Please help me asap.,

Plz asap read this sentence from paragraph 3 of the article. the boys and girls are merely asked to obtain the signatures of ten friends or relatives. how does the word "merely" affect the meaning of the sentence? a- it suggests that asking people to subscribe to the washington times is something negative. b- it implies that obtaining ten signatures is not a requirement for receiving a prize. c- it downplays the fact that to win the prize, children must ask people to subscribe to the washington times. d- it emphasizes that children receive the prize only if they obtain ten signatures.

In the real world, feldman learned to settle for less than 95 percent. he came to consider a company “honest” if its payment rate was above 90 percent. he considered a rate between 80 and 90 percent “annoying but tolerable.” if a company habitually paid below 80 percent, feldman might post a hectoring note, like this one: the cost of bagels has gone up dramatically since the beginning of the year. unfortunately, the number of bagels that disappear without being paid for has also gone up. don’t let that continue. i don’t imagine that you would teach your children to cheat, so why do it yourselves? the excerpt serves as which type of support for the authors’ argument? a claim an example a conclusion a counterclaim

“to build a fire” what does the man do to try to get his feeling back in his hands?