Chart assignment
Charts to read and discuss
Read each chart, then answer its questions. Every chart shows its source and date; open it for a table of the numbers and the data to download.
Chart 1 of 3 · Federal budget
How much does the US government pay in interest each year?
The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.
The government spent $1.36 trillion on interest in fiscal 2026, 3.3 times the $414 billion of 2010, as both the debt and interest rates rose. This counts interest on all federal debt, including debt held by trust funds such as Social Security, so it is higher than the budget's "net interest". Not adjusted for inflation; this Treasury dataset starts in fiscal 2010.
Questions to discuss
- In one sentence of your own, what does this chart show?
- Find the biggest change or difference in the chart. What might explain it?
- Who collected these numbers, and how recent are they? What else would you want to know before drawing a conclusion?
Source: U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data, Interest Expense on the Public Debt Outstanding (Public domain (U.S. government work)) · Data as of Sep 30, 2026
Open the chart and its numbersChart 2 of 3 · Road safety
Are U.S. roads getting safer per mile driven?
The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.
In 2024 there were 1.19 deaths for every 100 million miles driven, down from 3.35 in 1980. The lowest rate was 1.08 in 2014; it jumped to 1.34 in 2020, when people drove less but deaths rose. Miles driven are the Federal Highway Administration's estimates.
How to read this chart
Each point is the number of people killed in traffic crashes for every 100 million miles Americans drove that year. Dividing by miles driven turns a count into a rate, so years when people drove more or less can be compared fairly.
Questions to discuss
- About what fraction of the 1980 rate is the rate in the latest year?
- In 2020 people drove less, but the rate went up. What could explain that?
- Why is deaths per mile a fairer way to compare years than the total number of deaths?
Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) and FHWA Highway Statistics (table VM-2) (Public domain (U.S. government work)) · Data as of Dec 31, 2024
Open the chart and its numbersChart 3 of 3 · World
How fast has the world come online?
The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.
73.6% of the world's people used the internet in 2025, up from 15.6% in 2005, the first year the World Bank gives a world figure. It counts people who used the internet at least once in the previous three months. The world figures are estimates by the International Telecommunication Union.
How to read this chart
Each point is the share of the world's people who used the internet at least once in the previous three months, as estimated by the International Telecommunication Union. The axis starts at zero, so the height shows the true share. The steeper the line, the faster people were coming online.
Questions to discuss
- About what share of the world was online in the first year on the chart, and in the latest year?
- Did the share grow faster in some years than others? What could have sped it up?
- Using the internet once in three months counts here. What does this number leave out about how people get online?
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators: Individuals using the Internet (% of population) (CC BY 4.0 (credit the World Bank)) · Data as of Dec 31, 2025
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