Chart Discussion

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Describing the Chart

Describe the idea being expressed by the chart.

Describing The Chart

BNE Episode 2

Sample Answer:

The column chart shows the numbers of accidents that occur with every form of travel. It shows that

accidents that happen on the road ranks as the highest source of injuries or fatalities. The chart shows

that in the year 2000, road accidents soared up to 41,800 fatalities.

While road accidents bring in more fatalities, it shows that flying seems to be the safest mode of travel

with only 592 cases for general aviation, 92 cases for airlines and 71 cases for other commercial aviation.

Whether the fatalities are high or low, safety should be the primary concern for all modes of

transportation.

Column Chart: Which is Safer?

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( Continuation of Describing A Chart)

Providing Implications:

Answer the questions below. There are no right or wrong answers. 1. Why do you think road accidents rank as the highest when it comes to accidents among all forms of travel?

Sample Answer: Road accidents rank highest because more people use and own land vehicles like cars. Roads,

streets and highways are the most common way to get to places. The more people there are, the more chances

that something like an accident can happen. Drivers are not like pilots who undergo special lessons and most of

drivers nowadays are becoming reckless when it comes to driving.

2. By looking at the chart, it shows that there is quite a significant number of bicycle accidents. Why do you think

this happens?

Sample Answer: I think bicycle accidents happen for one reason, people get careless. They think that by riding a

bicycle means they are far from any harm therefore they become lax with their safety awareness.

3. Why do you think, despite the reassurances that flying is a lot safer than driving and by looking at the numbers

on the chart, a lot of people still get anxious about flying?

Sample Answer: Some reasons cited by experts as to why people are still afraid to fly: someone else is in control,

fear of heights, and the act of reminding passengers of what to do in case an emergency before a plane takes off.


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BNE Episode 7

China’s Internet User Population

Sample Answer:

The chart shows the rapid expansion of China’s internet community. The Chinese internet-user population

has exploded quickly and tremendously in even just three years. More specifically, China’s internet users

now total over 450 million, and have surpassed the American total population since 2009.

We can also see that the US population has very little increase over the three years.

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Answer the questions below. There are no right or wrong answers.

1. What are the factors that contributed to such tremendous growth in China?

Sample Answer: In my opinion, the impressive performance of China’s economy is the main reason why the

population of the internet users have leaped impressively. More people can now have access to computers and

internet compared to before because their standards of living have also improved.

I also think that globalization can be influential too.

2. What could these numbers mean for the investors in China?

Sample Answer: This chart is an indication that China’s growing. The investors and companies can easily utilize

the internet to reach their target market and customers.


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BNE Episode 11

Sample Answer:

The chart above shows the comparison of golf industry to other fields. The blue bars represent the

income of each industry. The golf economy income has a huge difference of more or less $1,000M from

the income of horse and dog racing industry. The industry with the least income is the performing arts

venues with only $500M.

SOURCE: CGD, 2011

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1. Why does the golf industry earn a lot of money?

Sample Answer: As observed, golfers spend a great deal of money every time they play this sport. To others, this

is an expensive type of sports but, to them, this is a regular hobby. That’s why there’s no wonder this industry

continues to earn a lot.

2. How can performing arts venues earn as much as the golf industry?

Sample Answer: It’s not that easy to know since the two are different in many ways. Although both seem to fall as

recreational activity areas, that doesn’t mean both can have the same income. We should know that golf is afforded

mainly by rich people while the performing arts can be afforded by anyone from the working class up to the

socialites


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BNE Episode 14

Sample Answer:

Meeting friends is a part of everyone’s life. How to meet them depends on the person entirely. This chart

shows a survey done on several respondents who answered one simple question. How did you meet your

friends. The data shown here gives us the top 7 most common answers given by the respondents.

School is the most popular answer. No brainer there because most of us spend almost half of our lives in

school. A perfect place to meet plenty of friends.

In line with the internet boom, more and more people get to meet new people via online. It shows here

that venues like forums and chat rooms are increasingly becoming popular with not just those tech savvy

individuals but with a lot of people with varying ages, education, etc.

Line Graph: Meeting Friends

Based on a survey conducted 2010, US

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1. Based on the given data in the chart, can you name the top three ways that you have met your own set of

friends.? Why?

Sample Answer: My top three would be school, extracurricular activities and forums because these are where I

used to spend or spend most of my time.

2. Why do you think that 3 out of the 7 possible ways to meet friends are done through the internet?

Sample Answer: Since the internet boom and the highly advancing technology,

the internet has become very accessible for all. Most people would rather sit down in front of their computers rather

than go through the hassle of getting ready and going out to meet new people.

3. Do you have any idea what the “others” category implies? Give at least 3 possible answers for this.

Sample Answer: This category could hold a lot of possible events or instances to meet new friends. Meeting new

people can be as simple as:

- standing in line for concerts, movies, etc

- browsing through a bookstore where you bump into someone who shares the same liking

- eating at your favorite fast food, restaurant or burger joint


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BNE Episode 15

Sample Answer:

The chart shows that the more spanking a child gets, the lower his cognitive ability score becomes.

According to this study, children aged 2-4 who are spanked more than once have lower cognitive abilities

than those children who didn’t get any spanking from adults. On another note, children aged 5-9 who are

spanked more than twice are more likely to have a higher cognitive ability than those who are spanked

twice.

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1. Why do parents spank their kids despite this consequence?

Sample Answer: It’s the duty of the parents to discipline their kids. In my opinion, it is just right to spank kids from

time to time to teach them a lesson. This consequence I believe still varies.

2. Is there a way for these kids’ cognitive abilities to be improved?

Sample Answer: Yes there is. The cognitive abilities of children may be further developed at school and at home. I

think spanking doesn’t really affect the intelligence of the child unless it causes then trauma or something worse.


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BNE Episode 18

Sample Answer:

The bar graph shows that teens prefer texting as a method for communicating with their friends. The

respondents ages were also shown to fully demonstrate how every age level utilize the texting technology.

After studying carefully, it clearly shows that no one texts more than teens (age 13-17) on both quarters of

the succeeding years. Young adults (age 18-24) come in a distant second. A decreasing pattern is obvious

as the age group gets older.

The chart also showed that there is a dramatic increase in the usage of all age groups in 2010.

Bar Graph: Text usage by Age

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1. Why do you think texting is not popular in the older groups?

Sample Answer: I think it is because they are not that savvy and not very familiar with the system. They are also

a bit impatient so they would just call to get answers immediately.

2. What can be some reasons why the usage increased in all age groups the next year?

Sample Answer: The increasing popularity of mobile phones can be one of the reasons. More people had the

chance to have their own cellphones, thus, increase in the usage.

3. Why do you think texting is preferred by many teens and young adults, when it comes to communication?

Sample Answer: Since most already own a cell phone, many see it as the fastest way to communicate with

friends. It is also more convenient since you could practically take your cell phone with you anywhere as compared

to your PC or laptops. It is also cheaper than making calls.


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BNE Episode 20

Sample Answer:

The chart indicates that the university tuition and fees have increased tremendously from 1990 to 2010. It

has jumped to 300% by the year 2010. Shown along with the increasing tuition fees are the increasing

other price indices like healthcare, housing, energy. But unlike college tuition and fees, the increase of the

other price indices were not so great. Energy prices were not stable but other indices increased steadily.

Line Chart: Tuition VS other Price Indices

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1. What do you think are the possible reasons of the remarkable increase in tuition and fees?

Sample Answer: It could possibly be due to miscellaneous fees imposed by educational institutions among the

students. The higher the number of the students, the higher the maintenance fee is needed. They need to increase

the number of their facilities for the benefit of the students. In addition, there may be a lack of rules and regulations

among institutions and universities when it comes to increasing the tuition fee. The lawmakers should focus their

attention on these issues.

2. Do you agree with the results implied by the chart?

Sample Answer: Yes, I do agree. In my country, tuition fees increase regardless of the strong protest from various

sectors of the society. Healthcare, Energy and Housing were also being regarded as prime needs but their cost are

continually increasing too.

3. What should do the government do about the soaring tuition cost?

Sample Answer: The government should appropriately decide for the educational budget of its country. But aside

from that, they should also consider other factors like the basic educational needs like the facilities or the system

that a certain state university has. They should also give more scholarship program. And for private institutions, the

government should give a certain limit when it comes to increasing tuition and miscellaneous fees. They should

strictly regulate and monitor these schools.


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BNE Episode 25

Sample Answer:

The chart declares the profit made by The Walt Disney Company. There are 5 sales quarters seen above.

It is very noticeable that there was a huge profit declared on the 3rd quarter of 2010. Subsequently, there

was a decline in the last quarter of the same year. However, the company’s profit made a rebound, as

seen on the 1st quarter of this year.

It is also seen in the bar graph that the total 1 year revenue has increased by at least 54%. The company

reported net income for the 2011 1st quarter of $1.3 billion, compared to $844 million for the year-ago

quarter.

Bar Chart: Walt Disney Profit

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1. What may have been the reasons for the decline in the 2010 4th quarter revenue?

Sample Answer: It maybe caused by strong competition in the market. The last quarter is time the most

companies go on a sale in time for the Christmas season. Their sales may have been affected because consumers

would have more options.

2. What may have caused the great increase of their revenue in the 1st quarter of 2011?

Sample Answer: In my opinion, the rebound in the profit was attained because of the introduction of the new

product line of the company, as discussed in the podcast.

3. Do you think their revenue will keep on increasing?

Sample Answer: The Walt Disney Company seems to be devoted on finding a niche, as discussed in our lesson.

Their acquisitions have also been proven instrumental on their growth as a renowned company. I strongly think that

there revenue would continually increase.


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BNE Episode 30

Sample Answer:

The pie chart shows the breakdown of the net sales for major products of Apple Inc for the year 2010. It is

very obvious that they got most of their revenue from the iPhone sales. Their laptops and iPod came in

second and third while we see that the newly introduced iPad was their weakest earner.

Pie Chart: Apple Inc. Product Sales for the year 2010

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1. Why do you think the iPhone is Apple Inc.’s best seller?

Sample Answer: I think it’s the best seller among all the other Apple products because it’s the most useful, the

most convenient, and probably the most worth it. It can be an iPod for music, an iPad, desktop or laptop for internet

use.

2. Do you think it's a good idea for Apple Inc. to focus on hi-tech gadgets? Why or why not?

Sample Answer: I think it is. That’s because the current generation some how requires every person to have at

least one hi-tech gadget that can be used for communication and entertainment. And the sales of the company

shows that it is indeed a good idea.

3. Why do you think the iPad landed on the last spot?

Sample Answer: Well, since it was just released in the same year the survey was done, it is already amazing how

in less than a year it reached $4.96 billion of sales.


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BNE Episode 34

Bar Graph: Taxis Per 1000 People, NYC vs. Washington, D.C.

Sample Answer:

The chart clearly presents that there are more taxi cabs in Washington D.C. as compared to New York

City.

A larger number of taxis can service more people in the DC area. The chart tells us that there is a ratio of

12 taxis per 1000 people. Whereas in NYC, the ratio is only at 1.6 per 1000 people.

Evidently, the supply of taxis in NYC can’t meet the demand of the people in the area that is why is a

common fact that it is quite difficult to hail a taxi especially during the rush hour in the New York.

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1. What can be the reasons why there are fewer cabs in NY than in DC?

Sample Answer: Various reasons have been cited but I think the most alarming cause is that the cost of getting a

“medallion” or permit to operate in the area is far higher than in DC.

2. Should NYC allow more taxi cabs in their area?

Sample Answer: We all know that the streets of NYC is already congested even if there are fewer cabs operating

as compared to DC. But I think they should allow more cabs to operate in their area in order to address the demand

but certain regulations should be implemented to avoid further congestions on the roads.


Education

Chart Discussion