Great deprassion Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Great deprassion - Research Paper Example This saw most of the Americans loose their farms and homes which led to some of them deciding to escape from America using trains which crossed over their borders to the neighboring countries and other states within America which were not adversely affected by the depression. These people who migrated to other states and countries thought that they would find new jobs wherever they went but that was not to be as the depression had affected almost the whole of America and its neighbours.From the studies it was noted that America was the first country to recover from the Depression which started at around 1933 but the recovery was slowed down in the following two years but after the two years of slowing down the economy started to have a steady recovery in the year 1935.As the economy was recovering and doing well in the 1940 there came the World War 11 started and America was drawn into economic depression again which slowed down the process of recovery and that’s why it was ca me to be known as the Great Depression. In the history of U.S this depression which is said to have affected the whole world has come to be known as the ‘defining moment’. This depression made the federal government change the Way it was performing towards the economy. The government had to control all the business activities which the businessmen objected to in order to control the economy. Some of the drastic measures that the federal government took to recover the economy included laying down of the elderly citizens who were working thus giving them involuntary unemployment compensation. It as well changed the labor engagements between the employers and the employees through the Wagner Act which promoted the formation of unions to act as their arbitrator so that they could be fairly represented. But all this changes needed an increase in the federal government size. After the expansion of the federal government there were some economical changes which were experience d like in the case of paid citizens in the 1920s they increased in number as they approached the 1930s.The depression also changed the way people looked at the economy as many of them blamed lack of adequate demand which all the economists thought that the federal government should intervene and stabilize it through formulating good economic policies. Overtime many Economists have tried to demystify the cause of the depression and its reasons to affect other nations adversely than others but they have not come to a unanimous conclusion on what caused the depression. During this economic hardship America was very cautious with all the nations that it associated itself with economically. This was so because other European countries which had been hit by the depression had decided to operate within their borders this meant that there was less global trade which in turn would hurt the American economy due to its presence in most of these countries. The reason why some countries detached themselves from the global trade is that they blamed it for the emergence of the two world wars and they did not want to see the occurrence of such wars again. So as to resuscitate the global trade and promote the economy there was a dire need to form global monetary bodies so that they could assist in the supporting of the global trade. Due to this need then it led to the formation of two International Financial Institutions that would

Today's College Students Are Serious Minded When It Comes To Academics Essay

Today's College Students Are Serious Minded When It Comes To Academics - Essay Example In this topic the main problem says that today’s students are serious minded when it comes to academics. Many dictionaries define academics as a part of higher education. Hence it is strongly argued that academics does not relate to the education alone that the students receive within colleges, it can also be linked to other curricular activities that are being offered within an large educational institute such as a University. Author says, that nowadays academics become very challenging and it is difficult to obtain an admission in well renowned Universities because of very high concurention between applicants. Autor refers to the Ivy League. This hard competition leads to the shifted focus towards excessive education from students. However, students became far more serious in academics. Reduced job opportunities in the global market have also led to the aumentation of the student’s interest in the proceeding of further academics in universities/colleges. Author agrees with the statement that nowadays grades/ GPA has a great impact for every student with respect to scholarships and future employment prospects after graduation. Grades and GPA’s are associated with scholarships and jobs. If a student is unable to attain a prescribed level of GPA, he may not be entitled to scholarships offered within a university. These scholarships are considered really helpful because of the fact that education has become really expensive in recent years and there is a reduction in the number of people who can actually afford to get their children enrolled at the current surcharge offered by universities.

Penfolds Wine Porters Five and SWOT Analysis

Penfolds Wine Porters Five and SWOT Analysis Penfolds is one of the oldest Australian wine brands, founded in the mid-19th century by the English immigrant and medical doctor Rawson Penfold. Starting with wine growing for medical purposes and the production of fortified wines and brandies, the business has developed very quickly and by 1920, the company already had a 50 per cent market share in Australia. After World War II the company has changed its direction and started producing red table wines with the commencement of white production in 1990. In the same year, the company has been acquired by Southcorp, which made the company the biggest Australian owned wine producer as well as the fifth largest producer in the world. In 2005, Fosters acquired Southcorp. (Calkins, 2005). The analysis of the case study should address the issues that Penfolds is faces and provide recommendations for a marketing strategy to overcome these issues. 1.2 Economic background South Australia has the fifth largest population as well as the fifth largest economy in Australia. As for the wine segment of the economy, the wine cluster, South Australia is the largest producer and exporter of wines in Australia (Nipe et al., 2010). From the 1990s, the wine sector has been growing steadily due to the strong exports. Nevertheless, the rising number of competitors in the low-cost wine segment and the worldwide recession in the recent years challenges the industry. Simultaneously, dominant supermarket giants have gained enormous market power reducing the power of the industry. Furthermore, the changing preferences of consumers and a huge oversupply of wine grapes is a major problem for the wine industry. The oversupply in wine grapes has reduced prices, lowered the profit margins and even got many wine producers to leave the market (Dobie, 2012). The exports have dropped for e.g. in 2010-2011 to 747 million liters compared to 788 million liters in the year 2009 2010 (Figure 1). On the other hand, the demand for wine in the domestic Australian market has been growing steadily since over 20 years and domestic producers mainly supply the market. The imports of wine have risen by 4.2 %, to 67 million liters in 2010-2011 (Australian Bureau of Statistics. 2012). However, to be prepared for the future, the Australian wine sector has to undergo some changes, to stay competitive on the domestic market and to start growth on the export market again. Therefore, the sector has to deal more effectively with the oversupply of grapes and the quality of low cost wines in the key export markets, which has affected the reputation of Australian wines in a negative way (Dobie, 2012). 2. Analysis of the Case study 2.1 Porter five forces analysis The Porter five forces analysis was introduced by Michael E. Porter, which helps to identify and to analyse the competitiveness, profitability and the attractiveness of an Industry (Investopedia, 2012). Therefore, this model should be used for the Penfolds case study to assess the wine industry in Australia and to able to place give adequate recommendations on Penfolds future marketing strategy. Threat of Entry: The threat of entry for new wine producers in Australia is quite high, especially from large global liquor companies (Pugh Fletcher, 2002). Nevertheless, there are some barriers for new entrants in place, as for example the price of land and the high capital investments that are needed for the equipment. Another barrier is the time component, as newly planted wines need several years to grow mature and to be able to be brought to the market on a profit-making basis. This barrier makes the return on investment quite slow and it is only possible by big companies, who can afford waiting on their return (Adamo, 1997). Government regulations on alcohol, like licencing and taxes, existing distribution channels and already existing brands with high loyalty users, are also barriers for new entrants to the wine market in Australia. However, the high profit margins, low entrance costs due to a large number of substitutes will still attract some new producers, although only on a small scale (B lees at al., 2003) Industry Rivalry: The Australian wine industry is subject to high competition with a high number of competitors, which implies that also the price competition is very high. In Australia, there is also a high consolidation of the large brands, which are mainly bought by large global liquor companies, which helps these producers to use their power to undermine the small manufacturers (Pugh Fletcher, 2002) Threat of Substitutes: The threat of substitutes in the wine industry is very high as there is a high amount of other alcoholic beverages on the market. Nevertheless, wine is still the fastest growing segment in the alcohol market. Compared to the rest of the world, Australia has an advantage in the ability to produce innovative high quality wines and to attract new consumers on the export market, as wine can be consumed regardless its aging (Wood and Anderson, 2002). The biggest problem in the area of substitutes is the absence of brand loyalty in the wine industry as most of the beer producers can count on. Therefore, the high amount of other alcoholic products which are more often cheaper in price and an assumed rise of health concerns by the consumers create a high threat of substitutes for the wine industry. Bargaining power of buyers: The wine industrys buyers are categorized into two groups: the distributors and the retailers. Supermarkets, restaurants and clubs most likely represent the buyers of wine. Although this buyer group is able to change their offered brands quite easily, the change is offset by the acquisition of a large product palette from the seller of the company as it ensures lower prices and because the buyers have to be prepared on the various consumer preferences (Adamo, 1997). Nevertheless, the bargaining power of the buyers is relatively high, because the whole market is well crowded, and the securitization of the distribution is even more problematic for the producers when major liquor chains and large supermarkets dominate the major distribution channels in overseas markets (Pugh Fletcher, 2002). Bargaining power of suppliers: The suppliers in the wine industry are the wine growers with their vineyards. Their bargaining power is very low as the global market has been flooded with grapes from different regions of the world and mostly with cheaper grapes than they can be produced in Australia (Davis, 2005). Consequently, there is a very high competition on the grapes market and the oversupply of grapes has given the Australian wineries the opportunity to produce cheaper wine with high quality. (Wood and Anderson, 2002) Because of the absence of differentiation on the raw materials, wine producers have decreased the bargaining power of suppliers significantly. 2.2 SWOT analysis The following SWOT analysis reveals the strengths and weaknesses and well as the external factors for opportunities and threats for Penfolds, which has a major problem as stated in the Case study in the shrinking of the profit and the poor financial return over the last years. Strengths: Penfolds strength is its long lasted reputation for the high standard quality red wine, with a high range of vintage red wines that are very popular among its consumers and which gives the company an overall good reputation for its wine making (Veseth. 2007). The ultra-premium wines are a result of a long lasting tradition of allowing their winemakers to experiment and to research new vines and new wine styles. Moreover, the success in the premium segment is the outcome of a unique style of multi-regional vineyard blending, which means that the development of Penfolds wines is the blending of different wines from different vineyards across South Australia (Caillard, 2007). The company invented a so-called star-system to classify the vineyards and the grape quality of the vineyards, which helps to identify the best blend for a certain category of wine. This system also ensured to solve the principal agent problem, by handing out bonuses to wine growers in line with the quality of thei r grapes (star system) (Wood Andersen. 2002). This unique blending, gives the winemakers more opportunities to broaden the companys portfolio and to differentiate the wines into different categories of wine quality and price. This ensures a high standard of quality and provides the company with an overall market advantage (Caillard, 2007). Weaknesses: The weakness of the Penfolds Company is the affordable and cheap wine section. Especially the cheap wine segment has a poor quality in taste (Calkins, 2005). This triggers the reputation of the whole company into a negative direction and damages the reputation especially in the overseas market, which affects the exports of the company. Moreover, the high competition in the cheap wine segment is reducing the profit margin of the company. The premium red wine section has also weakened in recent years, as it has not the same cachet as it used to have among the premium wine producers (Caillard, 2007) Opportunities: As Penfolds wine portfolio is much focused on the red wines, the opportunities that the company has for the future is to broaden their white wine and sparkling wine portfolio. This would ensure a broader consumer base. This portfolio enlargement would also mean to improve the wine making techniques for the white and sparkling wine. However, not only the white and sparkling wine section needs improvement, but also the winemaking techniques for red wine should be improved to ensure the high quality standard in the premium segment of the wine industry (Wood Andersen, 2002). The biggest opportunity that the company faces at the moment is the market expansion into China. Especially the premium and ultra-premium wine market is well demanded in China and Penfolds already makes the lion share in this market segment (Shaw, 2012). Therefore, the opportunity lies in the expansion of this market and also to build up reputation in one of the biggest economies in the world. The built-up reputatio n could help in the future to export not only the premium wines but also the cheap and affordable wines into China. Threats: The probably biggest threat to Penfolds is the very high competitiveness in the South Australian wine regions, especially in Riverland where low quality wine is produced. Recession makes the ultra-premium wines less affordable and the high Australian dollar makes exports less competitive (Barrett, 2011). Another threat is the current structural oversupply of wine in Australia and therefore low prices, which makes the brand less attractive with its high price level (due to brand name) (Dobie, 2012). The changing consumer preferences can also be a threat to the company especially if it does not react with a broadening of their portfolio, especially in the cheap wine segment. 3. Issues and Problems of Penfolds in the market Derived from the Porters five forces and SWOT analysis it can be said that Penfolds major problems and issues in the Australian and the global market is its segmentation of wine, the world economy and the consumer preferences change. As seen in the SWOT analysis one weakness of the company is the poor quality and the easy substitution of bulk wine, which is due to the fact that the wine demand is relatively elastic. Especially in times of economic instability and a worldwide recession with falling incomes, people tend to switch their preferences towards cheaper products and substitutes for the more expensive premium wines. Penfolds portfolio is now targeted more towards the high-income consumers who can afford a bottle of red wine for $30 or more. The great focus on the US and UK export markets are affected mainly by the worldwide recession and therefore by the change of the consumer preferences in these export markets. In addition, there seems to be a problem with their selection an d grading star system, which leads to bad opinions about the quality of the wine. As mentioned in the SWOT analysis the cachet of some red wine series seem to have lost the cachet of the older wine series. There is no other conclusion to this problem than that the company lacks in their selection process for their wine blends. 4 Alternative Evaluation and Recommendations Concluding the issues and problems of the company, there can be made some recommendations towards a future marketing strategy of the company. First, the company has to broaden their wine portfolio significantly. This recommendation is probably the least problematic as the company already is in the market and just needs to focus in another direction. Another recommendation for Penfolds would be a high promotion of their premium wines in life style magazines or magazines in the business class of airlines. Further, they should focus on a one on one marketing strategy with their current clients. All this would ensure that the company would gain more customers, especially those that are willing to pay more for a bottle of wine. For the premium and ultra-premium wines, the company should try to reduce the supply to the market, so that their product will not become a usual commodity. The prices for the premium wines should also be kept high to ensure the high premium range of the brand. Als o DR should be highly supported from the organization to secure a constant grow of new innovations and technologies. Higher advanced innovations and techniques can help Penfolds in the future to achieve higher margins and better reactions to changing weather conditions without the scarifying the quality of the wine/grapes. In my opinion this strategy of a promotion and DR mix is the most valuable, as it attracts new customers and enhances the wine quality without spending too much of their resources. The problem of Penfolds with the affordable and bulk wine market is that it is not the focus of the company. In order to gain market shares in this segment the company should try to acquire a rival that has a good reputation among the cheap wine segment. In this way, Penfolds would gain more knowledge about this segment and would also have one competitor less. Further, Penfolds would not need to print their brand name (which stands for premium wines) on a bottle of cheap table wine (Halliday, 2012). However, the profit would be Penfolds. By acquiring another rival the company would be also able to be more focused on only one segment of the market and therefore ensure better quality of the high premium wines. This option of a strategy will be the most expensive and probably the least likely, as it needs too much resources in times of a recession and financial problems of the company. Therefore, in my opinion the best strategy to enhance profits and to resolve the issues that Penfolds has is to have a mix of different promotions coupled with a DR enhancement strategy and the exclusion of their bulk wine segment under the brand name of Penfolds.

Adaptive I :: essays research papers

Adaptive I Project Contents: Student Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.2 Comments of Student Relating to Ability†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦3 Comments of Student’s Parent Relating to Ability†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..4 Pre- Assessment and Interpretation†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.5 & 6 Work and Improvement (Case Material)†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..8 Post Assessment and Interpretation†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..10 & 11 Students Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The student under review is Evan. He is in sixth grade and is an active student that is friendly, energetic, and easy to get along with. He is a very well behaved student that is quick to repair any wrong doing he has done. Evan is not on an Individual Education Plan (IEP) or is he a Title 1 student. As mentioned before, Evan does very well in his school subjects but gets easily frustrated with math. This is the subject area of improvement for this student. Evan had gotten all A’s in math and show very high competence in the subject until third grade. In third grade Evan took the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) and scored below average in the area of math. After this test, but not as a result of, Evan’s grades in math progressively got worse. In forth grade Evan’s grades went from A’s to C’s by the end of the year. This was also the first year that Evan’s teacher made a comment on his report card regarding his performance in math. In fifth grade scored low on his recall of math concepts and applied concepts. His grades stayed at B’s and C’s but he failed to meet the Clarkston School District math requirements for fifth grade. As observed this year, Evan’s performance has continued on its path of low to no improvement. This year fractions and decimals have been integrated into his schema and have furthered his confusion of math. As a result of the current confusion, I will try to improve his understanding of decimals and fractions as a pretest determines. Student Relating to Ability   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When asked if he had liked math before forth grade, Evan responded with a yes. He said that his teacher didn’t like the fact that he wasn’t listening and stopped giving him directions. When it came to math he didn’t know what was going on. He said that the addition and subtraction was easy but the multiplication was difficult. He did not enjoy math any more because it had too much sitting work. At this point he asked, â€Å"Why can’t math be more like science. We do a lot of experiments in science and I get to walk around.

Can Doctors Go on Strike?

CAN DOCTORS GO ON STRIKE? The answer is simply yes since strike is a legitimate action to frown on unfavorable conditions. Strike action is legal and any institution that has legal rights can embark on strike when it deems fit by the abiding conditions. If doctors qualify under this democratic legitimacy, then under which conditions should doctors be on strike? * WHY DOCTORS GO ON STRIKE? From our history as Ghanaians, we have seen doctors going on strike for salary increment.These urgencies may be as result of the following: From global perspective, the medical profession is indeed one of the various professions that carry dignity and every doctor has this rooted deep in his or her mind. The cost that involves becoming a medical doctor is less talked about. It really cost. For that matter many doctors don't see it reasonable to leave on a meager salary. Another point might be the gravity of their services to patients. Many doctors do heart transplanting, fix bones, treat cancer, kid ney, liver etc.These works are very delicate and any careless attempt will end up paralyzing or resulting in the death of the patient. They are called deep in the night to respond to emergencies and many other emergency engagements. Doctors have also argued that the risky nature of their profession demands a higher salary. Sometimes they are prone to contagious diseases like flu, HIV/AID's, TB, and over 200 more contagious deadly diseases. For that matter a high salary must be given to encourage or motivate them. All these points are reasonable though debatable. But often when we talk of risky professions, medical sector is the least talked about.We talk about areas like the military, veterinary, police, fire service; prisons etc. are all coupled with high risk and are sectors that need great attention. * POSSIBLE REASONS AGAINST DOCTORS STRIKE ACTION Even though some international researches have proven that, doctors' strike increases mortality rate, nevertheless, we can not overlo ok to project consequences that comes as a result of doctors' strike. 1. Untimely death of patients 2. Prolongation of suffering of patients in severe cases 3. Breach of international code of ethics that doctors themselves have sworn into 4. Put pressure on government . Sensitizes other equally rated professions to follow suite 6. The public might see them as greedy other than selfless civil servants 7. Not ethical in its nature since it involves humans' life 8. Their profession is no greater than others, etc. * THE QUESTION OF ETHICS In most cases, doctors' strike has attracted many protests because the public think they are risking the lives of millions and however not ethical. Can ethics be applied to doctors' strike? First, every doctor is already bonded by code of ethics. Each doctor before taking up the post swears to abide by a code of ethics.One of the lines in the international code of ethics for doctors reads like this, â€Å"I will maintain the utmost respect for human l ife from its beginning even under threat and I will not use my medical knowledge contrary to the laws of humanity;† The international code of ethics further states, â€Å"A physician shall not permit motives of profit to influence the free and independent exercise of professional judgment on behalf of patients. † To the doctor, the life of the patient comes first to all other things. Doctors are also legally required to attend to patients and offer to them an undivided medical attention.This legality exists between the doctor and the government. Though the patient has intent of receiving an excellent care and treatment after paying his NHIS, in cases of strike, the patient has no legal right to sue the doctor in question, unless a private or personal doctor. He can only sue the NHIS or Ministry of Health. The issues of ethics comes into play when we talk of issues of good and evil, live and death, justice and crime, etc. Since the doctors’ primary job is to save lives and that a lost life cannot be revived, it therefore becomes delicate for the doctor when taking any action that will obliterate these ethics.Should a patient loss his or her life as a result of doctors' strike, who would be blamed? The doctor or the government? * THE ISSUE OF EGOTISM When we are talking of labor strike, we must consider the consequential results also. This is what we call utilitarianism. From Wikipedia, â€Å"Utilitarianism is an ethical theory holding that the proper course of action is the one that maximizes the overall â€Å"good† of the greatest number of individuals. It is thus a form of consequentialism, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determined by its resulting outcome. When doctors think an action is right, then it must have a national impact as well. I am yet to offer a round of applause for doctors embarking on a strike action to improve quality health care products, laboratory equipment, enough patient wards, digital and IT in fusion into the health practice, to stop nurses' and medical personnel's migration and others that bring a unanimous good for the majority of the people in the country. Strike actions under such circumstances are justifiable and must be given an immediate support and attention.

Discuss the Effect of Islam upon West Africa Essay

Change Over Time Essay Assignment #1The camel, with its ability to travel long distances without water and carry heavy loads, facilitated trans-Saharan communication. During the seventh and eighth centuries CE, Islamic conquerors had added North Africa to the dar al-Islam. By the end of the eighth century CE, Muslim merchants had crossed the Sahara and initiated commercial relations with Sub-Saharan West Africa and by the beginning of the second millennium, Islam had become entrenched in West African life. Islam dramatically changed West Africa culturally, politically, and economically in the time period between 1000 CE and 1750 CE, but many staples of West African society remained the same. Economically, Islam ushered a new era of economic prosperity into West Africa. The adoption of Islam by West African states provided them with common ground upon which states such as Mali greatly expanded their gold trade to encompass Arab and Mediterranean nations. Established Muslim trade routes facilitated the huge increase in the volume of African trade. Commercial cities sprung up across West Africa, with commerce increasing Timbuktu’s population to 100,000. In the twelfth century, Muslim merchants introduced cotton, rice, and citrus fruits to West Africa; by the sixteenth century cotton was the main textile produced in West Africa. European demand for cotton textiles ensured that West Africa would remain economically prosperous. Islamic merchants expanded the African slave trade to a continental level, providing Europeans with a framework upon which to build the catastrophic Atlantic slave trade, replacing small scale tribal slavery with huge state economies built entirely around capturing slaves and selling them to foreign nations. However, despite these huge changes in economic methods and volume, West African states relied heavily upon trade as the principle form of economic support throughout periods of Islamic influence. The increase in trade with Islamic merchants between 1000 and 1750 led to the permeation of Islamic culture among West African peoples. Islamic rulers built large mosques and universities where people could learn about Islam, as well as other areas of knowledge. These universities spread literacy within West African society. Islam was generally tolerant of traditional values, such as polygamy. This allowed it greater popularity than  Christianity, and decreased resistance to conversion. Islam was not forced upon citizens by their kings, but rather was voluntarily encouraged. Despite this, many people adopted Islam, especially those who interacted with Muslim merchants. However, many of those who adopted Islam did not adopt Islam in its original form, but rather combined it with traditional religious beliefs to create a syncretic religion. There was much social turmoil among purists, such as the Fulani, and those who practiced syncretic Islam. Despite the large Islamic influence in the area, many chose not to adopt a syncretic faith and rather kept their traditional beliefs. The integration of Islamic culture into West Africa, as well as the economic prosperity that Islamic trade brought West Africa, led to the creation of large centralized states. As opposed to the small kingdoms, such as the kingdom of Ghana, that the first Islamic merchants encountered in West Africa, by the fifteenth century two large centralized empires had emerged. Islamic influence played a large part in the creation of these large empires. Firstly, the revenue created by integration of West Africa into Islamic trade allowed West African rulers to create and support large standing armies. These armies ensured that these empires could protect their peoples and sources of income, as well as exert their influence. Secondly, Islamic law, known as Shari’a, introduced to West Africa allowed for unified rule. Previously, varying tribal laws had caused disorder and fragmentation, as well as discontent. Islamic law facilitated and demanded the creation of large centralized empires. However, Islam itself did not necessarily become the exclusive religion of these empires; many, indeed most, citizens of these empires clung to and practiced their traditional pagan religious beliefs. Following the collapse of these two empires, West African political structure returned to the small regional kingdoms that had been West African norm before Muslim merchants crossed the Sahara. Overall, the Islam greatly, sometimes even completely, changed cultural, political, and economic environments in West Africa between 1000 CE and 1750 CE. Examples of this change include the introduction of centralized kingdoms, trans-Saharan trade, and Muslim values. Despite this great change, many elements of West African society, such as popular religion, dependence  on trade, and basic values remained the same despite Islamic influence up through 1750 CE. Near the end of that period, Africa began to be colonized by European nations, and fell under European influence.