Birding, he said, is attracting a broad cross-section of people - including students, middle-aged professionals and retired couples.

Karen Hansen, the Sunday-night floor manager, says the residents seem to be a mix without a profile: retired people, couples in their 20's, middle-aged professionals.

Three weeks ago a young brother attempted to persuade a group of middle-aged professionals to participate in the march.

Mr. Putnam's words echo what these mostly middle-aged professionals say they hope to accomplish.

The class included aspiring Broadway hoofers, middle-aged professionals, former ballet students now in their late 20s and one fellow with tattoos down his back.

The members of the club are primarily young or middle-aged professionals, engineers, sociologists or scientific researchers.

Mr. Wu is representative of a group of young and middle-aged professionals who sought to reform the party rather than overthrow it.

Unlike some protests that are dominated by college students, these events had a significant turnout of middle-aged professionals and older people.

Those middle-aged professionals spending a small fortune to give something back to society.