FOR a quarter of a century, surveys of reading habits by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), a federally-funded body, have been favourite material for anyone who thinks America is dumbing down.

• 二十五年来，受联邦政府资助的国家人文基金会（NEA）所做的读书习惯调查，对于那些认为美国步入无知时代的人来说，是最受欢迎的报告。