Economics Research Spring Project

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/173utsCE3q-ZXRWsGzwjH3iQXSs-nm-krLoC6xtFv9B4/edit?usp=drive_web#slide=id.p

Supply Wrap Up

$            #S
1.00        10
2.00        20
3.00        30
4.00        40
5.00        50

inelastic:

elastic










$                #S          S increase      S decrease
1.00            10          15                  5
2.00            20          25                  15
3.00            30          35                  25
4.00            40          45                  35
5.00            50          55                  45

Annotated Bibliography

How did the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation come to be and what is their central goal?

1) "Making the Most of Your Holiday Giving." Making the Most of Your Holiday Giving. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2013. <http://www.thegatesnotes.com/Personal/Making-the-Most-of-your-Holiday-Giving>.  

This source was important in my research because it allowed me to further understand how much Bill and Melinda Gates fundraise and donate to people less fortunate than themselves. This website gave me a better view on how much their charities and organizations actually help people, which follows their main goal in their company. So therefor, this information will help me be able to go into detail about everything that Bill and Melinda do for the world.

This site will also be helpful in understanding all the aspects of the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation. I can also compare the differences in the charities from in the past to now and what advancements they have made as a company. This will help get my point across for my final project. Also, learning more about the issues of the world will give me a better knowledge for when the time comes to talk about it.

2) "Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation." Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2013. <www.gatesfoundation.org/>

Bill and Melinda Gates were both raised knowing that it’s important to give back to the community. They started their own foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, in the year 1997. Since then, they have invested over $36 billion dollars helping people all over the world fight deadly diseases. The foundation also helps build better communities, and make advancements in both medicine and education. Bill and Melinda Gates also encourage wealthy people to put their money to good use and help people that are less fortunate.

The information found on this website can be useful in discovering the history of how the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation came to be and exactly how much has been invested. Also, the website gives very descriptive details about each project and how they are being kept up. There are financial records and annual reports on how each of the programs are being run. I never knew how much money and time was being invested in this outstanding program before I visited their website. After researching, I discovered that Bill and Melinda Gates are very dedicated to changing the world.

3) "Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation." WHO. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2013. <http://www.who.int/pmnch/members/list/gates_foundation/en/index.html>.

This website helped me answer my central question, which was, ‘How did the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation come to be and what is their central goal?’. I got their mission statement which says, “Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people-especially those with the fewest resources-have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life.”

I chose this website as a source because it had the direct answer to the second portion of my central question, which in my opinion is the most important. Bill and Melinda Gates really do follow and respect their mission statement, and having that along with information about all of the programs and donations they put together will really help me understand and explain the history and future of the Gates Foundation.

Demand Reflection

Vocaroo

Demand Wrap Up

Part 1:

Utility:
- The ability for a good or service to be useful to the consumer.
- The utility of coffee would be giving the consumer more energy.

Complementary Demand:
- Products that increase or decrease the demand for another product.
- Soccer balls and soccer cleats are an example of a complementary demand.

Substitute Demand:
- Products that compete against each other that can be used instead of the other.
- Instead of drinking coffee, consumers could just go to bed earlier to get enough energy for the day.














Elastic Demand:
- Demand for the product is changed drastically when the price changes.
- If all coffee drinks suddenly rose to $10 a cup, then consumers would stop demanding it.

Inelastic Demand:
- Demand for the product does not change drastically when the price changes.
- If the price of gas goes up, consumers have no choice but to demand it because they need it.


Part 2:

Elastic Demand Schedule:

$	#D	TR ($)
20	800	16,000
30	120	3,600
40	80	3,200
50	3	150
60	1	60

Inelastic Demand Schedule:

$	#D	TR ($)
1.50	150	225
3.00	125	375
4.50	100	450
6.50	75	487.50
9.00	60	540

Part 3:

Increase:

$	#D	D1
1.50	150	155
3.00	125	130
4.50	100	105
6.50	75	80
9.00	60	65

Decrease: 

$	#D	D1
1.50	150	140
3.00	125	115
4.50	100	90
6.50	75	65
9.00	60	50

Changes in the Demand Environment

Factor: Complements


The product being used are toothbrushes. When there is an increase in demand for toothbrushes, there tends to be an increase for toothpaste as well. As you use your toothbrush at least twice a day, the bristles can become frayed or will lose its structure. Toothpaste is also used the same amount as your toothbrush, which can run out quickly depending on how much toothpaste you use per brushing. When companies figure out a way to prevent toothbrushes from losing their shape, the demand will fall. Also, new inventors have come up with a toothpaste dispenser that distributes the same amount of toothpaste every time so young users do not make a mess. With this new invention, the demand for toothpaste will also decline.

Increase for toothbrushes

$	#D (Original)	D1 Increase
$1.00	55	100
$1.50	40	80
$2.00	25	60
$2.50	10	40
$3.00	5	20

Factor: Consumer Income

As items become more expensive, consumers tend to decrease their demand for it. A reason for the decrease in demand has to do with the consumers income. If he/she does not make enough money to keep buying the product, then he/she will have to stop buying so much or stop buying the product altogether. The demand schedules will show how the demand for the product, coffee, will decline when the price goes up.

	$ #D (Original) D1 (Decrease) $1.00 5 4 $3.00 4 2 $5.00 3 1 $7.00 2 0 $9.00 1 0

Demand Headlines

Complementary: "Jennie Finch launches new bat company, sales get hit out of the park!"

Substitute: "MLB season cancelled, MLS ticket sales score big."

Elastic: "Ghirardelli chocolate prices rise, sales melt."

Inelastic: "Milk costs go through the roof, although utterly ridiculous, consumers still buy."

Milk is inelastic because even though prices may be high, consumers still use milk every day. You could substitute it for soy or almond milk which may be much cheaper, but it is not considered real milk to those die hard dairy fans. We interviewed consumer Sherri Hill about the controversy of raised milk prices. When asked if she would switch to another brand, she said, "Never will I ever switch. It may be expensive, but I've been using this milk since I was a kid. I could not imagine using any other type of milk." As you can see, consumers can try to avoid using this absurdly expensive milk, but in reality, milk is used in countless recipes; breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. Milk is unavoidable, and any other substitutes do not have the same taste or quality of regular milk. Even if milk becomes very inexpensive, consumers cannot buy a lot of milk at a time; because even if you use a lot of milk in your household, the longer you let milk sit in the back of your fridge, the worse it gets. Milk can easily go bad if you do not pay close attention to the expiration date, so be good to your milk!