StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Gasoline Prices - Research Paper Example

Cite this document
Summary
It is a basic principle of economics that if the demand increases, the price will rise. In the gasoline market this is seen during the summer months, when families plan vacations and the demand for fuel rises (Gasoline Prices). It is again seen in the winter as the demand for home heating fuel creates anther increase in price (Gasoline Prices)…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER97.5% of users find it useful
Gasoline Prices Research Paper
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Gasoline Prices"

The Weather's Effect on the Price of Gasoline It is a basic principle of economics that if the demand increases, the price will rise. In the gasoline market this is seen during the summer months, when families plan vacations and the demand for fuel rises (Gasoline Prices). It is again seen in the winter as the demand for home heating fuel creates anther increase in price (Gasoline Prices). However, there may also be shorter term influences that the weather has on the price of gas. It is natural to believe that when the weather is clear and sunny that people may want to travel, even for a short distance for the day.

This would create a temporary increase in demand that should be reflected in a rise in price. I hypothesize that bright sunny weather causes gas prices to increase. To conduct this study, data was gathered from the Seattle Queen Ann weather station available from the Weather Underground. The solar data that was used was the peak amount of solar energy during the day, which was used as an indicator of whether the day was sunny or cloudy. Gasoline prices were taken from Seattle Gas Prices, a web site that monitors and records the daily price of gas in Seattle.

For this study, a two-month period from November 15, 2008 to January 15, 2009 was used. The two variables were plotted using Microsoft Excel and is presented in a graph as Figure 1. A logarithmic trend line was used on the solar energy variable to average out the swings in the data. If the hypothesis is true, the trend line for gas prices should follow the trend line for solar energy.As can be seen in Figure 1, the relative gas price generally follows the logarithmic daily solar energy line from mid November to January 1, 2009.

During the first week of January, there is some divergence, and the hypothesis does not hold true during this period. However, during the second week of January both the solar energy and the gas prices level out and again begin to prove the hypothesis true. The study additionally plotted gas prices in Seattle against the price of crude oil, which should have a more direct effect. Here we would expect to see a significant correlation. However, as can be seen in Figure 2, there is almost no relationship between the price of crude oil and the price of gasoline.

The cost of gasoline is more significantly correlated to the amount of solar energy than to the price of crude oil.The study was problematic in the measuring of solar data. While gas prices were an average for the Seattle area, sunshine can be local and sporadic. Using the logarithmic trend line lessened that effect, but also diminished the immediacy of price changes when the sun came out. However, the study did indicate that as November and December began to have less sunlight, the price of gas also sloped downward.

Additional research would be needed to control other variables such as economic conditions. The data does indicate a need for further research in this area, and has shown that the amount of daily sunlight may be connected to the cost of gasoline.In conclusion, sunlight raises the cost of gasoline. While this study indicated that the price of gas reflected the trend in overall sunny days, more research is indicated to be able to determine the immediate effect of a sunny day. In addition, the study was only for a limited time window in one location.

More research is needed to verify the generalization of the hypothesis to other parts of the year and other locations. In any event, the study has shown that the weather is certainly a better indicator of gas prices than the price of crude oil. Figure 1 (Weather Underground; Seattle Gas Prices)Figure 2 (Energy Information Administration; Seattle Gas Prices) Works Cited"Cushing, OK WTI Spot Price FOB." Energy Information Administration. 2009. Energy Information Administration. 27 May 2009 . "Gasoline Prices.

" Gasoline: A Global Market to Meet Your Needs. Exxon Mobil. 27 May 2009 . "Historical price Charts." Seattle Gas Prices. 2009. 27 May 2009 . "History for KWASEATT116." Weather Underground. 2009. Weather Underground. 27 May 2009 .

Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Gasoline Prices Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words”, n.d.)
Gasoline Prices Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1523520-gasoline-prices-research-paper
(Gasoline Prices Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words)
Gasoline Prices Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1523520-gasoline-prices-research-paper.
“Gasoline Prices Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1523520-gasoline-prices-research-paper.
  • Cited: 4 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Gasoline Prices Research Paper

Building Standard Oil Company

Terry Balabuch 4-13-2011 M-W 10-12 Research Paper Building Standard Oil Company Building Standard Oil Company Rockefeller's father was a peddler who worked in many businesses and his mother was deeply religious.... Born in 1839, he started as an assistant bookkeeper after graduating from high school at 16 for fifteen cents a day....
5 Pages (1250 words) Research Paper

Hybrid Cars

In addition, a number of harmful smog pollutants emitted by the hybrid cars are half compared to the traditional gasoline powered automobiles....  This paper "Hybrid Cars" shows how a hybrid automobile progresses all over the world by posing less threat in terms of global warming, consuming less fuel, encouraging GDP growth, and will discuss the only disadvantage, namely, high purchase and maintenance costs....
6 Pages (1500 words) Research Paper

Elasticity of Demand

Price being the primary determinant, other factors includes disposable income level of the buyers for the particular product, prices of the substitute products and future trends in prices and changes in tastes and preferences of the consumers.... hellip; The supply side constraints may push up the prices.... The pharmaceutical companies taking advantage of the protection given under patents fix the prices at exorbitant levels for their products, the demand for which are inelastic in nature....
9 Pages (2250 words) Research Paper

Air Quality in the Twin Cities

The EPA also targeted the oil refineries who sold gasoline, requiring them to sell purer gasoline to higher risked areas – along with banning many types of gasoline that are leaded.... The effect of the 1990 Clean Air Act on the Twin Cities Name Institution Abstract Air Quality in the Twin Cities continues to be an issue with periodic reviews to ensure that the area is in attainment with the national standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency....
20 Pages (5000 words) Research Paper

Global Warming Solution: Ethanol as Gasoline Alternative

Rising oil prices and concerns regarding greenhouse gas emissions have triggered the need for alternative automotive fuels.... The paper is aimed at testing the feasibility of ethanol as the appropriate substitute for Oil and gasoline.... nbsp; The leader in the automobile industry fuel is gasoline without any doubt.... The fact that gasoline has ruled over the industry for generations, is evident with its global demand and consumption....
7 Pages (1750 words) Research Paper

Why People Choose Electric Cars

The author also takes a closer look at the advantages and disadvantages of different types of cars which include gasoline cars, electric cars, and hybrid cars.... Some of the most renowned types include electric car, gasoline cars, and hybrid cars.... Along with that, we will also take a closer look at the advantages and disadvantages of different types of cars which include gasoline cars, electric cars, and hybrid cars in order to get a better understanding of why people's choice shifts from one car to another type of car....
16 Pages (4000 words) Research Paper

Alternative Fuels

Ethanol, a vegetable by-product is an effective gasoline additive.... The most familiar kind, Ethanol, is a vegetable oil which is most often be mixed with gasoline and bio-diesel.... This paper “Alternative Fuels” will discuss the viability of various alternative fuels such as hydrogen, biofuels, solar, geothermal and nuclear sources which if put into practice on a wide scale would significantly reduce air pollution and perhaps circumvent the predicted effects....
6 Pages (1500 words) Research Paper

Green Motorsports

7 liters of gasoline in a season (Servino, 2007).... The focus in this paper is on to provide an in-depth discussion of how the burning of fossil fuels serves to aggravate already serious environmental issues, and then to relate this to the present situation surrounding NASCAR....
7 Pages (1750 words) Research Paper
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us