HOW DID MARKETS BEGIN?


Markets have been around for thousands of years — long before the first shops. They were set up in towns where trading routes crossed. Salesmen, known as pedals, travelled between markets, buying and selling goods. People also sold surplus goods or things that they had made. Goods were often exchanged for other goods, a practice known as bartering, and people always argued, or haggled, over a price.



market is one of the many varieties of systems, institutions, procedures, social and infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services (including labor power) in exchange for money from buyers. It can be said that a market is the process by which the prices of goods and services are established. Markets facilitate trade and enable the distribution and resource allocation in a society. Markets allow any trade-able item to be evaluated and priced. A market emerges more or less spontaneously or may be constructed deliberately by human interaction in order to enable the exchange of rights (cf. ownership) of services and goods. Markets generally supplant gift economies and are often held in place through rules and customs, such as a booth fee, competitive pricing, and source of goods for sale (local produce or stock registration).



Markets can differ by products (goods, services) or factors (labour and capital) sold, product differentiation, place in which exchanges are carried, buyers targeted, duration, selling process, government regulation, taxes, subsidies, minimum wages, price ceiling, legality of exchange, liquidity, intensity of speculation, size, concentration, exchange asymmetry, relative prices, volatility and geographic extension. The geographic boundaries of a market may vary considerably, for example the food market in a single building, the real estate market in a local city, the consumer market in an entire country, or the economy of an international trade bloc where the same rules apply throughout. Markets can also be worldwide, see for example the global diamond trade. National economies can also be classified as developed markets or developing markets.



In mainstream economics, the concept of a market is any structure that allows buyers and sellers to exchange any type of goods, services and information. The exchange of goods or services, with or without money, is a transaction. Market participants consist of all the buyers and sellers of a good who influence its price, which is a major topic of study of economics and has given rise to several theories and models concerning the basic market forces of supply and demand. A major topic of debate is how much a given market can be considered to be a “free market”, that is free from government intervention. Microeconomics traditionally focuses on the study of market structure and the efficiency of market equilibrium; when the latter (if it exists) is not efficient, then economists say that a market failure has occurred. However, it is not always clear how the allocation of resources can be improved since there is always the possibility of government failure.










HOW HAS SHOPPING CHANGED IN THE PAST CENTURY?


Shopping habits have changed enormously in the past 100 years. At one time, goods were mainly purchased from various specialist shops - meat from a butcher and vegetables from a greengrocer, for example. In many countries, it is now more common for households to buy everything from one store and to visit shopping centres, where individual shops are housed under one roof. Also, since the late 1990s, the Internet has allowed more and more people to do their shopping without leaving home.



When I was young most of the shopping was done in traditional shops including the local Butchers, Bakers, Grocers and Newsagents.



Over the years as supermarkets appeared some of those traditional shops closed down and small corner shops selling many of the same things started to appear, often staying open much later than the new supermarkets. As the supermarkets stayed open for longer and longer hours even many of the small corner shops disappeared. As the supermarkets (Hyper markets) have grown larger and more have appeared other areas of shopping which have been affected include Clothing, Hardware, Car Spares and many other areas.



We have created this section hoping to get memories from those who ran and those who shopped at the traditional Butchers, Bakers and greengrocers and your views on what we have lost due to these changes.

As consumers we have gained through better prices often more consistent quality and often better choice but are we really better off.



The concept of a department store goes back in history to late 1800's but has evolved and changed as has the rest of the shops. Originally most of the department stores were independent and owned locally in the city they traded. This has been the biggest change in the last 50 years where now a single company may own 20 brands trading in City centres and out of town Malls.



Department stores are identified by the fact they sell a wide range of products including clothing, furniture, appliances, toiletries, cosmetics, jewelry, toys, and sporting goods. Two of the best examples of the largest of these Department Stores could be considered as Macy's in New York and Harrods in London.



In some areas as changes have evolved the distinction between a department store and a supermarket has been eroded a good example of this would be Walmart who originally were considered a discount department store but now could be called (Department Store, Supermarket, Hyper market or a discount department store) as Walmart has moved into food and grocery and have built new superstores that are large enough to sell the traditional products they started with together with a full range of foods and grocery's . As another example Marks and Spencer in the UK has added large food courts and furniture sales as part of their newer and larger stores so the distinction between supermarket and department store continues to become harder to identify.








HOW ARE BANKNOTES PRINTED?


Paper money needs to he designed and made in such a way that it is very difficult to forge. Banknotes have extremely complicated designs, with pictures and backgrounds made up of very fine lines and patterns. These are printed from hand-engraved steel plates. The notes are also printed on a special type of paper, which is hardwearing and has a strip of plastic or metal embedded in it.



Banknote Design



The banknote design typically starts with the compiling and reviewing of historical information, images, Thai patterns, and other elements related to the main theme to be depicted on a banknote. In early days, due to the limited availability of equipment and tools, each new banknote design was to be hand - drawn elaborately in color. To this day, banknote designers still need to possess both artistic skillfulness and computer expertise to create the best design and origination for a banknote. In designing banknote, factors to be considered are:




  • Gracefulness 

  • Convenience

  • Cultural identity 

  • Technical limits 

  • Counterfeit deterrence feature



Platemaking 



Having obtained the design, hand engraving of metallic plates and drawing of design of the original plate is performed by highly skilled and experienced specialists so as to achieve the high degree of precision, tonal variation and perspective requirements for banknotes. The background patterns, formerly etched by machine, are now created by computer programs.



Platemaking 



    1)  Offset Printing?



The background design is printed first by dry offset on a specially designed printing press that is able to print high-precision color patterns on both sides of the sheets simultaneously.  This makes it possible to produce perfect front and back registered designs or see through designs when viewed against transmitted light, one of efficient techniques to discourage counterfeiting.? 



    2)  Intaglio Printing?



This process is used to add the portrait of H.M. the King and other raised prints on the front of the note. The image to be printed is inscribed into the plates. The inscriptions are filled with ink, and excess ink is wiped from the plates. Heavy pressure is applied to transfer the ink from the plates to the pager, leaving the surface slightly raised. This process gives banknotes a tactile feel to the touch, proven to be very effective in counterfeit deterrence.?



   3) Letterpress Printing ?



Every printed sheet is carefully inspected. The good sheets are sent to printed serial number and signature by letterpress method, while imperfect or bad sheets are taken out of the system to be duly destroyed. The printing machine also has electronic numbering control to protect from miss - printing the numbering. This type of control helps prevent the repeat of numbering printed on each banknote of the same category.



Printed Sheet Inspection ??



The bank sheet then passes through a quality inspection and verification process that is one of the most important steps of the entire banknote production process. The inspection process is a process that screens good quality, partially damaged and mis-printed bank sheets from each other.  Also, the quantity of sheets produced is assured by counting and verifying after finishing the inspection process.    



The inspection and verification process is a process of screening the bank sheets into 3 categories;            



1. Good quality sheet are those where every individual banknote has met the quality standard, which are then separated into the "good numbering" printing category.



2. Partially damaged sheets are those that most parts pass the quality standard. This set will be separated into the "partial numbering" printing category.



3. Bad sheets are those that do not pass the quality standard. This set of banknotes is sent to be destroyed and the number of replacement sheet is carefully matched to the number destroyed. 



After serial numbering, the 100 % good sheets move on to cutting and packaging. Partially good sheets are cut, and defective notes are sorted out and replaced by special notes before being shrink - wrapped for delivery.






WHAT IS A BALANCE OF PAYMENTS?


The goods or services that one country sells to another are called exports; the things that it buys from abroad are called imports. Imports need to be paid for with the money made from exports — the balance between the two is called the balance of payments. Not all countries can afford to pay for everything that they need, so they borrow money from wealthier countries and large banks. This has led in part to the large gap between the world’s richest and poorest countries. Many so-called “developing countries” need to use all the money they make from trade simply to repay the interest on loans.



Balance of Payment (BOP) is a statement which records all the monetary transactions made between residents of a country and the rest of the world during any given period. This statement includes all the transactions made by/to individuals, corporates and the government and helps in monitoring the flow of funds to develop the economy. When all the elements are correctly included in the BOP, it should sum up to zero in a perfect scenario. This means the inflows and outflows of funds should balance out. However, this does not ideally happen in most cases.



BOP statement of a country indicates whether the country has a surplus or a deficit of funds i.e. when a country’s export is more than its import, its BOP is said to be in surplus. On the other hand, BOP deficit indicates that a country’s imports are more than its exports. Tracking the transactions under BOP is something similar to the double entry system of accounting. This means, all the transaction will have a debit entry and a corresponding credit entry.




WHAT IS THE WORLD ECONOMY?


Most of the world’s countries trade goods and services between themselves. The transactions that take place make up the World economy. The global marketplace exists partly because countries need things that they cannot produce themselves. Also, richer countries will buy goods from places where the costs of production are low and the goods are cheap. Modern transport and communications have allowed the world economy to develop.



The term world economy refers to all of the economic activity within each country and between countries around the world. It makes sense that as the population of the world has increased, and as technologies such an air travel and the Internet have made communication between people throughout the world easier, that the world economy has grown. It has also become more important and more complex. When one country does well, other countries see a boost in their economies. Conversely, when one country does poorly, other countries can suffer. The countries of the world are now interdependent. Basically, this means that we all have an interest in working together. As a business owner, you have an interest in making sure that Germany is able to meet the demands of its consumers.



This concept of being tied together in order to have free trade, cheaper foreign markets and free trade is known as globalization. Globalization has allowed for trading between countries with less restriction. And thus, business can sell their products all over the world and consumers can have a plethora of products from various countries to choose from.



In order to understand what the world economy is, you must first understand what an economy is. An economy is all the activity that is related to producing and consuming goods and services in a specific area. For example, the city of Chicago has a unique economy. This economy takes into account all of the goods created in the city. These goods are tangible items such as computer screens that are created in a factory, and they are intangible products such as new software and new websites that are created by individuals and companies in Chicago. The Chicago economy also takes into account companies that provide services in Chicago, such as restaurants and city tours. All of the business conducted in the city adds up, and citizens of Chicago find they are either in a good economy or a bad economy. A good economy means that, as a whole, the businesses in Chicago are making a profit--they are growing and making money. A bad economy means that, generally speaking, companies in Chicago are not doing well--they are struggling to find customers and perhaps laying people off or cutting wages in response.



The same principle applies to a country. The United States' economy is good or bad based on the performance of businesses throughout the country. Each country on earth has an economy and, as you might predict, those businesses and economies interact. The result of that interaction is called the world economy.






















HOW ARE GOODS MOVED AROUND THE WORLD?


All forms of transport are used to move goods around the world. Cargo planes are by far the quickest method, but are very expensive. Where large amounts of goods need to be trans-ported over great distances, ships are the cheapest method. Container ships carry metal containers of a standard size, which can hold almost anything. Once in port, the containers are easily transferred to trains or Lorries. For shorter sea journeys, Lorries and their cargoes are driven on to Ro-Ro (roll on, roll off) ferries in one port and driven off at another.



Powered transportation was developed less than 250 years ago, but it is hard to imagine life before ships, trains, cars and airplanes. Some major transportation milestones include:




  • The first steamship built in the 1770s

  • The first steam-powered train in 1798

  • The modern car born in 1886

  • The first powered flight in 1903

  • Yet people did get around before modern transportation, albeit slower.



They simply walked or rode on camels and horses. It wasn’t convenient, fast, reliable, safe or even comfortable. In most cases, you could only go 20 miles a day and carry a limited amount on your back or on the pack animal. But it was all that was available to get from one place to the next to trade goods or find food and water.



Something amazing happened starting in the late 1700s – with the invention and adoption of modern transportation. Standards of living of people around the world radically increased because for the first time trade was easier, safer, faster, more reliable and convenient. Goods could be shipped around the world and traded for other products.



Just as ships and trains could cover long distances in days instead of the months these trips took by camel or sail, by the mid-1900s, planes could cover the same distances in just a few hours. By the 1960s, aviation was the preferred way of getting across the US and abroad to Europe. Faster and faster planes carrying more and more people – for reasonable airfares – helped us to travel, explore and invest around the globe.



With each advancement in transportation technology, the standard of living for everyone around the world has increased dramatically. Supersonic transportation will have an equally astounding impact on the world. Flight times will be reduced by 50%, bringing the world much closer together and making destinations more accessible in a shorter amount of travel time.



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WHEN WERE TOOLS FIRST USED?


The earliest human beings began to make use of tools around 35,000— 40,000 years ago. Sharpened flints were used to skin animals and fashion implements from wood and bone.



Paralleling the biological evolution of early humans was the development of cultural technologies that allowed them to become increasingly successful at acquiring food and surviving predators.  The evidence for this evolution in culture can be seen especially in three innovations:



Some chimpanzee communities are known to use stone and wood as hammers to crack nuts and as crude ineffective weapons in hunting small animals, including monkeys.  However, they rarely shape their tools in a systematic way to increase efficiency.  The most sophisticated chimpanzee tools are small, slender tree branches from which they strip off the leaves.  These twigs are then used as probes for some of their favorite foods--termites and ants.  More rarely, chimpanzees have been observed using sticks as short thrusting spears to hunt gallagos in holes and crevices of trees where they sleep during the day time.  It is likely that the australopithecines were at least this sophisticated in their simple tool use.












 




The first unquestionable stone tools were evidently made and used by early transitional humans and possibly Australopithecus garhi in East Africa about 2.5 million years ago.  While the earliest sites with these tools are from the Gona River Region of Ethiopia, simple tools of this kind were first discovered by Mary and Louis Leakey associated with Homo habilis at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania.  Hence, they were named Oldowan tools after that location.  These early toolmakers were selective in choosing particular rock materials for their artifacts.  They usually chose hard water-worn creek cobbles made out of volcanic rock.



There were two main categories of tools in the Oldowan tradition.  There were stone cobbles with several flakes knocked off usually at one end by heavy glancing percussion blows from another rock used as a hammer.  This produced a jagged, chopping or cleaver-like implement that fit easily in the hand.  These core tools most likely functioned as multipurpose hammering, chopping, and digging implements.  Efficient use of this percussion flaking technique requires a strong precision grip.  Humans are the only living primates that have this anatomical trait.  Probably the most important tools in the Oldowan tradition were sharp-edged stone flakes produced in the process of making the core tools.  These simple flake tools were used without further modification as knives.  They would have been essential for butchering large animals, because human teeth and fingers are totally inadequate for cutting through thick skins and slicing off pieces of meat.  Evidence of their use in this manner can be seen in cut marks that still are visible on bones.  Some paleoanthropologists have suggested that the core tools were, in fact, only sources for the flake tools and that the cores had little other use.



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WHAT WAS THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION?


Around the middle of the 18th century, changes took place that greatly affected way that people lived and worked. The Industrial Revolution, as it is known, began in Britain and spread to Europe and then to the United States. New machines and inventions allowed goods to be produced more quickly, and huge factories were built, leading to the rapid growth of industrial towns. People began to move from the countryside to the towns in search of work, but they often ended up living in miserable conditions.



The Industrial Revolution marked a period of development in the latter half of the 18th century that transformed largely rural, agrarian societies in Europe and America into industrialized, urban ones.  Goods that had once been painstakingly crafted by hand started to be produced in mass quantities by machines in factories, thanks to the introduction of new machines and techniques in textiles, iron making and other industries.



Fueled by the game-changing use of steam power, the Industrial Revolution began in Britain and spread to the rest of the world, including the United States, by the 1830s and ‘40s. Modern historians often refer to this period as the First Industrial Revolution, to set it apart from a second period of industrialization that took place from the late 19th to early 20th centuries and saw rapid advances in the steel, electric and automobile industries.



Thanks in part to its damp climate, ideal for raising sheep, Britain had a long history of producing textiles like wool, linen and cotton. But prior to the Industrial Revolution, the British textile business was a true “cottage industry,” with the work performed in small workshops or even homes by individual spinners, weavers and dyers. Starting in the mid-18th century, innovations like the flying shuttle, the spinning jenny, the water frame and the power loom made weaving cloth and spinning yarn and thread much easier. Producing cloth became faster and required less time and far less human labor.



More efficient, mechanized production meant Britain’s new textile factories could meet the growing demand for cloth both at home and abroad, where the nation’s many overseas colonies provided a captive market for its goods. In addition to textiles, the British iron industry also adopted new innovations. 



Chief among the new techniques was the smelting of iron ore with coke (a material made by heating coal) instead of the traditional charcoal. This method was both cheaper and produced higher-quality material, enabling Britain’s iron and steel production to expand in response to demand created by the Napoleonic Wars (1803-15) and the later growth of the railroad industry. 



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WHAT IS MASS PRODUCTION?


Mass production is the manufacture of goods on a large scale. It aims to produce the maximum number of goods for the lowest possible cost. The use of production lines and automation allows the manufacture of near-identical, interchangeable parts. Modern techniques of mass production were pioneered by the American motor-car manufacturer Henry Ford. Production of the Ford Model T revolutionized the way that all manufacturing industries carried out their business.



Mass production refers to the production of large quantities of the same kind of product for a sustained or prolonged period of time. Generally speaking, the production quantity has to be in at least thousands (preferably millions) and is unaffected by daily fluctuations in sales. Television sets, computers, and automobiles are typical examples of products of mass production. Mass production is associated with a high demand rate for a product, and the manufacturing plant typically is dedicated to the production of a single type of product and its variations (e.g., production of two-door and four-door automobiles in the same plant). The machine tools involved are special purpose tools that produce only one type of part quickly and in large numbers and generally are arranged sequentially in a line and in the order in which manufacturing operations must take place (some variations, such as cellular layouts, also exist). The product flows through these machine tools until completed. The layout of machine tools is called a product layout.



Mass production start-up is done by operations. The outcome is a fully operating supply chain that can accept, assemble, and ship to meet customer demand (Inaba et al., 2008). Manufacturing processes are stabilized with respect to quality specifications and yield. Team members continuously adapt and maintain assembly lines to within defined manufacturing specifications. Meller and Deshazo (2001) highlight that members of the operations team continually update the value stream map, balance operations, and implement key enclosure improvement projects. The operations team reviews volume and timing changes from the most recent sales and operations plan.



Mass production, also called continuous production or flow production, involves the fabrication of a certain something in a specific way, in a specific shape, in a consistent manner. This something may be a stand-alone product—such as a Frisbee, or a rubber ducky, or a garbage can—or it may be a part—such as a screw, or a bolt, or a body panel—that is used to fabricate something else, or it may be an intermediate product that is used as a feedstock in the production of something else.



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WHAT IS A PRODUCTION LINE?


It is rare in modern manufacturing that something will he made from start to finish by one person. Most factories use a production line to manufacture their products. Each worker has a specific task in the production process — adding a particular component or operating a certain machine, for example. As each task is completed, the product passes along the line for the next stage of production. Some production lines, particularly in the motor industry, are entirely or partly automated. Robots play a large part in the assembly of many products.



An assembly line is a manufacturing process in which interchangeable parts are added to a product in a sequential manner to create an end product. In most cases, a manufacturing assembly line is a semi-automated system through which a product moves. At each station along the line some part of the production process takes place. The workers and machinery used to produce the item are stationary along the line and the product moves through the cycle, from start to finish.



Assembly line methods were originally introduced to increase factory productivity and efficiency. Advances in assembly line methods are made regularly as new and more efficient ways of achieving the goal of increased throughput (the number of products produced in a given period of time) are found. While assembly line methods apply primarily to manufacturing processes, business experts have also been known to apply these principles to other areas of business, from product development to management.



The introduction of the assembly line to American manufacturing floors in the early part of the twentieth century fundamentally transformed the character of production facilities and businesses throughout the nation. Thanks to the assembly line, production periods shortened, equipment costs accelerated, and labor and management alike endeavored to keep up with the changes. Today, using modern assembly line methods, manufacturing has become a highly refined process in which value is added to parts along the line. Increasingly, assembly line manufacturing is characterized by "concurrent processes"—multiple parallel activities that feed into a final assembly stage. These processes require sophisticated communications systems, material flow plans, and production schedules. The fact that the assembly line system is a single, large system means that failures at one point in the "line" cause slowdowns and repercussions from that point forward. Keeping the entire system running smoothly requires a great deal of coordination between the parts of the system.



Computer power has enabled tracking systems to become more sophisticated and this, in turn, has made it possible to reduce the costs associated with holding inventories. Just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing methods have been developed to reduce the cost of carrying parts and supplies as inventory. Under a JIT system, manufacturing plants carry only one or a few days' worth of inventory in the plant, relying on suppliers to provide parts and materials on an "as needed" basis. Future developments in this area may include suppliers establishing operations within the manufacturing facility itself or increased electronic links between manufacturers and suppliers to provide for a more efficient supply of materials and parts.



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WHAT IS MANUFACTURING?


Manufacturing forms the basis of what most people think of as "industry". It means using materials to make a product. There are often many stages of manufacturing between the raw material and the finished product. Many Indus, tries involving the assembly of component parts, which will have been made by any number of separate companies.



Manufacturing is the processing of raw material or parts into finished goods through the use of tools, human labor, machinery, and chemical processing. Large-scale manufacturing allows for the mass production of goods using assembly line processes and advanced technologies as core assets. Efficient manufacturing techniques enable manufacturers to take advantage of economies of scale, producing more units at a lower cost.



Manufacturing is a value-adding process allowing businesses to sell finished products at a higher cost over the value of the raw materials used. It is often reported on by the conference board, and well examined by economists.



Humans have historically sought ways to turn raw materials, such as ore, wood, and foodstuffs into finished products, such as metal goods, furniture, and processed foods. By refining and processing this raw material into something more useful, individuals and businesses have added value. This added value increased the price of finished products, rendering manufacturing a profitable endeavor. People began to specialize in the skills required to manufacture goods, while others provided funds to businesses to purchase tools and materials.



How products are manufactured has changed over time. The amount and type of labor required in manufacturing vary according to the type of product being produced. On one end of the spectrum, humans manufacture products by hand or through the use of basic tools using more traditional processes. This type of manufacturing is associated with decorative art, textile production, leatherwork, carpentry, and some metalwork. At the other end of the spectrum, manufacturers use mechanization to produce items on a more industrial scale. This type of manufacturing does not require as much manual manipulation of materials and is often associated with mass production.



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WHAT IS INDUSTRY?


Industry organizes the provision of things that people need to live their lives, from essential items such as food and water, to luxury goods like tolls and chocolate. Without industry, we would have to produce everything we need ourselves. Not all industries produce goods. Service industries offer a service — washing clothes, for example — in return for money.



Many people think of industry as the collective large-scale manufacturing of goods in well-organized plants with a high degree of automation and specialization. Although this is a common example of industry, it can also include other commercial activities that provide goods and services such as agriculture, transportation, hospitality, and many others.



Industry can be classified into different categories or levels for a better understanding of the different types and for making it easier to study. Although many school textbooks list only three levels, more advanced books classify industry into five levels. The terms for each level originate from Latin words referring to the numbers one to five.



Levels of Industry



Primary (first): Primary industries are those that extract or produce raw materials from which useful items can be made. Extraction of raw materials includes mining activities, forestry, and fishing. Agriculture is also considered a primary industry as it produces “raw materials” that require further processing for human use.



Secondary (second):



Secondary industries are those that change raw materials into usable products through processing and manufacturing. Bakeries that make flour into bread and factories that change metals and plastics into vehicles are examples of secondary industries. The term “value added” is sometimes applied to processed and manufactured items since the change from a raw material into a usable product has added value to the item. Tertiary (third):



Tertiary industries are those that provide essential services and support to allow other levels of industry to function. Often simply called service industries, this level includes transportation, finance, utilities, education, retail, housing, medical, and other services. Since primary and secondary levels of industry cannot function without these services, they are sometimes referred to as “spin-off” industries. Much of the city of Thompson, for example, is made up of tertiary or service industries to support the primary industry of mining.



Quaternary (fourth):



Quaternary industries are those for the creation and transfer of information, including research and training. Often called information industries, this level has seen dramatic growth as a result of advancements in technology and electronic display and transmission of information.



Quinary (fifth):



Quinary industries are those that control the industrial and government decision-making processes. This level includes industry executives and management and bureaucrats and elected officials in government. Policies and laws are made and implemented at this level.



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HOW ARE PEOPLE TRIED FOR CRIMES?


In many countries, someone accused of a serious crime will be tried in a court of law in front of a judge and jury. The jury is chosen at random from the general public and is usually made up of 12 people. The accused person — the defendant — will he represented by a lawyer, who will try to convince the jury that his or her client is not guilty. The prosecution lawyer will try to establish guilt. Judges are usually appointed by the state. They advise the jury and decide on any punishment necessary.



Most people feel very strongly about crime, and judges and magistrates play a vital role in the criminal justice system – especially when it comes to sentencing.



Criminal cases come to court after a decision has been made by, usually the Crown Prosecution Service, to prosecute someone for an alleged crime. In the vast majority of cases (over 95 per cent), magistrates hear the evidence and, as a panel, make a decision on guilt or innocence. For more serious cases a district judge (Magistrates’ Court) or a circuit judge in the Crown Court will hear the evidence, and in the case of the latter, this will involve a jury trial. Very serious criminal cases, such as murder and rape, may be heard by a High Court judge.



Both magistrates and judges have the power to imprison those convicted of a crime, if the offence is serious enough. But imprisonment is not the only solution; a judge or magistrate can order a community punishment, or put an individual under some sort of control order where their movements or activities are restricted. Although punishment is a key consideration when sentencing, judges will also have a mind as to how a particular sentence may reduce the chances of an individual re-offending.



Before a criminal trial starts the judge will familiarise himself or herself with the details of the case by reading the relevant case papers. These include the indictment which sets out the charges on which the defendant is to be tried, witness statements, exhibits and documentation on applications to be made by any party concerning the admissibility of evidence in the trial.



For jury trials in the Crown Court, the judge supervises the selection and swearing in of the jury, giving the jurors a direction about their role in the trial of deciding the facts and warning them not to discuss the case with anyone else.



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WHAT IS A REPUBLIC?


A republic is a country where the head of state (the leader) is a president elected by the people. The president appoints heads of administrative departments to help make decisions. Their decisions are discussed by an assembly of elected representatives, who can pass or block the laws. In the USA, the assembly is called Congress. Congress may suggest its own laws, which the president has the power to overrule. Most republics have a third level of government, a judiciary, which reviews the laws. The highest judiciary in the USA is the Supreme Court.



Republic, form of government in which a state is ruled by representatives of the citizen body. Modern republics are founded on the idea that sovereignty rests with the people, though who is included and excluded from the category of the people has varied across history. Because citizens do not govern the state themselves but through representatives, republics may be distinguished from direct democracy, though modern representative democracies are by and large republics. The term republic may also be applied to any form of government in which the head of state is not a hereditary monarch.



Example:



Prior to the 17th century, the term was used to designate any state, with the exception of tyrannical regimes. Derived from the Latin expression res publica (“the public thing”), the category of republic could encompass not only democratic states but also oligarchies, aristocracies, and monarchies. In Six Books of the Commonwealth (1576), his canonical study of sovereignty, the French political philosopher Jean Bodin thus offered a far-reaching definition of the republic: “the rightly ordered government of a number of families, and of those things which are their common concern, by a sovereign power.” Tyrannies were excluded from this definition, because their object is not the common good but the private benefit of a single individual.



During the 17th and 18th centuries, the meaning of republic shifted with the growing resistance to absolutist regimes and their upheaval in a series of wars and revolutions, from the Eighty years’ War1568–1648) to the American Revolution (1775–83) and the French Revolution (1787–89). Shaped by those events, the term republic came to designate a form of government in which the leader is periodically appointed under a constitution, in contrast to hereditary monarchies.



Despite its democratic implications, the term was claimed in the 20th century by states whose leadership enjoyed more power than most traditional monarchs, including military dictatorships such as the Republic of Chile under Augusto Pinochet and totalitarian regimes such as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.



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HOW ARE COUNTRIES GOVERNED?


In the modern world, most countries are led by governments. A government makes decisions on behalf of the population to organize public services, maintain law and order and manage the economy. It is also responsible for the defence of the country. A government raises taxes from its people to finance its activities. In a democracy, the people choose the government by voting for candidates in an election. An autocratic government is not elected by its people and is normally ruled by one person.



The most common type of government in the Western world is called democracy. In democracies, people in a country can vote during elections for representatives or political parties that they prefer. The people in democracies can elect representatives who will sit on legislatures such as the Parliament or Congress. Political parties are organizations of people with similar ideas about how a country or region should be governed. Different political parties have different ideas about how the government should handle different problems. Democracy is the government of the people, by the people and for the people.



However, many countries have forms of democracy which limit freedom of choice by the voters. One of the most common ways is to limit which parties who can for parliament, or limit the parties’ access to mass media such as television. Another way is to rig the voting system by removing votes from opposition voters and substituting votes for the party in power. Few countries are textbook democracies, and the differences between them has been much studied.



government is a group of people that have the power to rule in a territory, according to the law. This territory may be a country, a state or province within a country, or a region.




  • Governments make laws, rules, and regulations, collect taxes and print money.

  • Governments have systems of justice that list the acts or activities that are against the law and describe the punishments for breaking the law.

  • Governments have a police force to make sure people follow the laws.

  • Governments have diplomats who communicate with the governments of other countries by having meetings. Diplomats try to solve problems or disagreements between two countries, which can help countries to avoid war, make commercial agreements, and exchange cultural or social experiences and knowledge.

  • Governments have a military force such as an army that protects the country from terrorists and other major threats that attack or which can be used to attack and invade other countries.

  • The leader of a government and his or her advisors are called the administration.



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