Few tsws are so effective that you can see fesults just days after they take effect．But in the nine days since the federal cigarette tax more than doubled－to＄1.1 per pack－smokers have jammed telephone”puit lines”aeross the country seeking to kick the habit．

　　This is not a surprise to public health advocates．They’ve studied the offoct of state tax increases for years, finding that smokers, especially teong, are price sensitive, Nor is it a shock to the industry, which fiercdly fights every tax inortse．

　　The only wonder is thst so many states insist on closing their ears to the message．Tobacco taxes omprove public health, health, they raise money and most particularly, they deter people from taking up the habit as teens, which is when nearly all smokers are addicted．Yet the rate of taxation varies widely．

　　In Manhattan, for instance．Which has the highest tax in the nation, a pack of Marlboro Light Kings cos???at one drugstore Wednesdav．Charleston, S．C．where the bent-n-pack tax is the lowest in the nation．The price was＄4.78．

　　The influence is obvious．

　　In New York, hogh school smoking hit a new low in the latest surveys－13.8％, far below the mational average．By comparison, 26％ of high school students smlke in Kentucky, Other low-tax states have somolarly depressing teen-smoking records．

　　Hal Rogers, Representative from Kentucky, like those who are against high tobacco taxes, argues that the burden of the tax falls on low-income Americans”who choose to smoke．”

　　That’s true, But there is more reason in keeping future generations of low-income workers from getting hooked in the first place, As for today’s adults, if the new tax drves them to quit, tyey will have more to spend on their famliles, cut their risk of camcer and heart disease and feel better．

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阅读理解

　　Mark Ramirez, a senior executive at AOL, could work in the comfortable leather chair, if he wanted．No, thanks．He prefers to stand most of the day at a desk raised above stomach level．

　　“I've got my knees bent．I feel totally alive,” he said．“It feels more natural to stand．”

　　In the past few years, standing has become the new sitting for 10 percent of AOL employees at the firm's Virginia branch．Part of a standing popularity is among accountants, programmers, telemarketers and other office workers across the nation．

　　GeekDesk, a California firm that sells desks raised by electric motors, says sales will triple this year．

　　Standers give various reasons for taking to their feet： It makes them feel more focused, prevents drowsiness, makes them feel like a general even if they just push paper．(Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfels works standing up．So does novelist Philip Roth．)

　　But unknown to them, a debate is spreading among ergonomics experts and public-health researchers about whether all office workers should be encouraged to stand－to save lives．

　　Dostors point to surprising new research showing higher rates of diabetes, obesity, heart disease and even mortality among people who sit for long stretches．A study earlier this year in the American Journal of Epidemiology showed that among 123,000 adults followed over 14 years, those who sat more than six hours a day were at least 18 percent more likely to die during the time period studied than those who sat less than three hours a day．

　　“showed that among 123,000 adults followed over 14 years, those who sat more than six hours a day were at least 18 percent more likely to die during the time period studied than those who sat less than three hours a day．

　　“Every rock we turn over when it comes to sitting is astonishing,” said Marc Hamilton, a leading researcher on inactivity physiology at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Louisiana．“Sitting is harmful．It's dangerous．We are on the cusp of a major revolution．” He calls sitting “the new smoking”．

　　Not so fast, other experts say．Standing too much at work will cause more long-term back injuries．Incidences of varicose veins among women will increase．The heart will have to pump more．

　　Hedge, the Cornell professor, isn't a fan of all this standing．“Making people stand all day is dumb,” he said．

　　The sensible and most cost-effective strategy, he said, is to sit in a neutral posture, slightly reclined, with the keyboard on a tray above the lap．This position promotes positive blood flow．Workers should occasionally walk around, stretch and avoid prolonged periods at the desk．The key, he said, is movement, not standing．

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