the following is a letter to the editor of the waymarsh times.

　　"traffic problems here in waymarsh are obviously reaching record levels. while just three months ago it would take me 15 minutes to get to work, it now takes closer to 25. waymarsh should follow the example of our neighboring city gearsville. last year, gearsville implemented¹ a policy that rewards people who share rides to work with coupons³ for free gas. pollution levels in gearsville have dropped since the policy was implemented, and several friends who live in gearsville tell me that their trip to work is quicker than it used to be. with the terrible traffic and high pollution in waymarsh, we must implement² a policy similar to gearsville's."

　　the following appeared in a newsletter from a national astronomy association.

　　"various sources are predicting higher-than-average temperatures across the country next winter, including in sun city, the traditional location of our yearly winter conference. higher winter temperatures are sure to result in higher-than-usual tourism in sun city, a location already known for its attractive beaches and good weather. hotels will have fewer rooms available, transportation will be more difficult to reserve, and public places such as parks and restaurants will be more crowded. these conditions are likely to significantly reduce attendance at the conference. we should therefore move our conference to a city less popular with winter tourists."

　　the following is a memo⁴ from the business manager of valu-mart stores.

　　"over 70 percent of the respondents to a recent survey reported that they are required to take more work home with them from the workplace than they were in the past. since valu-mart has not seen impressive sales in its office-supply departments in the past, we should take advantage of this work-at-home trend by increasing at all valu-mart stores the stock of home office machines such as printers, small copy machines, paper shredders, and fax machines. we will also increase stock of office supplies such as paper, pens, and staplers⁵. with these changes, our office-supply departments will become the most profitable component⁶ of our stores."

　　the following appeared in a memo from grocery town's regional manager.

　　"the new grocery town store in elm city, located near a new residential⁷ development, has a 'high-low' pricing policy where average prices are relatively⁸ high, but deep discounts are offered on some items in weekly specials. this store has been showing increased profits every month as the nearby residential development gets closer to full capacity. it follows that people prefer a pricing policy where they can find bargains on specific items. since there is a new residential development planned in oak city, we should change the pricing policy at all of our oak city stores from our current 'everyday low prices' policy to a 'high-low' policy. this will increase the profits at all of our stores in oak city."

　　the following appeared in a clothing industry trade journal in the country of sartoria.

　　"a popular fashion magazine recently conducted a survey of consumers' opinions about clothing prices, using prepaid mailing envelopes. eighty-nine percent of the approximately 20,000 respondents reported that they were either "dissatisfied" or "very dissatisfied" with current clothing prices. the large number of responses indicates that the sartorian clothing industry is at risk. given the survey results, clothing manufacturers must find a way to reduce prices in order to keep their existing customers and maintain their businesses."

　　a recently completed study shows that people dwelling⁹ in stairs-only apartment buildings (that is, buildings without elevators) live an average of three years longer than do people who live in buildings with both elevators and stairs. a second study shows that elderly residents of buildings with elevators make, on average, twice as many visits to doctors each year as do elderly residents of buildings without elevators. these findings suggest that even a very moderate amount of daily exercise, such as that required to use the stairs leading to and from one's apartment, can increase people's health and longevity¹⁰. the findings also suggest that new apartment buildings should be constructed with as few elevators as possible.