Monday, January 25, 2016

Unit 1 notes

January 5, 2016



Macroeconomics vs. Microeconomics
  • Macroeconomics: the study of the economy as a whole. 
  • supply and demand
  • international trade
  • minimum wage
  • Microeconomics: the study of individual/specific units of the economy
  • market structure
  • business organizations

Positive Economics vs. Normative Economics
  • Positive economics:  attempts to describe the world as is
  • very descriptive
  • collects present facts
  • "what is"
  • Normative economics: attempts to prescribe how the world should be 
  • very prescriptive
  • "ought to be"/ "should be" (opinion)

Needs vs. Wants
  • Needs: basic requirements for survival
  • (food, water, shelter, clothing)
  • Wants:  are the desires of citizens 

Goods vs. Services
  • Goods: tangible commodities
    • Capital:  items used in the creation of other goods.
    • Consumer Goods: intended for final use by the consumer

Scarcity vs. Shortage
  • Scarcity: the most fundamental economic problem facing all societies
  • how to satisfy unlimited wants with limited resources (a choice)
  • Shortage: occurs when the quantity demanded is greater than the quantity supplied


Factors of Production
  • Land - national resources
  • Labor - work force
  • Capital
    • Human : humans (skills/training)
    • Physical : tools (machinery, trucks, buildings)
  • Entrepreneurship - innovative/ risk taker 

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