Ravaged by political instability and famine, 1930s' southern China offered very little hope for a fatherless young boy gathering pig dung for fertilizer. Follow his odyssey as a "paper son" immigrant to Gum Shan ("Golden Mountain"⸺America) in pursuit of a better destiny for himself and his future family. Experience his challenges in assimilating to Western culture, his obstacles imposed by the Chinese Exclusion Act, and his seven-year separation from his new bride and daughter, left behind amidst World War II. Cheer him on as he reunites with and brings his wife "home to America" and builds an unimaginably successful business in the Bay Area of Northern California. Through this business, he not only provided abundance for his wife and their six children, but also sponsored more than fifty immigrant families in their own quests for a better future. Embrace the powerful human instinct of "paying it forward."

This book provides in-depth analyses on accounting methods of GDP, statistic calibers and comparative perspectives on Chinese GDP. Beginning with an exploration of international comparisons of GDP, the book introduces the theoretical backgrounds, data sources, algorithms of the exchange rate method and the purchasing power parity method and discusses the advantages, disadvantages, and the latest developments in the two methods. This book further elaborates on the reasons for the imperfections of the Chinese GDP data including limitations of current statistical techniques and the accounting system, as well as the relatively confusing statistics for the service industry. The authors then make suggestions for improvement. Finally, the authors emphasize that evaluation of a country’s economy and social development should not be solely limited to GDP, but should focus more on indicators of the comprehensive national power, national welfare, and the people’s livelihood. This book will be of interest to economists, China-watchers, and scholars of geopolitics.

If you want to make a difference, make a change or make your mark on the world but just don't know how to start, here's the answer. Realise your true potential, find your edge and make your ideas and dreams – however big or small – a reality with The Ripple Effect. Wherever you are in life and no matter what you want to achieve, little changes in your approach and small shifts in your mindset can create ripples that have the potential to make big things happen – for you, your organisation, your community and maybe even the world!

If you are willing to be weak with the weak, vulnerable with the vulnerable, and powerless with the powerless, you just might hear God say, “You can do something about that!” David F. Nixon, a church leader and passionate Gospel preacher for over four decades, urges the readers of this book to start doing instead of dreaming. He emphasizes that bystanders watch change happen; participants make it happen. Fortunately, for believers, God specializes in the impossible—and we get to be on His team. Find out how faith, obedience, and a willingness to act can help you: Assist those who are less fortunate; Change the world with seemingly small acts of kindness; Be a better parent to your children; Appreciate the value and significance of mission work. Throughout the book, the author shares his own experience as a missionary, explaining how he’s lived life to the fullest by putting on his dance shoes—the Gospel of peace--and clothing himself with his Jesus jersey— compassion—and doing the next right thing.

It's the 9th of August 1990. The sky is clear, and the view from Mount Agassiz East Ridge in Utah's High Uintah Mountains is stunning, several lake-filled basins were in full view. Suddenly the air explodes. A bolt of lightning struck Layne Oliver in the back of the head, hurtling him twenty feet down the two hundred-foot cliff face of Agassiz's East Ridge. Pebble in a Pond is about the ripples, "good and bad," created by the decisions we make, the actions we take, even the words we say. The day Layne was struck by the lightning bolt he went against his own rule of always following his gut instinct and didn't leave the area. His life seemed to have always been full of struggle. Reflecting back, he realized that each challenge prepared him for the next one, that there were always good things to learn from the bad experiences. Life is full of challenges; however, you gotta have a reason to survive that is more powerful than the reasons you may have to give up.