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[ProfessorGAC]

31. Agreed

After my BS, while in grad school I worked at a nearby national lab facility. In 1976, I made $7,800.
That's why I left after 7 months. I job with a multinational, only half way to an MS and 3 years from a PhD, paid $12,900.
Yeah, that was '76, not '73, but I made under $250/week.
I literally knew nobody that made $873 except for the directors that ran that research division. And they all had 20-30 years of experience.
If, as you suggest, that $873 is adjusted, it doesn't make the point the other factors do.
I do accept the rent number.
I lived at home & paid my parents $125/month for R&B. That was about what new studio or older 1BR apartments cost, so the "board" was free.
But, that average salary doesn't seem right.