I moved to a high rise apartment, and short-wave reception is really
horrible. However, when I put my hand on the antenna, reception improves
significantly. Does this mean that I need to ground my receivers? If it's
not a grounding problem, is there anything I can do to get the same effect
as hand-on-antenna?

If I do need to ground them, that brings up a further problem. I am nowhere
near the ground, and I have no radiators or metal water pipes in my
apartment. Is the next best option to use electrical outlets? My outlets are
all 3-prong, so would I use the screw holding the outlet face or should I
use the smallest of the 3 prongs? Also, what sort of wire should I use? Any
instructions would be most welcome, and the simpler and more detailed the
better, as I'm an idiot when it comes to things like this.

Finally, my last question might be the dumbest. One of my receivers is a
small portable (a Sangean ATS-808) and there is nothing on the receiver to
indicate where a ground would go (although there is a plug for an external
antenna). Does that mean I can't ground it?

Sorry for asking questions that must have been asked and answered hundreds
of times before, but this is a problem that has just arisen for me.

Thanks in advance--any assistance is greatly appreciated.