They ride the escalator down in silence, staring out the large windows toward Broadway, toward the familiar thickening rush-hour crowd, until they reach the bottom and step off.

NEWYORKER: M&M World

"It's always easier to come from the top and take a step down than to do what Xerox and HP are trying to do: Come from the bottom and take a step up, " says Susanne Schwartze, an analyst with M.

FORBES: Hot type

This is the bottom line: We can embrace this accord, take a substantial step forward, continue to refine it and build upon its foundation.

WHITEHOUSE: President Obama at Copenhagen Climate Change Conference-Morning Plenary Session | The White House

By placing the battery on the bottom of a shoe, for example, it could generate energy with every step.

FORBES: Battery On Shoe Charges With Every Step

It's barely visible today and, should you step over the edge, it'd take you 12 seconds to hit bottom.

FORBES: Magazine Article

And instead of a drag on the bottom line, Roomba has subsidized the development of what Angle hopes is the next big step for iRobot: health care.

FORBES: Invasion Of The Machines: iRobot Hunts Bombs, Cleans Floors, Now Wants To Heal You

This financing would give the company some much-needed breathing room and a chance to step back from bankruptcy, while the company hopes for an improved economy and bottom line.

FORBES: Measuring a Brand for a Bankruptcy Suit