if getting into college (and paying for it) wasn’t hard enough, the state of Illinois wants citizens to risk their hard earned dollars in a lottery for college tuition. The new "Cash 4 College" game is a $2 scratch-off ticket that offers full college tuition payments for five top winners. Winners will get to choose from a number of colleges nationwide.

This lottery is basically a tax to raise money for education (which is supposedly where most profits from state-run lotteries go). Lotteries are considered a regressive tax, meaning the tax imposes a greater burden on the poor than on the rich. Poor and middle-class families are having a hard enough time as it is paying for college, and this “Cash 4 College” game will more than likely be marketed to them. Unfortunately, less fortunate high school grads may start seeing these scratch tickets in their graduation cards (instead of cash) from relatives as their one big shot to pay for school.

Speaking of college and lotteries…

Stoughton Hall was funded by a Lottery

In 1774, Harvard College, who was running a little short on cash, received special permission to run a lottery to gather funds to erect Stoughton Hall. Harvard reintroduced this lottery again in 1794, prolonging the drawing for 10 years. After 10 years the lottery produced a net of $18,400 (over $250,000 in today’s dollars). For some reason Harvard purchased $2000 in tickets for itself. The winning ticket was announced as ticket No. 18,547, which just so happened to be one of the tickets Harvard had purchased.

Lotteries also helped establish many other prominent colleges, including Yale, Dartmouth, Williams, Princeton, Penn, and Columbia University.

During the 2008-2009 school year there were a total of 662,079 Master's Degrees handed out, according to a recent report released in August. Of those degrees received, over 60% were earned by women.

Most Popular Master's Degrees for Men

Total number of Master’s Degrees earned by Men (2008-2009): 263,538

During the 2008-2009 school year there were a total of 1,601,367 Bachelor's Degrees handed out, according to a recent report released in August. Of those degrees received, nearly 60% were earned by women.

The federal government (Dept. of Education) requires all postsecondary institutions who receive federal aid (Pell Grants, Stafford Loans, etc.) to complete the survey every year. It is this survey data that the public has access to when researching colleges.

Most Popular Bachelor's Degrees for Men

Total number of Bachelor’s Degrees earned by Men (2008-2009): 685,381

In an attempt to save money on field maintenance (but probably more of a publicity stunt) Eastern Washington University will be playing all of their home football games on their newly installed red turf.

The publicity stunt seems to have worked as EWU, a small state school, has received much national exposure by getting coverage in the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today and ESPN. The attention they have received since announcing their plans for red turf has been phenomenal with an estimated 16 million people hearing about the project. If the turf were green, none of this happens.

The red turf is actually a green idea. Replacing the grass will allow Eastern to save an estimated 300,000 gallons of water per year and $12,000 a year in field maintenance.

Of course, Eastern Washington isn’t the first team playing on colored turf. Boise State and the University of New Haven both play on blue turf. But with red, some have shown concern that the turf will start to fade in a few years, leaving the team with a pink field.

On January 25, 2010 Eastern Washington University originally announced their plans for a Red Turf field with Michael Roos, former EWU football player and current member of the Tennessee Titans, donating $500,000 toward the project. Today that project is complete.

Eastern's original grass football field.

Excavation work begins on June 14, 2010

The Completed Project: Roos Field

Like it or not, eTextbooks will slowly replace traditional textbooks and become the way of the future. While digital textbook sales currently only account for a very small percentage of the textbook market, they are projected to reach 18.8% of the market by 2014.

As newer devices like the iPad are introduced, students are seeing they can read books in digital form all while saving money and reducing the weight of their book bags. But as it stands now, when it comes to studying, e-readers can’t match the functionality of traditional textbooks. E-readers may be fine for reading, but textbooks are seldom read like novels, which is why most students still prefer traditional textbooks.

If you do choose to get your textbooks in digital form, it is highly recommended that you have some type of portable device like a laptop, iPad or Kindle DX so you can easily carry and view your eTextbooks on a readable device. Sometimes you can access textbook material from an iPhone, but this is not the ideal device to use when studying (though it comes in handy when trying to look up something real quick). You could use a desktop computer, but you may not be able to access your textbook (in some cases) when you are in class or in a study group, which could be limiting. To get around this, some students print out copies of certain parts of their textbook when needed in paper form.

The biggest complaint about eTextbooks seems to be that you can’t take notes as easily as in a traditional textbook. However, there are a few e-readers available that will allow you to do highlighting and jot down notes next to a paragraph and you can easily search for a specific word, phrase or topic within the textbook. Of course, as mentioned before, with eTextbooks you always have the option of printing out your required reading and making notes next to passages as you normally would.

While more college bookstores are beginning to offer eTextbooks as a purchase option, you can still find these books for much cheaper online, as college bookstores are known to have quite the markup on prices.

Along with buying and renting, downloading textbooks is a third option for getting the textbooks you need, and clearly the fastest way to get your books as they can be downloaded instantly upon purchase online. Consider the following companies when looking to get your textbooks in digital form.

CourseSmart

CourseSmart has really benefited from the growing popularity of eTextbooks. They reported a 400 percent increase in sales in 2009 from the year before.

CourseSmart bills itself as the number one place for eTextbooks as it carries one of the largest collections of eTextbooks. They also have a mobile app that lets you browse your material from your iPhone or iPad. CourseSmart claims you can save up to 60% off the price of printed textbooks when you purchase textbooks in digital form.

When purchasing eTextbooks at CourseSmart, simply find your book and select between the "online" or "downloadable" format and complete your purchase. Purchased online eTextbooks can be accessed instantly and read right away. If you purchase downloadable textbooks, you will be required to install a software application on your computer to allow viewing. You must choose if you'd like to download the book and view it on one computer, or access it online from any computer, you can't choose both. Purchasers of the eTextbook don't get to keep the book permanently because the downloaded files have digital expiration codes and expire after about 180 days.

CengageBrain

At CengageBrain you can buy, rent or download your textbooks. Whether you need the whole book or just a few chapters, you can get your textbooks in any form you want. With 15,000 new print textbooks, textbook rentals, eBooks, single eChapters, and print, digital, and audio study tools, you should be able to pick and choose just what you need. The eChapters option would be a good choice for saving money in those classes that only cover a few chapters of the book. Check your syllabus to see how much of the textbook your teacher plans on covering.

PDF textbooks from CengageBrain are called sPDFs (basically a secure PDF file). An sPDF is the same as a standard PDF file with the addition of DRM (digital rights management) software to protect the copyrighted content. This technology prevents illegal distribution of the textbook over the Web. To view your eTextbooks on your computer, you must download their viewer, which provides the DRM software for eTextbooks purchased at CengageBrain.com. This software is required to access your electronic content. Because of this strict DRM technology, you are granted two licenses to your content, which means you can only view your textbook on two different computers at a time. Thus it may become a problem for those using computers in a computer lab.

CafeScribe

CafeScribe sells eTextbooks on its online store and also at many college bookstores. Students who purchase the PDF version of the book through their bookstore will receive an access code to download the book from the Café Scribe website. Users also have access to MyScribe, a free computer program that allows you to easily search, view, collaborate and take notes on your digital textbook. The MyScribe program has a built-in social networking component that enables students to easily form study groups and share notes.

Amazon

Most of you are already aware of the ability to purchase and read books on the Amazon Kindle. With the creation of the Kindle DX, we have a device that is more suitable for the college student. With eTextbooks at Amazon, it works the same way: you can buy your textbooks right from the Kindle and have immediate access.

While you can’t get the textbooks in PDF format, they do have a free application (Kindle for PC) that allows you to read your Kindle books on your computer/laptop. You don’t even necessarily need to own a Kindle to access eTextbooks from Amazon this way. With Kindle for PC you can purchase, download, and read books available in the Kindle Store and access your library of Kindle books stored on Amazon. The application lets you select the text size, words per line, add and view bookmarks, notes and highlights. Amazon also has a Mac version of the software.

Barnes & Noble

Barnes and Noble offers what is very similar to Amazon, with the exception that you only get access to your purchased eTextbook for 180 days. Their free NookStudy program is a specially designed eTextbook application that looks promising compared to other e-readers designed for eTextbooks.

Of course other questionably legal means of getting textbooks do exist (file sharing sites), but as more publishers look to implement their DRM technology, being able to share your book becomes difficult. As eTextbooks gain in popularity, the number of traditional textbooks in circulation will lower, which will impact the used textbook market…something that has cut into the profits of textbook publishers for years.

Some argue eTextbooks are too expensive for what they are (especially if you only get to access them for 180 days), and students should stick to the traditional way of buying textbooks. Research has shown that getting textbooks in digital form does not yield any significant savings over traditional textbooks.

Based on surveys taken from 122,000 students, the Princeton Review has released their annual rankings of colleges. By far the list that gets the most attention is the ranking of the top party schools in the nation. The ranking is figured based on survey questions relating to student use of alcohol and drugs, hours of study done each day, and the popularity of the Greek system at the school.

The University of Georgia was ranked number one for the first time, which is surprising considering the effort put forth to curb student drinking. Georgia requires first year and transfer students to complete an interactive online alcohol course, a program that students must pass before the first day of classes. Georgia will also call home to parents when an underage student gets caught drinking.

But Georgia students still have easy access to alcohol with nearly 100 bars located near the Athens campus. In the ranking Georgia took seventh place for students who drink beer and placed in the top 10 for how little students study, the popularity of the Greek system, and how many students attend football games.

Georgia parties so hard, even one of their administrators was busted for a DUI.

But according to this letter to the editor, Georgia is partying way less than it used to:

Call up anyone you know who went to Georgia 10 years ago. Ask them what it was like. Ask them about the rule that stipulates that two alcohol related events within a year of one another will get a student suspended. Ask them about the increased security at bars downtown. Ask them about the newly-instituted pairing of police officers on practically every street corner downtown. Aid them in retrieving their jaws from the floor. Ask them about their craziest college memory – I’m willing to bet its pretty wild – or at least wilder than yours. Aid yourself in retrieving your jaw from the floor. Inquire into how the Greek life scene was back in the day – then tell them about all of the rules and ‘regs currently in place.

Two factors that determine the top party schools are those with the least amount of study time and the amount of alcohol the students drink. We think it should be those who study more, get high marks, and still make time to party that should get the higher honor. Anyone can go out and party. It takes a special dedication to want to go out late and be social, yet still manage to wake up for that 8am class.

Princeton Review's Top Party Schools for 2011

1. University of Georgia
2. Ohio University
3. Penn State University
4. West Virginia University
5. University of Mississippi
6. University of Texas at Austin
7. University of Florida
8. University of California – Santa Barbara
9. University of Iowa
10. DePauw University
11. Florida State University
12. University of Wisconsin - Madison
13. University of Alabama
14. Sewanee - The University of the South
15. Indiana University - Bloomington
16. University of Colorado - Boulder
17. University of Missouri
18. University of Illinois
19. University of Maryland
20. Michigan State University

It is interesting to note that the majority of the colleges in this list also have big football programs with a high presence of tailgating and after game festivities. These are type of schools whose game day parties begin with kegs and eggs and end with burning couches. Something about college sports just brings about the party and riot atmosphere.

Other category rankings in the Princeton Review that relate to “partying” include:

Worst Party Schools

1. BYU
2. Wheaton College (Illinois)
3. U.S. Coast Guard Academy
4. U.S. Air Force Academy
5. Wesleyan College
6. College of the Ozarks
7. U.S. Naval Academy
8. U.S. Military Academy
9. Calvin College
10. Thomas Aquinas College
11. Grove City College
12. Wellesley College
13. Mills College
14. Marywood University
15. Berea College College
16. Cal State - Stanislaus
17. CUNY Queens
18. Mount Holyoke College
19. Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering
20. Agnes Scott College

Most Beer Drinkers

1. Ohio University – Athens
2. Pennsylvania State University – University Park
3. University of New Hampshire
4. University of Florida
5. Claremont McKenna College
6. University of Alabama – Tuscaloosa
7. University of Georgia
8. West Virginia University
9. Colgate University
10. Providence College

Most Hard Liquor Drinkers

1. Providence College
2. University of Georgia
3. Tulane University
4. University of Wisconsin – Madison
5. University of Mississippi
6. Indiana University – Bloomington
7. Ohio University – Athens
8. University of Alabama – Tuscaloosa
9. Sewanee – The University of the South
10. Trinity College (CT)

Most Potheads

1. University of California – Santa Cruz
2. Eckerd College
3. Bard College
4. University of Vermont
5. Skidmore College
6. University of Colorado – Boulder
7. Colorado College
8. Hampshire College
9. University of California – Santa Barbara
10. Ithaca College

Students Study the Least

1. University of North Dakota
2. University of Central Florida
3. University of Mississippi
4. State University of New York at Albany
5. West Virginia University
6. Louisiana State University Baton Rouge
7. University of Iowa
8. Florida State University
9. University of Georgia
10. Salisbury University