The U.S. ranks 17th in educational performance

According to the report, The Learning Curve, developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit, the United States ranks seventeenth out of forty countries ranked in overall educational performance. Finland ranks first. The top ten countries in educational performance are:

1. Finland
2. South Korea
3. Hong Kong SAR
4. Japan
5. Singapore
6. United Kingdom
7. Netherlands
8. New Zealand
9. Switzerland
10. Canada.

The U.S. ranks 16th in where to be born

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, the United States has a Where-to-be-Born Index score of 7.38, which makes the United States tied for sixteenth with Germany out of eighty countries ranked in that category. Switzerland ranks first, with a score of 8.22.

The U.S. ranks 46th in civil liberties

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index 2010, the United States has a civil liberties score of 8.53 out of a possible score of 10.00. This makes the United States tied for forty-sixth in democracy with Italy, South Africa, France, and Hungary. Several countries tied for first with a score of 10.00, including Norway, Sweden, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Ireland and Uruguay. The United States has the lowest civil liberties of any fully democratic country.

The U.S. ranks 17th in democracy

According to the Democracy Index 2010, the United States has a democracy score of 8.18 (out of 10 possible points), which makes the United States rank seventeenth out of one hundred sixty-seven countries ranked in that category. Norway ranks first, with a score of 9.80.

The U.S. ranks 7th in World Cup players playing in Europe

According to the Economist, seventeen of the twenty-three members of the 2010 U.S. World Cup team play for European clubs, which makes the United States tied for seventh with Ghana and Argentina in that category. Cameroon ranks first, with all twenty-three members of its team playing for European clubs.