The Community of Shapeville is a massive, efficient nation, renowned for its keen interest in outer space, smutty television, and stringent health and safety legislation. The compassionate, democratic population of 1.21 billion Shapevilleans hold their civil and political rights very dear, although the wealthy and those in business tend to be viewed with suspicion.

The medium-sized, liberal, outspoken government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Industry, and Education. The average income tax rate is 43.5%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Shapevillean economy, worth 128 trillion vertexes a year, is quite specialized and led by the Tourism industry, with major contributions from Information Technology, Beef-Based Agriculture, and Retail. Average income is an impressive 105,867 vertexes, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Resident physicians are said to have a silver scalpel in their hands, scenic mountain valleys are flooded with water as damming projects get underway, movement-triggered sensors mean that for every door that closes another one opens, and libraries are replacing history books and classic novels with technical manuals and trades directories to match the nation's changing demands. Crime is well under control. Shapeville's national animal is the face, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Shapeville is ranked 58,357^th in the world and 1,023^rd in The North Pacific for Highest Average Incomes, with 105,867.21 Standard Monetary Units.