News In Brief

CATCH ME IF YOU CAN

Ed Ryder isn't lonely. The Media, Pa., resident is, however, so "unfulfilled" that he wants to be married by year's end. And since no prospective wife has surfaced yet, he's offering - via the Internet - a reward to the matchmaker who finds "my dream lady." Among other qualifications, she must love go-cart racing and be curious about Russian culture. The finder's fee: up to $100,000, depending on the value of his stock portfolio. But for those who'd be both matchmaker and bride, he warns: "You don't get the money; you get me."

SO, ARE WE SHORTSIGHTED?

Since it's their No. 1 tourist attraction, you'd think the folks in Nepal's government would welcome a new finding that Mt. Everest is actually seven feet higher than the 29,028 that has been accepted these past 45 years. Not so. Until the National Geographic Society "proves" that the world's tallest peak has grown, "we will stick with the old height," a Land Management Ministry spokesman said.

Big bucks aren't enough to gratify workers, study finds

These days, Americans want more out of their employment than just a good salary, a recent survey by Taylor Nelson Sofres Intersearch found. Perhaps, the Horsham, Pa.-based research firm postulates, workers stress "value-added features" because jobs are plentiful and appear secure. The aspects of employment that rated the highest in the survey, with the percentage of respondents rating each as "extremely important":

1. A good working relationship with one's boss 69%

(tie) Having the resources to do a job properly 69%

3. Security 68%

4. Up-to-date equipment or tools 63%

5. Freedom to use individual initiative 60%

(tie) Benefits 60%

(tie) Interesting, challenging work 60%

8. Salary/wages 57%

9. Stability and continuity 57%

10. An easy commute 54%

- PR Newswire

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