I would like to respond to Kris Ankarlo's utterly incorrect portrayal of the economy of modern-day ocean liners ("Fuel-guzzling cruise ships, shuffleboard with gramps lead to today's unrest," March 18). I went on a "pointless and annoying" cruise to the Western Caribbean, during which I collected several pieces of information concerning the technical aspects of the ship. According to those pamphlets, the ship I stayed on burned 94.3 gallons of fuel to go one nautical mile. There are roughly 72,912 inches in one nautical mile. When you divide the 72,912 inches by the 94.3 gallons it takes to travel that distance, the result is roughly 773 inches per gallon of fuel.

Although this is far from the efficiency achieved by the common vehicle, it is significantly more than the figures included in Ankarlo's column. It is also important to consider that the motors that propel the ship also provide electricity, air conditioning and refrigeration. These conveniences alone consume copious amounts of fuel. In the future, please investigate the facts before you write about them.