Big Mac

Big Mac Price & Salary Comparison

This bar chart shows how long a cleaner in McDonalds has to work before he can afford to purchase a Big Mac, in eleven Asia/Pacific countries. It also shows the actual cost of a Big Mac, in US$, in those countries.

The most striking thing about this chart is that the workers in the South Asian countries of Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka have to work the longest hours in order to be able to buy a Big Mac . Workers in Pakistan have to work 14 hours, followed by India, 9, and Sri Lanka 6. The workers in the richest countries, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong, as you would expect, have to work the shortest time, each less than one hour. One surprising fact is that workers in a very poor country, the Philippines, have to work just over two hours in order to buy a Big Mac. The actual cost of a Big Mac is highest in South Korea, followed by Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The most obvious point to note is that workers in the poorer countries have to work longer hours than those in the richer countries in order to purchase a Big Mac.

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Top 10 date-producing countries

The bar graph shows date production in tonnes for the world's top producers in 2001. Ten countries in the Gulf region and North Africa are featured.

First, Egypt was responsible for the lion's share of production, with over a million tonnes, but Iran was a close second, with almost 0.9 million. Following them came the UAE and Saudi Arabia, rivalling each other with about 740,000 tonnes each. Pakistan and Iraq, with outputs of approximately 630,000, were not far behind. The rest of the nations, however, were far less productive. Algeria supplied the world with nearly 400,000 tonnes and Oman around quarter of a million. In contrast, the harvests in Libya and Sudan were far less plentiful, yielding under 0.2 million each.

In summary, date production was most abundant in Egypt and Iran. In contrast, the countries with the smallest output were Libya and Sudan.

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Valentine's Day

Valentine’s day

These two pie charts show the types of gifts that man and women in the USA buy for each other on 14th February, Valentine’s day.

The most popular gifts bought by both men and women are cards, flowers and candy. Cards are the most popular gift for both genders. More men than women buy flowers, 16% compared to 11%, while more women, 27%, buy cards than men, 18%. Rather surprisingly, more women, around a fifth, buy candy for men than vice versa. Around 10% of both men and women purchase jewelry/jewellery. Over twice as many women than men buy perfume or cologne. Men spend more than women on both lingerie and spa/personal care, which is probably what you’d expect.

In conclusion, the types of gifts bought for each other by men and women in the USA are more or less what you’d expect. The actual percentages, however, are rather more surprising; for example, the fact that a greater percentage of women buy candy and perfume/cologne.

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buy: simple present
bought: simple present passive
ways of comparing/contrasting

World population 1750-2150.

Population Growth 1750 to 2150.

The line graph shows population growth in richer and poorer countries between 1750 and 2150. It is based on the United Nations World Population Prospects, the 1998 Revision, and estimates by the Population Reference Bureau.

In 1750 the total world population was less than one billion and the population of less developed countries was three or four times greater than that of more developed countries. By 2000 the total figure was 6.1 billion, but only about 1 billion were in the more developed countries. The estimate is that by 2150 the total world population will be well over 10 billion but the total for the more developed countries will remain at about one billion and may even fall slightly.

It is estimated that the total world population will increase dramatically over the next 150 years but that this growth will be entirely in the less developed countries .

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Population growth in the future.

The chart shows three possible scenarios for the future of world population growth, from 2000 to 2050. It indicates what will likely happen by 2050 if we have high, medium or low fertility rates.

If the trend worldwide is towards a high fertility rate, 2.5 children per woman, we can expect a world population of about 10.7 billion. The current rate in India is 2.72 and this is important because the Indian population is over 1 billion. Similarly the rate in Arab countries is high, for example 2.42 here in the UAE and 2.66 in Egypt. If, however, we see medium fertility, as in the USA, 2.05, the world figure in 2050 will be around 8.9 billion. With low fertility, as in Europe (Spain 1.31, the UK 1.66) and Japan, 1.21, the figure will be about 7.3 billion.

If current rates in China, 1.79, and India, the two most populous countries, continue, we’ll probably see a figure of close to 10 billion by 2050. With a low fertility rate, the figure will be nearer 7 billion and , significantly, declining.

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