Money Can’t Buy Happiness Essay

Can money buy happiness? No, money is a material asset. In today?s world many of us revolve our lives around money, but does it really make us happy? We are contented when we go out buying, not only essentials, but also the latest cars, fashions, new technology, furniture, going on expensive holiday?s etc. Having all these congenial material items will make us happy but it is artificial happiness. True happiness lies within our spirit, to be happy not with material items, but with ourselves, our family, and the gifts God has given us. When we buy certain items of ?value? they may give us pleasure, but pleasure is not the same as joy or happiness. Pleasure fades quickly, and when pleasure is not connected to goodness and joy it has a bitter aftertaste. If we always choose pleasure over goodness and joy, we shall choke on the residues of the very pleasure that makes us who we are. Happiness is not connected to being rich or poor. We all need fulfillment from sources other than money. It has been proven that forty-two percent of people would keep their current job, even if they won at least ten million dollars. For example a twenty-six year old Brooklyn (America) schoolteacher kept working despite winning sixty-five million dollars. She stated that, ?My job will keep me grounded, it is about life outside of money; relationships, and comfort.?. This shows us that there are people who will choose happiness after pleasure. The people who do choose happiness over pleasure will benefit it in the long run. Even if they did loose all their money they would still have a job to go to in the morning, real friends and not people who have hopped on for a ride, and spiritual contentedness. Money does not, will not, and should not ever equal happiness. Happiness should stem from the very simplest things in life: our families, the world around us, even getting mail! Life should be lived passionately; spent living, but not living for money. Be picky close your eyes and point; but make sure your choices make you happy. If you execute what makes you happy, you?ll be the richest person in the world. Money is a source of short-term happiness and only gives us pleasure; it does  not give us happiness or joy. Wealth is a material asset that gives us synthetic blissfulness, which will eventually fade away. Money can not buy true happiness, it buys artificial happiness. People who value money, beauty and popularity more so than they value intimacy, growth and community contribution are a lot less mentally healthy and a lot more unhappy. We all suffer the consequences of our choices, so make sure they are the right choices and we shall then devour the beneficial outcome. We must all look for genuine happiness money is unable to buy. Money does not, will not, and should not ever equal happiness. Money can?t buy happiness!

Market Structure of the German and British Tour Operators’ Industry Through the Analysis of the Package Tour Prices in the Balearic Islands. Essay

Abstract: In this paper we study a sample of package tour prices of German and British tour operators in the Balearic Islands. One of the proposes of this study is to analyse if there are significant differences in price between tour operators due to different factors than those associated to the characteristics of the offer (first hypothesis). These differences in price have been showed in Sinclair et al. (1990) by British tour operators in the resort of Malaga and in Aguilà ³ et al. (2001) by German tour operators in Majorca. The main results point out differences in price between tour operators not associated with the characteristics of the package tour’s offer, that we interpret as an oligopolistic feature of the tour operators’ market. The genereted data is also useful to estimate the role that hotel chains play. Our second hypothesis is to contrast if the association of hotels in chains offset the tour operator’s market power. Keywords: German and British tour operators’ industry; Balearic Islands; Package tour prices. INTRODUCTION The Balearic Islands could be one of the regions that best symbolised the Mediterranean sun and beach holidays. This type of tourism emerged in the 60’s and supposed a turning point in the evolution of tourism. Before this date few tourist visited the islands and all of them were of the upper class, after 1960 the middle and lower class can afford vacations due to several economical and cultural changes. One of the most important changes was the package tour made by tour operators, who due to the volume and standardisation of the packages generated economies of scale, and so, lower prices to tourist who become to arrive in mass. European consumers showed a growing tendency to this type of vacation, partly due to lower prices that, for the same final product, could offer tour operators (Travel and Tourism Intelligence, 2000). This lower price is the result of a bulk negotiation with the different elements that compose the package tour, essentially: hoteliers and airlines. In the present paper, we will focus on the negotiation with hoteliers, as the main European tour operators are vertically integrated with charter airlines. The lack of studies on hoteliers-tour operators’ price negotiation is due to the non-availability of data related to this theme. So, although we consider that empirical evidence is necessary, our last choice was to arrange several interviews with different hoteliers to know about the price negotiation with tour operators. The results of these interviews highlight that operators who contract more room’s beds are those who get lower prices. Obviously, those operators are the large ones. So, we can start from the premise that large tour operators have market power on mass destinations. The main purpose of this paper is to study prices that tour operator s fix on the package tour brochures in order to determine if they operate in a competitive or oligopolistic market. If in the origin market operates under perfect competition, tour operators could fix a marginal-cost price, on the other hand, they could fix a price above the marginal-cost without losing market share if the origin market is oligopolistic. Anyway, the existence of economies of scale in sales, marketing and purchasing, mean that there are conditions, which strongly favour concentration in the tour operator industry (Williams, 1996). Both German and British tour operators dominated the European market in 1999, as seven of the ten main tour operators are of these nationalities (FVW Europà ¤ische Veranstalter in Zahlen, documentation 1999/2000). Moreover, in each country large tour operators have large market shares: in 1999 the seven large German tour operators have a 83% market share (FVW), whilst the four main British tour operators control the 86.6% of the Spanish market (AC Nielsen). On the other hand, the Balearics attract large numbers of German and British tourist, accounting for 70% of the total of foreign tourists in 2000[ii] and as exposes Williams (1996) the destinations that are dependent on the British and German markets are in fact locked into relationships with the powerful tour operators in these countries. The first propose (hypothesis 1) of this paper is to contrast the market power of these companies when selling the Balearic Islands. By the way, the hotel chains in the Balearic Islands, as an association of hotels, can negotiate lower prices with tour operators than an individual hotel, and thus, can offset the power of tour operators in the Islands. This is the last point (hypothesis 2) that we want to analyse in the paper. Dunning and McQueen (1982) argued that there are three conditions for the emergence of international hotel chains: 1) where there are net ownership advantages; 2) where there are locational endowments; 3) to internalise market transactions. In mass tourism the authors argued that the first two conditions do not exist, as the tourism product being sold is largely indifferent to branding and location factor endowment. We do not thing that mass tourism and hotel chains may not be held concurrently, as most Balearic hotels chains have internationalise and some of them are between the most important in the world. Resuming, in this paper we will examine the German and British tour operators’ industry through the analysis of the package tour prices o n the Balearic Islands and the roll that hotel chains play. The evidence that price could give is not enough, but a gut approach to analyse the tour operators’ package tour industry. The paper is divided as follows: in the next section, we first review the literature concern to tour operators, then we describe the data used in the paper. After that, we show some descriptive results of the package tour prices, in order to identify the influence of some relevant characteristics of the package tour on its price. Then, an analysis of variance is done to evaluate the statistical significance of the variables detected as significant in determining the price of package tours; and finally some observations on the package tour industry are offered before reaching an overall conclusion. LITERATURE REVIEW There are implicit statements between those who work on the tourism sector, that tour operators dominate mass destination markets and although there are numerous assertions of the importance of tour operators, there has been little detailed research on this topic. We thought that the package tour industry analysis is still at its beginnings, despite its relevance in most of the European markets. Several researchers have discussed the structure of this industry, but the conclusions in some cases have turned out to be contradictory. Sheldon (1986) argues that the US package tour industry is polarised into a few large stable firms and many small less stable firms, and conclude that the industry is contestable. Fitch (1987) presents descriptive evidence of market power in the UK package tour industry. Baum and Mudambi (1994) argue that the UK package tour industry is oligopolistic and prone to price instability. Taylor (1996) queries whether the UK industry is contestable or oligopolisti c and concludes that the UK market is contestable. Curtin and Busby (1999) expose that due to economies of scale, tour operators have enormous buying power (monopsony) as well as considerable control of the distribution and sale of their product in the market place (monopoly power). The above papers are based in theoretical arguments. Evans and Stabler (1995) use descriptive statistics to argue that the UK industry is segmented according to strategic groupings, where the large firms are oligopolistic and the small ones are competitive. Gratton and Richards (1997) introduce some empirical evidence on package tour prices and tour operators’ market shares. They conclude that the UK package tour industry is contestable, whilst the German is a stable oligopoly. Davies and Downward (1998, 2000) use econometrics, and the results gave empirical support to the Evans and Stabler thesis of strategic groupings. Concretely, they argue that the UK package tour industry is segmented by size. On the other hand, there are some papers that study the tour operators’ industry in destination places rather than in the origin markets: Taylor (1995) analyses the package tour price competitiveness in several Mediterranean destinations and concludes that the Spanish hotels are price acceptant, and emphasises the high tour operators’ negotiation power. Sinclair et al. (1990) examine the package tour prices in Malaga and conclude that there are significant differences in prices between UK tour operators. Aguilà ³ et al. (2001) study the German package tour prices in Majorca and come to the conclusion that there are significant differences in prices, no related with the package tour characteristics. Furthermore, due to the antimonopoly legislation, some concentrations between tour operators have been analysed by The Monopolies and Mergers Commission (the British authority on mergers and concentrations) and the European Commission (the European authority on mergers and concentrations). In 1988 The Monopolies and Mergers Commission investigated the acquisition of Horizon Travel by Thomson Travel Group and reported that the British tour operators’ market was competitive. They demonstrated that with the followings facts: the price competitiveness of the market, low profitability, relatively easy entry by new firm to the tour operating industry and higher prices in Germany and other European countries. On the other hand, in 1999 the European Commission investigated and blocked the acquisition of First Choice by Airtours alluding to several features that indicated a dominant position on the British tour operators’ market. By the way, other acquisitions between tour operators of different nationalities investigated by the European Commission have been expected not to operate against the competition (Airtours/Frosch Touristik and TUI/Thomson). At this point, we consider that the European Commission do not investigated the market power that this macro European tour operators can have in a nearly future on some destinations, as the Balearic Islands, where almost 20% of the tourist are carried by Thomson and TUI, nowadays belonging to the same touristic group. THE DATA The data used in this paper is from 28 German and 20 British tour operators’ summer 2000 brochures[iii]. The brochures describe in detail the characteristics of each offer (hotel category, proximity to beaches, swimming pool, etc) and give an overall price, not giving a price to each element of the offer. Many of the characteristics described in the brochures are related to the hotel star rating[iv], regulated by law. However it should be stress that the star rating don’t constitute an exhaustive description of the hotel, so there are other characteristics that impinge on package tour prices. Concretely, we consider: zone, hotel star rating, beds in room, type of board, proximity to a population centre, picturesque surroundings, lift, child care, playground, air condition, TV, SAT, garden, entertainment, no smoking areas, swimming pool, tennis, bicycles, sports, sauna, gym, golf, room sea view, mini bar, proximity to a natural area, proximity to beaches, total rooms and floors of the hotel and exclusive to the tour operator. Tour operators’ package tour prices for the same hotel vary depending on the specific characteristic of the offer (beds in room, type of board, zone, etc) and of other facts, concretely transport cost, length and time of the year. As in Aguilà ³ et al. (2001) we consider, from the point of view of price competitiveness, the influence on prices of product’s characteristics rather than transport cost and time of year for the present analysis. Thus, the present analysis focuses on offers for a stay in one-to five-star hotels in the Balearic Islands, considering only prices for the first week of August 2000 (high season) and with departure from Dà ¼sseldorf and Gatwick. The high season was chosen because that time of the year (May-October) is when more tourists visit the Balearic Islands. Nearly the 50% of the tourist that visit the Islands concentrate in the months of June, July and August[v]. The selection of the first week of August was arbitrary. The choice of Dà ¼sseldorf was based on the fact that it moves 20.9% of the German tourist that come to the Balearic Islands; and for the British tourist, Gatwick was chosen because it canalise 29.9% of British tourist[vi]. Comparisons between nationalities are workable because a charter flight’s mean price from Gatwick or from Dà ¼sseldorf to the Balearic Islands do not present significantive differences. We really thought that our data is suitable to analyse the tour operators’ price structure in the Balearic Island. Our previous statement is based in the fact that 8921 tour operators’ offers associated with 693 hotels were analysed, while 713 hotels is the official number of re gistered hotels in the Balearic Islands. Furtehrmore, the fact that nearly 90% of hotel rooms are contracted by tour operators in the Balearic Islands allow us the inference of the results to the industry. ANALYSIS OF THE PACKAGE TOUR PRICES Our first hypothesis to contrast is if there are differences in price due to tour operators and thus, not associated with the characteristics of the offer. The second hypothesis is to analyse the role that hotel chains play in the determination of package tour prices .We first realize a descriptive analysis, to carry on with an analysis of variance. Thus, allow us to isolate the effect that tour operators and hotel chains have on prices, estimating if there are differences and the kind of differences. Descriptive analysis Tour operators The variability of the prices of the packages offered are due to several factors, some of them associated to the characteristics of the offer and some related to the tour operator that organise the package tour. To analyse our first hypothesis we have to isolate the tour operator effect by homogenising the offer. We can only compare prices between tour operators if the offers are homogenous. Hotel star rating, type of board and beds in room are expected to be, in a first approximation, the main causes of price variability. So, the offers that we consider are in a double room with half board in a three stars hotel. Figure 1 and 2 present the box-plots of the price in this market segment for each tour operator for each nationality[vii]. In figure 1, it can be seen that, Niag Reisen’s, FTI’s and Club Blaues Meer’s median price is in a range clear above the rest, while SLR and Ãâ€"ger Tours, and TUI and C&N present similar distributions. Insert Figure 1 about here In the case of British tour operators, figure 2 shows that the positions of the price distributions have a clear order: Airtours’ price distribution is above the rest, then go Thomas Cook and Virgin and finally, Cosmos, First Choice and Thomson are third in the ranking. Insert Figure 2 about here A careful reading of this information allows the inference of factors other than hotel star rating, type of board and number of beds in a room in price determination. Although other factors determining price are considered in the analysis of variance, these results point to a differential effect associated with the tour operator. Once we have highlighted the differentiation effect of tour operators, we carry on with its analysis. We don’t have to forget that tour operators are intermediaries between the hotel industry and the holiday’s consumers. Its control capacity of the market in a zone or in a demand segment could be reflected both in hotels, through a low price negotiation, and with customs, offering higher prices in the brochures. The first one, regrettably, can be estimated trough the data, but we can explain the possibilities that tour operators have when they establish the package tour price. If they have market power in destinations (we assume that large ones have) will obtain lower prices per room. At this point, in general terms, tour operators have two alternatives. First, they can establish lower prices in the brochures, so its mark-up will not benefit, but consumers; on the other hand, tour operators can raise mark-up and get beneficiated. The first choice will show market power with respect to hoteliers, whilst the second will state market power with respect to hoteliers and clients. To focus on its control capacity and its influence on prices, we have created a new variable: product concentration degree that measures the importance of each tour operators’ offer by nationalities in each market segment, according to star rating and type of board. It has been calculated as the percentage of the number of offers that each tour operator realise in each hotel star rating and in a specific type of board, regarding the total number of offers in this segment. A 10.9% value for this variable to Neckermann’s three stars hotel and half board offers, mean that the 10.9% of the package tour’s offers in three stars hotels and half board are realis e by this tour operator. A dispersion graph between this variable and the mean price by hotel star rating and type of board are shown in figure 3 for British tour operators and in figure 4 for German. Insert Figure 3 about here The dispersion graph shows a positive relation between Product concentration degree and the average price by star rating and type of board of British tour operators’ offers. The Pearson coefficient (0.384) confirms that the relation is significantive and positive. Insert Figure 4 about here The same results are obtained with German tour operators, with a Pearson coefficient of 0.293, but although the coefficient is significative and positive, the general picture is not so clear. So, the general conclusion for both nationalities is that as the Product concentration degree increases the average price by star rating and type of board is higher. Our first preliminary conclusions of this descriptive analysis of tour operators are two: 1) There are differences in price among international companies. 2) As the control of a market segment by a tour operator increases, it can fix higher prices. Hotel chains The association of hotels in chains is seen, among other factors, as an intention to offset the European tour operators’ growing market power (Bardolet, 1990, p.228; Doxa, 1988). Regarding to hotels chains and its capacity to offset the tour operators’ market power, we have created a dummy variable with further information called agreement with ttoo which takes three categories: 1) the hotel doesn’t belong to a hotel chain, 2) the hotel belongs to a hotel chain and it have some kind of agreement with tour operators and 3) the hotel belongs to a hotel chain and it have any agreement with tour operators. Once we have obtained the dummy, we have calculated the mean difference between each category for offers in a double room with half board in a three stars hotels. We expect to observe that offers in hotels that belong to hotel chains are more expensive than those related to offers in hotels that don’t belong to hotel chains, as they are able to negotiate higher prices with tour operators and thus, tour operators charge this higher prices to consumer. Nevertheless, the brochure price analysis reflect diff erent results, as are showed in the following tables: Table 1: Mean price for German package tours |Mean price |No chain |Chain without agreement |Chain with agreement | | |(92985) |(93257) |(90827) | |No chain | |-272 |2157 | | | |(0.7) |(0.254) | |Chain without agreement | | |2430 | | | | |(0.06) | Table 2: Mean price for British package tours |Mean price |No chain |Chain without agreement |Chain with agreement | | |(149896) |(148909) |(139707) | |No chain | |986 |10189 | | | |(0.7) |(0.03) | |Chain without agreement | | |9202 | | | | |(0.01) | Tables 1 and 2 show the mean price for each category in brakets, the difference mean prices between categories and its significance in brakets. The results are very explicit and present the same pattern in both nationalities, offers in hotels that belongs to hotel chains with agreements with tour operators have lower average prices than those that don’t have agreements or don’t belong to hotel chains. The results are significantive for British offers, however, for German offers, while the price average difference between hotels with or without agreements is on the limit of the 5% significance, the price average difference between hotel with agreements and those that don’t belong to a hotel chain is not significantive. On the other hand, there are non significantive average price differences between hotels that don’t belong to hotel chains and those that belong to one without agreements. The obtained results can be interpreted as follow: hotel chains that h ave any kind of agreement with tour operators are more concerned in obtaining higher occupancy rates than higher prices, that can mean lower occupancy rates. Thus, if offers are cheaper in those hotels, they could have higher occupancy rates. Supporting our thesis, Dunning and McQueen (1982, p. 86) explained that: â€Å"hotels associated with tour operators will also presumably be able to plan and maintain higher occupancy rates because the parent company is in a control position in channelling tourist towards its own hotel.† The conclusions obtained with this descriptive analysis of the hotel chains were at a first glance unexpected, but relevant as the package tour prices fixed in the brochures, reveal that what involve negotiation power is not the hotel chains per se, but the association with tour operators. Analysis of variance The analysis of variance will allow us to compare the importance that different characteristics of the offer have on the overall price, as well as differential effects linked to the tour operator and hotel chains. The first one was detected in preliminary works as Sinclair et al. (1990) and Aguilà ³ et al. (2001), while the second one is a new attribution to this field. Its seems appropriate to consider, given the previous results, as determinants of the package tour price the hotel star rating, the type of board and the number of beds in the room. Although the main characteristics of the package tour are covered by this variables, the brochures specify in detailed each offer and this information is available in our data to improve the analysis. Some of this can be superfluous, in terms of its relationship to the category of the hotel or its redundancy. This is the case, for example, with a characteristic such as a satellite TV and TV in rooms or child care and playground. Nevertheless, descriptive analyses also state that the tour operator, the variable product concentration degree and the variable agreement with ttoo have so mething to say about the final price of a package tour. With this specification, the signification of tour operator can’t be put down to characteristics of the offer not completely covered by the hotel star rating. The variable used to analyse the differences was the price of the package tour specified in the brochure. Table 3 for British and in table 4 for German show the results of an analysis of variance of the variables that turn out to be significant. Table 3: Analysis of variance of the variable price of British package tour. |Dependent Variable: price | | | | |Source |DF |F-ratio |Pr>F | | | | | | |Model |44 |281.67 |0.000 | |Residual |2297 | | | |Total |2341 | | | | | |R square=0.841 | | | | | | |Variables |DF |F-ratio |Pr>F | | | | | | |Intercept |1 |5157.82 |0.000 | |Beds in room |2 |291.38 |0.000 | |Hotel star rating |4 |210.05 |0.000 | |Type of board |3 |118.78 |0.000 | |Tour operator |14 |89.09 |0.000 | |Zone |10 |35.64 |0.000 | |Product concentration degree |1 |20.61 |0.000 | |Number of floors |1 |8.79 |0.003 | |Room sea view |1 |21.98 |0.000 | |Mini bar |1 |102.02 |0.000 | |Air condition |1 |19.67 |0.000 | |Playground |1 |15.66 |0.000 | |Picturesque surroundings |1 |258.13 |0.000 | |Proximity to a natural area |1 |44.20 |0.000 | |Swimming pool |1 |37.23 |0.000 | |Sauna |1 |64.95 |0.000 | |Golf |1 |18.98 |0.000 | Table 4: Analysis of variance of the variable price of German package tour. |Dependent Variable: price | | | | |Source |DF |F-ratio |Pr>F | | | | | | |Model |58 |323.94 |0.000 | |Residual |6467 | | | |Total |6525 | | | | | |R square=0.742 | | | | | | |Variables |DF |F-ratio |Pr>F | | | | | | |Interseccià ³n |1 |5892.90 |0.000 | |Beds in room |3 |418.40 |0.000 | |Hotel star rating |4 |991.06 |0.000 | |Type of board |3 |79.31 |0.000 | |Tour operator |22 |21.89 |0.000 | |Zone |14 |42.70 |0.000 | |Product concentration degree |1 |100.21 |0.000 | |Agreement with ttoo |2 |6.57 |0.001 | |Number of floors |1 |30.51 |0.000 | |Room sea view |1 |187.33 |0.000 | |Air condition |1 |10.82 |0.001 | |Mini bar |1 |78.96 |0.000 | |Sat |1 |51.88 |0.000 | |Playground |1 |55.09 |0.000 | |No smoking areas |1 |9.26 |0.002 | |Proximity to a natural area |1 |71.38 |0.000 | |Swimming pool |1 |5.40 |0.020 | As can be observed in the above tables the variable agreement with ttoo appears only significantive for German package tours. However, the variable product concentration degree appears significantive and positive for both nationalities. This result show that the great control of a market segment by a tour operator in the Balearic Islands allow it to exert a great market power fixing higher prices and thus, reveal the oligopolistic features of this market. The identity of tour operator appears for both nationalities significantive. Aguilà ³ et al. (2001) explained this results in two ways. First, it is possible that there are characteristics not observable in brochures, which would be associated with the level of quality of the services offered by the tour operator. The second explanation points to the monopolistic nature of competition in this type of market. Sinclair et al. (1990) attribute the differences in price to the greater effectiveness of certain advertising campaigns or th e inability of smaller companies to take advantage of the economies of scale that the large ones enjoy. The first explanation of Aguilà ³ et al. (2001) refers to variables as flight schedules, degree of attention, and so on. In our sample this factors has been taken into account. So, the rest of explanations given by authors to this fact reveal, in a wide range, an oligopolistic feature of this market, especially among large tour operators, that permit them to have different strategies one another. Obviously the specific strategy of each tour operator is unknown, but the analysis of the parameters estimated (table 5) offer us an overall strategy, that has been contrasted by the companies portfolios. Table 5: Tour operators estimated parameters |Phoenix |-10370 |Thomson |-21473 | |LTU |-6340 |First Choice |-14170 | |ITS |-5504 |Cosmos |-11381 | |Alltours |-5196 |Thomas Cook |-4879 | |Dertour |-5193 |Virgin |0 | |C&N |-2571 |Airtous |18065 | |SLR |-334 | | | |TUI |0 | | | |Club Blaues Meer |1166 | | | |Frosch Touristik |5070 | | | |Niag Reisen |6346 | | | |Ãâ€"ger Tours |9518 | | | German data is richer in terms of size of tour operators than British data, and so, we can observe large tour operators: TUI, C&N and LTU; medium: Dertour, FTI and ITS; and small: Alltours, Club Blaues Meer, Niag, Ãâ€"ger, Phoenix and SLR. However, British data is composed by large tour operators: Thomson, Airtours, Thomas Cook and First Choice; and medium: Cosmos and Virgin. Although the mark up of each package tour sold is not so high, the total number of packages sold determine its benefits. Therefore, rather than benefits, market shares are the objective of tour operators. Generally speaking, small German tour operators fix higher prices, except Phoenix and Alltours. This fact is due to its lower capacity of negotiating prices with the supply side, and the relative exclusive distribution system created by large tour operators. When the tour operator is unable to reduce its costs due to its size, must fix higher prices and have lower market share. By the way, TUI is the German an d European tour operator with great market share and is, among large tour operators, the one that fix the highest prices. Its growing strategy through expanding in other markets, allow TUI to increase its market share without reducing prices. That is, TUI can fix higher prices without losing market share. The rest two large tour operators: C&N and LTU fix prices lower than TUI. C&N could follow a lower prices strategy to rise its market share and challenge TUI leadership. On the other hand, LTU has been acquired by REWE in January 2001, so the low prices in summer 2000 can be interpreted as an attempt to gain clients and rise its market share (LTU has reduce its market share dramatically from 1994 to 1999). Finally, we have the medium tour operators: Dertour, ITS and FTI. The first two fix lower prices in an attempt to rise its market share. Medium tour operators don’t have the great negotiation power that large ones have, and so, don’t obtain low prices in the negotiation with the supply side, but if they want to become large they have to obtain clients and then fix in the brochures low prices. The last one, FTI, has during the last years internal problems that conduce to its acquisition by Airtours. This problems can be associated with the high price fix in summer 2000. Alltours, despite its classification as a small tour operator, is among the small ones, the one that have the greatest market share, and we can put its strategy on an equal foot with ITS and Dert our. On the other hand, Airtours is among large British tour operators the one that fix the highest prices. This tour operator is the second in terms of market share both in the British and in the European market. Just like TUI, Airtours has grown through the expansion to other countries and the product diversification. This two facts allow Airtours to fix higher prices without losing market share. Although, Airtours is not the market leader in Great Britain (place hold by Thomson), it behave as it was. The acquisition of Thomson by TUI in 2000 due to financial problems can explain the low prices of the British leader. To sum up, except the small tour operators, the three tourist groups that control the European market fix the highest prices. So, although they have market power with the supply side and obtain the lowest prices in the negotiation, these prices are not diverted into low package tour prices. Therefore, large tour operators have market power both in origin an in the Bal earic Islands. We can reflect our thesis with a more general model that show the implications of the price elasticity on mark up. The theory stars with the premise that profit maximizing firms with market power set price (P) as a mark up over marginal cost (MC), which mark up depends on the elasticity of demand ((), where ( is defined to be positive. Thus: [pic] At this point, we consider that the introduction of an aggregate measure of the competitive conduct in the tour operator industry is a great deal (See Papatheodorou, 2001), but we go further arguing that tour operators perform in two related but different scenarios: destination and origin countries. In the Balearics Islands tour operators are the demand side and the hoteliers are the supply side. Tour operators are price sensitive, so its demand is quite elastic, and thus the hoteliers’ mark up is lower. So, hoteliers are concerned in occupancy rates. On the other hand, in the origin countries: Germany and UK, tour operators are the agents that supply the package tour to the consumers, so they operate as the supply side and the consumers are the demand side. Consumers behave in to different ways when decide where to expend their holidays: 1) Type 1 consumers don’t have any special destination to go and will go to the cheapest one. 2) Type 2 consumers want to go to the B alearics. Type 1 consumers are very price sensitive, its demand is elastic and so, tour operators’ mark up will be lower; contrary, type 2 consumers are less sensitive to price, so tour operators’ mark up rises. This second type of consumers are more attractive both for tour operators and hoteliers; the first ones can rise its mark up, whilst the second ones obtain a loyal tourism. Although, the mass market tour operators’ industry as a whole is characterised by small margins, this differentiation between consumers highlights the impact of loyal consumers on margins and question the statement that tour operators put destination-based business (above all hoteliers) at a bargaining disadvantage because they have obtained the initiative in persuading their clients which destination to visit.  ¿Which type of tourism have the Balearic Islands? Cladera (2002) shows that both German and British tourists repeat its holidays in the Balearic Islands (67.65% and 78.11% r espectively in 2000). This figures point out that the Islands are a destination that tourists claim and can drive us to tell that the Islands have a type 2 consumers, but we can be in front of a type 1 consumer if the reason of visiting the Balearics is the price, so we have to carry on investigating the reasons for the visits. Aguilà ³ et al. (2002) observe that the main reasons for choosing the Balearics as their holidays destination for German tourist are: clime (20% of answers), beaches (15.9%), environment and hotel quality (13.4%), transfer facilities (7.4%) and price (6.7%). British tourist give more importance to price (11% of answers), but the most relevant reason is still the clime (21.2%). Environment and hotel quality represent 12.1% of answers, whilst beaches are only a 10%. This figures can be observed by another perspective, specifically, by the number of people who have marked each of the reasons. Doing that we can observe that clime is the main reason, marked by 80.2% of Germans and 84.6% of British. While the 63.6% of Germans showed beaches as a coming reason, only a 40% of British consider beaches as a reason. Price is influent in the decision for only the 26.9% of Germans, while British are more concern about prices, 45.3%. Environment and hotel quality is marked by 53.9% of Germans and by 48.3% of British. Transfer facilities (29.7%) and night atmosphere (22.5%) is more important for Germans than for British people (12.6% and 15.5% respectively). Furthermore, Cladera (2002) analyses the number of tourist who have selected the price as a rea son for choosing the Balearics differentiating by first-time tourists and loyal ones. Cladera conclude that the 34.6% of first-time German tourists and the 45.5% of first-time British tourists consider the price one of the reasons of visiting the Islands, whilst only a 20.2% of loyal German tourist and the 43.1% of loyal British tourist. This figures show the relative less importance of price as a reason of spending the holidays in the Balearic Islands as much the Islands are visited. After this analysis we are able to answer the question: tourist who visit the Islands are mostly loyal tourists and the main reason for choosing the Islands is not the price, although British people are more sensitive to prices than German people. CONCLUSIONS This paper has had two main objectives: 1) Examine the influence on the package tour prices of the identity of the tour operator. 2) Determine the role that hotel chains play on the determination of the prices. These have been studied through the price structure of tourist packages in the Balearic Islands offered by a representative sample of German and British tour operators. The conclusions reach after the analysis permit us to state in connection with hypothesis 1 that: 1) the differences in price between tour operators are due to the different strategies that tour operators follow to gain market share, 2) large tour operators have market power both in origins and in the Balearic Islands and 3) The type of tourist who visit the Island succeed in increasing mark up both to tour operators and hoteliers. We really believe that large European tour operators have market power both in origin and in destination markets, although the strategies of each tourist group can make the market seem competitive. Debbage (1990) also consider this when argued that the suppliers are potentially able to reap the advantages of their oligopolistic and oligopsonistic power to the detriment of consumers and destinations. Relative to hypothesis 2 we can conclude that the fact that a hotel belongs or not to a hotel chain is not appreciared by fixing higher prices in the brochures, that could show a great negotiation power towards tour operator. However, the obtained results reveal that offers in hotels that have any kind of agreement with the tour operator are in mean cheaper. That results permit us to conclude that hotel chains are more concerned in high occupancy rates than in high prices per room. It could be interesting in future research to complement or contrast the methodology used here with alternative approaches to confirm the results reported in this paper. ANNEX Figure 1: Package tour prices for offers in a double room with half board in a three stars hotel by German tour operators Figure 2: Package tour price for offers in a double room with half board in a three stars hotel by British tour operators Figure 3: British tour operators’ dispersion graph by star rating and type of board Figure 4: German tour operators’ dispersion graph by star rating and type of board BIBLIOGRAPHY AGUILÓ, P.M, J. ALEGRE y A. RIERA (2001) â€Å"Determinants of the Price of German Tourist Packages on the island of Mallorca†. Tourism Economics, vol.7, issue 1, pp.59-74. BARDOLET, E. (1990) â€Å"Demanda Turà ­stica y Marketing Turà ­stico†. Papeles de Economà ­a Espaà ±ola, vol. Baleares, pp. 219-230. BAUM, T. y R. MUDAMBI (1994) â€Å"A Ricardian analysis of the fully inclusive Tour Industry†. The Services Industries Journal, vol.14, n º1, pp. 85-93. CLADERA (2002) â€Å"Anà ¡lisis de la evolucià ³n temporal de las caracterà ­sticas del turismo y del gasto turà ­stico en las Islas Baleares a partir de la Encuesta de Gasto Turà ­stico (1989-2000)†. MIMEO. CURTIN, S y G. BUSBY (1999) â€Å"Sustainable Destination Development: the Tour Operator Perspective†. International Journal of Tourism Research, vol. 1, pp.135-147. DAVIES, B. y P. DOWNWARD (1998) â€Å"Competition and Contestability in the U.K. Package Tour Industry: some Empi rical Observations†. Working Paper 98.3. DAVIES, B. y P. DOWNWARD (2000) â€Å"Industrial Organization and Competition in the UK Tour Operator/Travel Agency Business, 1989-93: an Econometric Investigation†. Working Paper n º 2000.3. DEBBAGE, K. G. (1990) â€Å"Oligopoly and the Resort Cycle in the Bahamas†. Annals of Tourism Research, vol.17, pp. 513-527. DOXA Y SUBDIRECCIÓN GENERAL DE PLANIFICACIÓN Y PROSPECTIVA TURà STICA (1989) â€Å"Concentracià ³n y Asociacionismo Empresarial en el Sector Turà ­stico. Documento de Sintesis†. Estudios Turà ­sticos, vol.103, n º9, pp. 3-33. DUNNING, J. H. y McQUEEN, M. (1982) â€Å"Multinational Corporations in the International Hotel Industry†. Annals of Tourism Research, vol.9, pp. 69-90. EVANS, N.G. y M.J. STABLER (1995) â€Å"A Future for the Package Tour Operator in the 21st century?†. Tourism Economics, vol.1, 3, pp. 245-263. FITCH, A. (1987) â€Å"Tour Operators in the UK. Survey of the Industry, its markets and product diversification†. Travel and Tourism Analyst, March, pp. 29-43. FVW (anual) â€Å"Europà ¤ische Veranstalter in Zahlen, dokumentation 1993-2000†. GRATTON, C. y G. RICHARDS (1997) â€Å"Structural change in the European Package Tour Industry: UK/German comparisons†. Tourism Economics, vol.3, 3, pp. 213-226. PAPATHEODOROU, A. (2001) â€Å"Why People Travel to different places†. Annals of Tourism Research, vol. 28, n º 1, pp. 164-179. SHELDON, P.J. (1986) â€Å"The Tour Opera tor Industry. An Analysis†. Annals of Tourism Research, vol.13, pp. 349-365. SINCLAIR, M.T., A. CLEWER y A. PACK (1990) â€Å"Hedonic prices and the Marketing of Package Holidays: the case of Tourism resorts in Malaga†. In Marketing Tourism Places. Ashworth, G.J. and Goodall, B., eds, pp. 85-103. London: Routledge. TAYLOR, P. (1995) â€Å"Measuring Changes in the Relative Competitiveness of Package Tour Destinations†. Tourism Economics, vol.1, 2, pp. 169-182. TAYLOR, P. (1996) â€Å"Oligopoly or Contestable Markets in the UK Package Tour Industry?†. The Service Industries Journal, vol. 16, pp. 379-388. TRAVEL AND TOURISM INTELLIGENCE (2000) â€Å"The European Leisure Travel Industry†. London: Travel and Tourism Intelligence. WILLIAMS, A.M. (1996) â€Å"Mass Tourism and International Tour Companies†. In Tourism in Spain-Critical Issues. Barke,M. , Tonner,J. and Newton,M.T.,eds, pp. 119-135. Wallingford: CAB International. ———————– END NOTES [i] Los tres profesores son miembros del Departament d’Economia i Empresa de la Universitat de les Illes Balears. [ii] Govern de les Illes Balears (2000) â€Å"El turisme a les Illes Balears, dades informatives, any 2000†. [iii] Terramar, Spanien und Portugal; Neckermann, Young and Sport; Neckermann, Flugreisen; Neckermann, Family; Condor Individuell; Air Marin, Spanien und Portugal; Fischer Reisen, Flugreisen; Kreutzer; Bucher Reisen; Smile anf Fly; Jahn Reisen; Maris Reisen; THR Tours, Jet and Bett; THR Tours, Urlaub Mal Anders; Tjaerborg; FTI; FTI, Preis Pardise; ITS, Spanien und Portugal; DER, Der Sonnenseiten; Alltours, Flugreisen; 1,2 Fly; TUI Schà ¶nen Ferien; TUI Schà ¶nen Ferien Free World; Ãâ€"ger Tours,Sommer 2000; Club Blaues Meer Reisen, Mallorca; Shauinseland Reisen, Belearen; Niag Reisen, Mallorca; Phoenix, Flugreisen Sommer 2000; Airtours, Summer Sun; Archers Direct, Summer Sun; Price Beaters; Cosmos, Summer Sun; JMC, Summer Sun; JMC, Select; JMC, Ess entials; Club 18-30; Skytours; Thomson, Summer Sun; Thomson, Small and Friendly; Thomson a la Carte; Club Freestyle; Portland Direct; Just; Virgin, Summer Sun; Sovereign, Summer Sun; First Choice, Summer Sun; Eclipse, Summer Sun; 2wentys. [iv] Sinclair et al (1990) point out that hotel rating is a gut indicator of the services and facilities that the hotel offers. [v] Conselleria de Turisme (2000) [vi] Govern de les Illes Balears (1999) â€Å"El turisme a les Illes Balears, dades informatives, any 1999†. [vii] In each of the boxes, the central line indicates the median of the distribution, while the height of the box represents the inter-quartile range, the area is proportional to the frequency of observations. The feet extend (at most) up to 1.5 times the inter-quartile range, aiding the detection of observed extremes (marked as circles).

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Atmosphere traveling feeling (Ads, commercials, layouts) + people density (FB, spa) + exclusive or customized product (gift) + services (make-up) + special promotion (festival) + enough information (IT)premise is they have time, if not, try to activate them do purchasing in flight Constraint: the availability of material concerning the duty-free market.hoe to build Internet platform? Idea: LANCOME, your journey companion. treat yourself and who you care about; choose one kind of fragrance to memorize the journey. change the ads. new customers developmen, business men who cant travel with their love this time, as a promising symbol I think about you during travel, and hopefully we can go out together next time . LANCOME, as a symbol for love- love yourself and people you care and passion-passion for travel (red rose) Dubai duty-free: No.1 revenue in the world; for 28yrs existence; the largest airport retail operation in the world. special promotions (ex. lottery for luxury car). Chinese traveler: Kwan_Siu Lan.pdf DOWNTOWN DUTY-Free SHOP Duty-free shops (or stores) are retail outlets that are exempt from the payment of certain local or national taxes and duties, on the requirement that the goods sold will be sold to travelers who will take them out of the country. Which products can be sold duty-free vary by jurisdiction, as well as how they can be sold, and the process of calculating the duty or refund the duty component. However, some countries impose duty on goods brought into the country, though they had been bought duty-free in another country, or when the value or quantity of such goods exceed an allowed limit. Duty-free shops are often found in the international zone of international airports, sea ports, and train stations but goods can be also bought duty-free on board airplanes and passenger ships. They are not as commonly available for road or train travelers, although several border crossings between the United States and  both Canada and Mexico have duty-free shops for car travelers. In some countries, any shop can participate in a reimbursement system, such as Global Blue where a sum equivalent to the tax is paid, but then the goods are presented to the customs and the sum reimbursed on exit. These outlets were abolished for intra-EU travellers in 1999, but are retained for travelers whose final destination is outside the EU. They also sell to intra-EU travelers but with appropriate taxes. Some special member state territories such as Ã…land,Livigno and the Canary Islands, are within the EU but outside the EU tax union, and thus still continue duty-free sales for all travelers. Tax Free World Association (TFWA) announced that in 2011 Asia-Pacific, with 35 percent of global duty-free and travel retail sales, beat Europe and Americas, with these regions accounting for 34 percent and 23 percent respectively. 31 percent of sales came from the fragrances and cosmetics category, followed by the wine and spirit category with 17 percent and then comes tobacco products.[1] Duty-free shopping away from ports Some duty-free shops operate in central business districts away from airports or other ports. In Japan, for example, any visitor whose passport indicates that they have been in the country for less than six months can buy duty-free items. Duty-free shops are also a mainstay in the Akihabara electronic shopping district of Tokyo. In Thailand, the King Power chain has shops where duty-free items are pre-purchased and delivered separately to the airport to be picked up on departure. For certain other purchases, a VAT refund may be claimed at the airport upon departure.[8] In the Philippines, there is one shopping mall called the Duty Free Philippines Fiestamall, which is located a few miles away from Ninoy Aquino Airport as opposed to being at the airport itself. It is the only shopping mall of its kind in the world. The goods that are sold in this mall are often imported products which come from around the world (mainly from USA, Asia andAustralasia) and are not found in any other shop ping malls in the country, aside from duty-free malls. Tourists, visitors and returning citizens of Philippines often pay a visit to this mall shortly after their arrival (since only arriving passengers and their companions are allowed access).[9] In order to gain entry, a passport is needed to be presented and  registered at the Customer Registration Counter at the entrance of the mall. The customer will then be issued a shopping card; these shopping cards must be presented to the cashier for validation of purchases. Arriving customers are given a certain tax-free allowance on purchases and anything in excess will be subject to local and national taxes. In the past, the mall used to only accept US dollars and Philippine peso but in recent years, it had begun accepting other currencies such as Japanese yen, Brunei dollar,Australian dollar, British pound, Canadian dollar, Swiss franc, Saudi riyal, Bahraini dinar, and Thai baht. Currency exchange booths are also available inside the mall if a customer wishes to exchange currencies into Philippine pesos or US dollars. Credits cards can also be used for purchasing goods.[10] In Australia, duty-free shops have all but disappeared after the introduction of the GST in 2000. Currently, duty-free shops are nearly all located within international airports. Residents and tourists are now allowed to purchase virtually any physical good within 60 days of departure,[11] which needs to be taken on the outward flight, and claim the GST component back through the Tourist Refund Scheme when passing through customs. Consumers are now free to fully use their items prior to departure. This is in contrast prior to 2000, where all purchases had to be packed by the duty-free store in a sealed clear plastic bag, and could only be broken open by customs staff just prior to departure. [12] Duty-free outside the airports in the EU Any traveller living in a country outside the EU VAT area is entitled to shop tax-free at participating shops in the EU. The traveller pays the VAT on goods in the shop in the usual way, and can request a refund when exporting the goods. To qualify, the traveller must: have residency in a non-EU country have a maximum stay of six months within the EU make purchases no more than three months prior to export obtain a form from the shop where he or she makes the purchase present the form, and in certain cases the goods, to a customs officer when leaving the EU, where they will be stamped Only goods meant for personal use are eligible for the refund. The stamped forms and receipts can then be sent back to the retailers, or their agents, for a refund. In most cases, a minimum purchase applies to use the tax-free shopping scheme. The actual  amount of VAT reclaimable depends on the VAT rate applicable in the particular country to the goods purchased, and may be subject to a deduction for administration fees. Security considerations Travelers on long-haul routes with at least one transit stop between their departure airport and destination airport should be careful to purchase their duty-free alcohol or perfume at the last transit port, as otherwise they may have it confiscated by security when they board at the transit port, as they will be exceeding the current limit on liquids in hand baggage. This does not apply to passengers transferring within the EU, Singapore and Croatia on the same day, as long as the liquid item is sealed in a plastic bag with the receipt showing in the bag. Arrivals duty-free shops are now becoming more common. Most of South and Central America, and the Caribbean have such shops, as does SE Asia and Oceania. Switzerland and Canada are looking to introduce them in 2010, this method of retail removes any security problems for the transit of liquids as they are not carried on aircraft.[13] Several airlines do not allow sales of certain sharp objects in-flight due to security risk. Other objects that have sharp parts, such as model airplanes, may be bought in-flight but received at the passengers home address for the same reason. Inbound duty-free Some countries, including Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, Iceland, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, and Taiwan have inwards duty-free facilities, where arriving passengers can purchase duty-free items immediately before going through customs. This not only saves the inconvenience of having to carry these items around the world but also solves the security problem mentioned above. Other countries such asCanada and Sweden have been considering duty-free on arrival. The European Union does not permit arrivals duty-free stores; some EU airports sell goods on arrival in the baggage claim area described as Tax-Free, but these goods are all tax-paid sales, the local sales tax is discounted. Normally, discounted liquors or tobacco products cannot be bought when arriving into an EU Member State as there is often a high local Excise Duty on these goods as well as the local sales tax (VAT/IVA/TVA) which is included in the price.  In some EU Territories the tax on tobaccos and liquors is lower than in other EU countries, which is why the prices still seem competitive and look like duty-free prices. A good example is the difference in tobacco prices between the UK and Ireland, compared to Spain or Portugal. Legal basis It is a common feature of most tax systems that taxes are not raised on goods to be exported. To do so would place the goods at a disadvantage to those from other countries. Either the tax system allows the goods to be exported without taxes (stored prior to export in a bonded warehouse), or taxes can be claimed back when they are exported (see VAT). Such exemption also applies to goods supplied for use on ships and aircraft, because they are consumed outside the country. Businesses supplying such goods can do so tax- and duty-free. Goods sold to passengers on board ships or aircraft are tax free. The passenger can either consume them on board, or import them tax-free into the country they are traveling to, so long as they are within the travelers duty-free allowance. Most tax regimes also allow travelers entering a country to bring in a certain amount of goods for personal use without paying tax on them, the so-called duty-free allowance; because it is not economically justifiable t o collect the small amounts of tax involved, and would be an inconvenience to the passengers. A duty-free shop works under the same system. The goods must be exported intact (they cannot be consumed in the airport), and they are importing into the destination country under that countrys own tax rules. In some countries, in order to ensure that goods are exported intact, they are hand-delivered in a closed bag to the passenger at the gate after his ticket is scanned. In the United States, duty-free shops are technically considered class 9 Bonded Warehouses with regard to the U.S. Customs Border Protection: Class 9. Bonded warehouse, known as duty-free stores, used for selling, for use outside the Customs territory, conditionally duty-free merchandise owned or sold by the proprietor and delivered from the Class 9 warehouse to an airport or other exit point for exportation by, or on behalf of, individuals departing from the Customs territory for destinations other than foreign trade zones. Pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1555(b)(8)(C), Customs territory, for purposes of duty-free stores, means the Customs territory of the U.S. as defined in 101.1(e) of this chapter, and foreign trade zones (see part 146 of this  chapter). All distribution warehouses used exclusively to provide individual duty-free sales locations and storage cribs with conditionally duty-free merchandise are also Class 9 warehouses. Moreover, in the U.S. some duty-free stores will sell their goods to domestic passengers with appropriate taxes included. Alcohol and tobacco products are restricted to international passengers only and subject to the age limitations of 21 and 18 respectively, even though the age one must be to import those items into other countries may be lower.

Antigen Presenting Cell (APC): Structure and Function

Antigen Presenting Cell (APC): Structure and Function There are many complex mechanisms employed by the immune system to destroy invading organisms, abnormal cells and contain infections in order to maintain health and life. Antigen presenting cells (APC) are some of the cells that form part of these mechanisms. This essay will look at what APCs are, the different types with examples and their specific roles in the immune response. APCs are cells that take up antigens and present them to lymphocytes during an immune response (Sherwood et al, 2009). The components of APCs that actually do the presenting are Major Histocompatibility complexes (MHCs): Class I and Class II MHC molecules (Sompayrac, 2003). These two complexes provide two different pathways of antigen presentation that stimulates different population of T cells to eliminate the invading pathogen concerned. All nucleated cells of the body express MHC class I molecules and are therefore referred to as non-professional APCs (Kropshofer et al, 2005). MHC class I molecules are like billboards that display on the surface of the cell, peptides of processed endogenous proteins (Sompayrac, 2003).The endogenous proteins could be those encoded by viruses or parasites that have infected the cell. The main focus of MHC class I APCs is on events within the cell. Typically in a viral infection, the virus enters the cell and uses the cells own biosynthetic machinery to produce proteins encoded by viral genes (Wagner et al, 2004). Viral proteins are broken down into peptides by enzymes within the cell (proteasomes) (DeFranco et al, 2007). Following this, the peptides are carried into the endoplasmic reticulum by a TAP transporter (Sompayrac, 2003). After which MHC class I molecules within the cell are loaded with these peptides along with a sample of other normal proteins being made by the cell. This M HC-peptide complex is then transported to the cell surface for presentation. The protein fragments are displayed on MHC class I molecules to cytotoxic T cells (Tc) (Schindler, 1991). Having this mechanism in place allows all body cells to be monitored by CD8+ve Tc cells which inspect the cells. Tc cells detect foreign peptides bound to an MHC so if a cell has been invaded by a virus or parasite, the Tc cells are alerted and respond by destroying the abnormal cell thus preventing the spread of viruses throughout the body (DeFranco et al, 2007). MHC class II molecules are designed to present peptides to helper T cells (Th). Unlike the MHC class I molecules, MHC class II molecules are restricted to certain cell types termed professional APCs. Their focus is on events unfolding in the outside environment so can present samples of antigens derived from exogenous antigens in various parts of the body. Professional APCs display class I and class II MHCs as well as co-stimulatory signals (Sompayrac, 2003). In order to function, T cells, both Tc and Th cells, require activation. For this to happen, T cells need to recognise its cognate antibody in an MHC complex and they also need a co-stimulatory signal which can only be provided by professional APCs (Wellness.com, 2010). Co-stimulation is provided by a protein (B7) on APCs which interlocks with another protein (CD28) on the surface of T cells. Examples of professional APCs are activated macrophages, activated dendritic cells (DC) and activated B cells. DCs are the most important of the APCs as it capable of initiating an immune response by activating naà ¯ve T cells (Sompayrac, 2003). These cells are strategically located in areas of the body such as the skin, mucosal lining of lung and digestive tract where microbes are likely to enter (Sherwood et al, 2009). In normal tissues DCs are immature, expressing few B7 protein and MHC molecules on their surfaces so are poor antigen presenters. However, when a microbe(s) invade the tissue which DCs reside, they mature. DC are specialised as they have pattern recognition receptors on their surface which recognises common features of invading microbes such as LPS on the surface of gram negative bacteria. DCs takes up pathogens through receptor mediated endocytosis and degrade it in a lysosome (DeFranco et al, 2007). During a invasion, cytokines (TNF ÃŽ ±) released by activated mac rophages are recognised by the DC which informs it that innate immune system is under attack. Cytokines bind to receptors on the DC causing it to cease phagocytosis, leave the tissues (site of infection) and migrate through the lymphatic system. Whilst travelling, the DC equips the class II MHC reserves with the antigen and also produces B7 co-stimulatory protein. During this time also, DC upregulates the expression of class I MHC molecules as a precautionary measure that if the DC was infected by a virus or parasite at the site of infection, the antigen could be processed into protein fragments for presentation if necessary (Male, 2004). By the time the DC reaches the lymph node, it has its co-stimulatory molecules and the MHC class II- peptide complex(es) primed and ready to activate naà ¯ve T cells. Lymph nodes have compartments that have bountiful supplies of B and T cells (Schindler, 1991). Whilst at the lymph node, DCs trigger the adaptive immune response by presenting antigens to CD4+ve Th cells with matching receptors (Sherwood, 2009). After which, the APC secrete interleukin, a chemical which activate Th cells. Activated Th cells then secretes cytokines which stimulates the Th into rapid proliferation and differentiation into effector Th cells and memory Th cells (DeFranco et al, 2007). Memory Th cells are useful in future infections by the same pathogen whilst effector Th cells activate B cells to secrete antibodies enhancing other immune activities (Sherwood, 2009). Additionally effector Th cells and antibody molecules depart from the lymph node and enter the circulation which they then leave at the infection site. Antibodies opsonise the bacteria enhancing their uptakes by phagocytes, stimulate Natural killer cells (NK) to directly lyse the bacteria and also activate th e lethal compliment system (Sherwood, 2009). CD4 +ve T-cell on the other hand activate macrophages to become more cytotoxic. It is important that the magnitude of the immune response be in proportion to the seriousness of the attack (Sompayrac, 2003). As previously mentioned DCs migrate to lymph nodes only when activated by battle cytokines. In a serious infection, many cytokines are released and thus more DCs are activated. Before their migration to lymph nodes, activated DCs release chemokines, a chemical which triggers precursor cells (monocytes) to leave the blood stream and become their replacement as DCs in (Sompayrac, 2003). These new DCs are then able to be activated and make their way to the lymph node which amplifies the response to the invasion. The new recruits of DCs are like photojournalists, the antigenic peptide which they carry to the lymph node being a snapshot of the infection site (Sompayrac, 2003). This is useful so if there are changes in the area, the appropriate T cell can be activated and thus elicit the immune response most suitable. If the infection is mild, there will be fewer c ytokines produced, less DCs activated, fewer chemokines released, fewer replacements of DCs therefore the number of DCs that make their way to the lymph node will also be significantly less. Consequently the number of B and T cells that becomes activated in the lymph nodes relies greatly on the number of DCs present. As detailed above DCs play a role in the activation of macrophages. Macrophages are one of the early defences against invaders that initiate the cell mediated immune response (Schindler, 1991). Macrophages are very weak at presenting antigens as they only possess enough MHC molecules and co-stimulatory proteins when activated by battle cytokines e.g. IFN ÃŽ ³ (DeFranco et al, 2007). Macrophages function in the re-stimulation of experienced T cells so they continue to partake in the fight against the pathogen (Male, 2004). They engulf pathogens that have invaded the tissues, process it using internal enzymes and present the peptides on MHC class II molecules. This continual display of antigens is recognised by Th cells which continue to complete their function. Next the activated macrophage releases cytokines are previously mention that act on the DC i.e. TNF ÃŽ ±. Other cytokines released includes IL-1 and IL-8. IL-1 aids in the activation of B and T cells (Schindler, 1991). B cells are the third professional APC. At the start of an infection B cells are naà ¯ve so do not play a definitive role. However throughout the course of the infection B cells become activated. Some B-cells are specific to T-independent antigen so only require binding of its receptor (BCR) to a cognate antigen for activation (Sherwood 2009). Other B-cells are specific to T-dependent antigen so after processing the antigen and displaying it on MHC class II molecules, binding of a Th cell is required for their activation. The MHC class II complex interacts with the TCR on the CD4+ Th cell which recognise the specific antigen on the B cell. Next the helpers release a chemical known as interleukin triggering the activation of the B cell. Activated B cells go through rapid proliferation and differentiation into memory cells and antibody producing plasma cells (Sherwood, 2009). B cells have the advantage of presenting the antigen very quickly so makes the immune response more efficient. The development of two different pathways of antigen presentation i.e. via MHC class I and II molecules can be rationalised in that each ultimately helps to elicit the most appropriate immune response through stimulation of the T cell the population most effective in eliminating the pathogen in question. MHC class I APCs allows for the monitoring of all body cells through Tc cells whilst MHC class II APCs seek the help of Th cells and B cells which directs the immune response in a way that corresponds to the seriousness an infection. Through these functions, APCs ultimately helps to maintain health and life. Should Teens Be Allowed Internet Access? Should Teens Be Allowed Internet Access? The internet is a large market with practically everything available in it. It is a massive network of computers worldwide connected by cables and satellites. Most of the time, it is just referred to as The Net or the World Wide Web (www). The internet today is used for multiple tasks such as receiving email, communicating with people from all around the world, receive text, images, video and sound. It is a very helpful tool for getting any information needed. This is because it has people from all around the globe posting information onto the internet for the use of everybody who access the internet which is a public accessible feather for millions of people nationwide. (Young Media Australia 2008, What is the internet?) However, the internet nowadays is too widely used by tweens and is becoming an issue among our society. This is caused by different factors that may be dangerous to them. This study is to investigate whether it is advisable for tweens to be allowed internet access. We may wonder who exactly are tweens? To be exact, they are individuals who are no longer children anymore yet not a teenager. This means they would fall in the age group of between 11 13 years old. People are doubtful about giving them internet access because they may not be mature enough to differentiate what is good or bad and this may cause them to be susceptible to internet danger. Internet danger is generally caused by people who are not taught with moral ethics and try to inflict damage onto tweens. Advantages of the internet for tweens Offers a wide spectrum of information The internet is a virtual treasure chest full of valuable information. It has a huge amount of publications added everyday and is slowly evolving as one of the greatest source of information. Any form of information from A to Z can nowadays be so easily obtained just by a few clicks on the computer and tons of information show on the screen. Also, with the help of search engines on the internet, the work of hunting for information or data is minimized. Since the internet provides so much of information, it is a great source of reference for students who does research work or even just to look for information which cannot be obtained in school. Through the internet, forums can be accessed and through forums, people are able to trade information and share opinions with each other. (The Advantages Disadvantages Of The Internet n.d.) Communication with the world There are plenty of chat rooms that can be used on the internet such as Live Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, Skype and so on. These chat rooms allow worldwide communication to be possible. As long as computers are connected to the internet, anybody from any part of the world can communicate online. It is very convenient for family members who are apart to communicate with each other instantaneously without the need of using email or snail mail. (The Advantages Disadvantages Of The Internet n.d.) Saves times in completing tasks Before internet existed, there were many tasks that took a lot of time to complete. Now with the help of internet in the modern society, the time used to complete these tasks is reduced by an uncanny amount. One example would be students using the internet to communicate with teachers online. Students who are slacking in studies may have extra classes with teachers through communication programs. This greatly reduces students time needed to revise on their own and yet not fully comprehend the subject. Also, assignments done can be sent to teachers via the computer with the use of email. Educational games programs Games nowadays intrigue tweens and play a big role in their lives. Computer games are constantly being played by tweens from all around the world and the internet has a huge load of these games. Specifically, educational games are the games that have positive effect on tweens. These games can provide practice in problem solving and logic and also provide practice in use of fine motor and spatial skills. Furthermore, some of the educational games require two players or more so this allows parents to occasionally play together with the child and have some family bonding. These games being fun activities help to relieve stress and help keep the mind fresh. (Effects Of Video Game Playing On Children 2009) Risks disadvantages tweens might face However good the internet might appear to be and have many advantages upon tweens, the ugly side of internet should also be reviewed carefully to actually determine whether the internet is more harmful than helpful to tweens. Access to inappropriate content or information The internet being the treasure chest to all information, it also contains negative contents such as pornography and violence. Tweens who accidentally access to pornography may see images that would scar them for life and may potentially cause problems in their future life as these images may surface without warning. It is always internet pornography that is the first exposure to tweens of these sexual images and the images they see causes their brain to play mind tricks on them. This causes human intimacy to be planted into them as something twisted and perverted and this implantation is irreversible. Ultimately, this may lead to sexual deviancy and crime, which in turn affects their future relationships and marriages. (Children as Victims n.d.) Violence also can make a huge impact on tweens. Tweens who are exposed to violence would generally be more hot-tempered and are very likely to have antisocial behavior such as threatening aggression and assault. This is because they are brainwashed into the world of violence and cannot distinguish between fantasy and reality. They may think that violence is the only way to settle problems and that being violent shows charisma and looks macho-like. (Children And Media Violence 2009) Chance to come across internet predators An internet predator is usually an adult who exploits vulnerable children or tweens for sexual or abusive purposes, or also known as paedophiles. These people try to do these out of the norm things to satisfy their personal fetish. They would try to use the internet as a way of getting in contact with tweens and try to coax them to meet up. At this point, these tweens who are not under adult supervision may not be mature enough to think that this is potential danger and would simply just agree to meeting with this anonymous person. This would allow tweens to be vulnerable to these internet predators to carry out their dirty activities. In some reported cases, these paedophiles have raped and killed innocent children. (What are the risks involved with my child using the internet n.d.) Become victims of cyber bullying Cyber bullying is quite common nowadays in the virtual world. What exactly does cyber bullying mean? It basically is any form of harassment that occurs via the internet. Posting fake videos on web sites, leaving mean and evil emails towards somebody are forms of cyber bullying. Tweens who are cyber bullied would feel very depressed and overwhelmed as they do not know who these people are who cyber bully them. These helpless victims would usually suffer quietly and be mentally imbalanced because they usually dont tell an adult about this issue and just keep it to themselves. (What is Cyberbullying? n.d.) Be subjected to invasion of privacy, unsolicited advertising financial risks There are plenty of commercial websites on the internet that may invade privacy by requesting for personal information. Tweens may be encouraged to complete questionnaires and enter competitions that lead to the divulgence of personal information or incur unforeseen costs. Also, some sites have advertisements that encourage tweens to acquire products which are costly and unnecessary for them. (What are the risks involved with my child using the internet n.d.) Addiction to the internet It is very easy for tweens to get addicted to the internet because it is so interactive. With all the contents available on the internet, tweens would opt to sit in front of a computer all day and this would cause them not to have time to finish assignments or work and decrease the time for socializing with people in person. This usually also causes tweens to be less healthy as they would lack the exercise needed for their body. (What are the risks involved with my child using the internet n.d.) Conclusion To look at the whole argument in an unbiased way, a comparison has to be made between the advantages and disadvantages of the internet. It may appear that it is not advisable for tweens to be allowed internet access because of all the negative effects it may cause. However, from a survey carried out, majority of the people agree that tweens should be given internet access and that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages of the internet. These negative effects are avoidable and it basically comes down to the way tweens use the internet and how much they understand about the internet. These problems may be avoided if they are guided along the way by an adult because an adult is able to differentiate whats good and whats not on the internet and teach tweens how to avoid these sites on the internet. Most of the tweens who suffer from internet disadvantages are those who are ignorant and are not taught well on how to utilize internet as a powerful tool. (1615 words)

Rates of Reaction Experiment :: Papers

Rates of Reaction Experiment Rate of reaction means the rate of formation of a product/disappearance of a reactant, this is useful because we can time the different concentrations reacting with the acid, and give each of them a rate, based on the formula rate = 1/time. Rate of reaction is what we use to measure how quickly a reaction takes to reach a certain point in the reaction in this case it is when it gets to certain cloudiness. In this investigation, we will need to measure the time of the reaction, so we can make a rate for it, to do this we use the formula, - rate = 1/time * 1000, we use the *1000 so that it is a manageable number to plot on a graph if necessary. It is generally measured in time, as this is the only means possible to us; however you must be careful because as heat is a catalyst, it strongly affects the rate as you will see in the results, so we have to try and keep it the same throughout the experiment. The reaction we are studying is very easy to monitor and time. All of the products in the solution dissolve into it (sodium chloride, sulphur dioxide and water), apart from sulphur, which makes the solution go cloudy, and forms a precipitate. This can be written down as s-1for example 15.7 s-1means 15.7 per second is the rate of the reaction. The rate is generally measured by selecting a certain amount of two substances, and finding a suitable way of judging when the reaction has finished, the reaction is then timed, and when you have a time, you put it into the formula rate = 1/time *1000.This is the only method available to us, because it can not be done any other way for this experiment, but others may be measured in different ways, i.e. mass loss, or amount of gas evolved could be measured. The Equations for this experiment are: Sodium thiosulphate + Hydrochloric acid à   Sodium chloride + sulphur +