Реферат: Gold 2 Essay Research Paper Gold nothing

Since the prehistoric day when a man first picked a shining nugget of gold, this rare metal has been a lure. The first uses of gold may well have been practical. Primitive man could shape or work it with stones as his only tools. When Christopher Columbus reached the West Indies, he found natives fishing with gold hooks, similar hooks were in use in remote parts of Colombia n the 20th Century.

The Uses of Gold:

Gold, eternally attractive to man has found it s principal use as a store of value and has become an increasing important industrial metal. Because of its rarity and durability, gold tended to remain relatively stable in valuable and thus almost universally acceptable as money. In the past gold coins could circulate in the United States. They were withdrawn from circulation when a worldwide economics depression forced devaluation of the dollar. For 100 years before 1934, the United States had valued gold at $20.67 per fine troy ounce. In 1934 the price was increased to $35, in 1972 to $38, and in 1973 to $42.22.

With the last devaluation of the dollar, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reset the exchange rate for gold at $ 42.22 per ounce. It was then selling for about $65 on the free market. The IMF abolished the official price of gold effective April 1978, and by year-end it s value rose to $226.37. The market price, more than doubled in one year. By mid- January 1980 gold was sold at a record high of $880.

Sources:

It occurs in veins and alluvial deposits, and is often separated from rocks and other minerals by mining and panning operations. About two thirds of the world s gold output comes from South America, and about two thirds of the total U.S production comes from South Dakota and Nevada. The metal is recovered from its ores by cyaniding, amalgamating, and smelting processes. Refining is also frequently done by electrolysis. Gold occurs in seawater to the extent of 0.1 to 2 mg/ton, depending on the location where the sample is taken. As yet, no method has been found for recovering gold from seawater profitably.

Bibliography:

? Compton s Encyclopedia

? Academic American Encyclopedia

? Internet