If you were to log in, you'd be able to get more information on your fellow community member.
I remember sitting in a 3.091 lecture (physical chemistry for freshmen) one day (years ago) and being bored out of my mind while some old professor droned on and on. Then I calculated how much per hour was coming out of my pocket for the priveledge of listening to this guy. I suddenly became alert.
I liked the previous comments about students respecting an education because they were committed to it financially. I agree with the idea of committment, but believe it can be of a different form.
Suggestion: could we make MIT tuition free and require some other type of commitment ... such as volunteer hours in non-profit organizations? I have been on the boards of several non-profits, assisting them with computer related projects for several years. My current employer hosts a second web site for a charity hospital for AIDS orphans in Kenya ... and I get to donate up to 5% of my/his time per month to working on the w...