new argument topics

　　the following appeared in the business section of a newspaper.

　　"given that the number of people in our country with some form of arthritis¹ is expected to rise from 40 million to 60 million over the next twenty years, pharmaceutical² companies that produce drugs for the treatment of arthritis should be very profitable. many analysts³ believe that in ten years becton pharmaceuticals⁴, which makes xenon, the best-selling drug treatment for arthritis, will be the most profitable pharmaceutical company. but the patent on xenon expires in three years, and other companies will then be able to produce a cheaper version of the drug. thus, it is more likely that in ten years the most profitable pharmaceutical company will be perkins pharmaceuticals, maker⁵ of a new drug called xylan, which clinical studies show is preferred over xenon by seven out of ten patients suffering from the most extreme cases of arthritis."

　　the following appeared in a memo⁶ from the chief executive of a video game company.

　　"we have recently been offered the opportunity to buy the rights to produce a video game based on the soon-to-be-published children's book "squirrel power," by peter wood. while the cost of the rights is substantial and will place economic constraints⁷ on our company in the short-term, there are two reasons that the purchase of these rights will undoubtedly⁸ be a wise investment. first, wood's last three books have been best sellers and the movie based on his first book was highly profitable. second, the popular characters and story line in "squirrel power" will save us time in developing our video game, thereby⁹ reducing our costs."

　　when ida mcallister ran for mayor of lake city four years ago, she failed to win even 30 percent of the vote. but since then, mcallister has made public her commitment to environmental causes. she would be wise, therefore, to announce her intention to close all lake city parks to automobile¹⁰ traffic, thus following the example of the former mayor of plainsville, alecia yu . on the recommendation of a small group of concerned citizens, mayor yu prohibited automobile traffic in all plainsville parks, and therefore was credited with solving the pollution problem and improving the quality of life in plainsville. this action would have great appeal to the citizens of lake city, most of whom participate in the community's recycling program, and would guarantee mcallister's success in her current quest to be lake city's new mayor.

　　according to information recently reported in the eliottown gazette, the number of people who travel to eliottown has increased significantly over the past several years. so far this year over 100,000 people have arrived on flights to eliottown's airport, compared with only 80,000 last year and 40,000 the year before. eliottown's train station has received more than 50,000 passengers this year, compared with less than 40,000 last year and 20,000 the year before. clearly tourism in eliottown has been increasing, thanks to the new central park and museum of modern art that opened last year. therefore, the funding for the park and museum should be increased significantly.

　　the following appeared in the editorial section of a newsmagazine.

　　"some states are creating new laws that restrict the use of of handheld cell phones by drivers of automobiles¹¹. such legislation, however, is sheer folly¹². although some people with cell phones undoubtedly cause problems on the road, including serious accidents, the majority do not. besides, problems are also caused by drivers who are distracted by any number of other activities, from listening to the radio to disciplining children. since there is no need to pass legislation restricting these and other such activities, it follows that there is no need to restrict people's freedom to use a device that they find convenient—or helpful in emergencies."

　　until recently, people in hiparia did most of their shopping by driving to shopping malls. they are beginning, however, to do more of their shopping by ordering merchandise from mail-order catalogs and the internet. these purchases are delivered to them by mail or by a delivery service. for many purchases, hiparians no longer need to drive to and from shopping malls; there will therefore be a resulting reduction in the consumption of vehicle fuel in hiparia.