ECON 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Sunk Costs, Human Capital, Free Education

72 views4 pages

plumhippopotamus764

3 Nov 2017

School

Department

Course

Professor

For unlimited access to Class Notes, a Class+ subscription is required.

Document Summary

What is economics: making decisions about society & the individual, making society better with decisions, how to use the limited resources to make these decisions. Rational person: someone with well defined goals who tried to fulfill those goals as best as he or she can. Socialist economies: government supplies, high taxes, free education, healthcare, etc. Planned or centralized economies: government makes the decision & owns the property, plan is for equality, everyone has same standard of living. Efficiency: productive efficient ~ producing the most with the least cost, allocative efficiency ~ resources are being produced that consumers want most. Opportunity cost: what needs to be sacrificed in order to get more of another product or service. Implicit & explicit: money included i guess. Sunk cost: a cost that is beyond recovery at the moment a decision must be made. Growth: causes a shift ( of possibility) to right ppc (can produce more, can be sure through investment.

Related Questions

1. An economic system is

a. a set of institutional arrangements used to allocate scarce resources.

b. the movement of capital between countries.

c. how wealth is distributed and created in a country.

d. the natural resource available.

e. none of the above.

2. Contemporary economic change in Eastern Europe was preceded by

a. declining economic performance.

b. political change.

c. the withdrawal of Soviet backing.

d. all of the above.

3. Prior to the onset of economic reform in the late 1980s, the Soviet Union and most Eastern European countries allocated resources primarily by means of

a. Markets.

b. national economic plans.

c. neither a nor b.

d. both a and b.

4. Prices in the planned socialist systems were generally set by

a. supply and demand forces in the market.

b. the state.

c. external forces through international trade.

d. none of the above.

5. A major political change in the former planned socialist economies has been

a. the end of the political domination of Communist regimes.

b. the strengthening of the Communist regimes in combination with economic decentralization.

c. the full implementation of Western-style democracy.

d. all of the above.

6. The modern approach to defining economic systems

a. is based on the âismsâ of capitalism and socialism.

b. emphasizes resource allocation arrangements over incentive systems.

c. defines economic systems according to a number of characteristics.

d. states that defining economic systems is impossible.

e. none of the above.

7. The major attributes of an economic system are

a. its population and capital resources.

b. its level of GDP.

c. its level of GDP per capita.

d. its economic policies.

e. none of the above.

8. One very important characteristic of organizations in the comparing of economic systems is

a. the nature of economies of scale.

b. whether they exhibit capitalism or socialism.

c. the use of computers in the organization.

d. the level of centralization or decentralization of decisions.

e. none of the above.

9. A planned economy is one in which

a. subunits are coordinated by directives formulated by a superior agency.

b. subunits are not induced by appropriate incentives to carry out plan directives.

c. market allocation is combined with planned allocation.

d. a ministerial system prevails.

e. none of the above.

10. Ownership rights may affect economic outcomes because

a. public and private owners may have different time preferences.

b. public ownership may mean more attention to social rates of return.

c. the distribution of income is affected by ownership arrangements.

d. answers a and b are correct. e. answers a, b, and c are correct.

11. Which of the following would not be classified as an economic-environmental factor?

a. Natural resource endowments

b. The size of the economy

c. The nature of decision-making arrangements

d. The economyâs per capita income

e. The economyâs labor force

12. If one finds that the planned socialist economies all have higher growth rates than capitalist countries, this shows that

a. planned socialism necessarily produces higher growth than capitalism.

b. planned socialism may produce higher growth than capitalism, ceteris paribus.

c. capitalism may produce higher growth than planned socialism, ceteris paribus.

d. capitalism necessarily produces higher growth than planned socialism.

e. both b and c are correct.

13. National priorities tend to be

a. the same for countries that have similar economic systems.

b. the same for all countries.

c. different for different countries.

d. completely unknown.

e. none of the above.

14. Economic growth measures

a. the increase in nominal income.

b. the increase in the volume of output on either a total or a per capita basis.

c. the growth of efficiency.

d. the growth of productivity.

e. none of the above.

15. A measure of economic instability is

a. the unemployment rate.

b. the inflation rate.

c. the business cycle.

d. the Lorenz curve.

e. all except d are correct.

16. In the real world, most economic systems are in fact

a. centralized systems.

b. mixed systems.

c. market systems.

d. planned systems.

17. Although economic reform is difficult to characterize with precision, reform in planned socialist systems has typically been thought of as

a. revolutionary or abrupt in character.

b. occurring gradually over time.

c. successful in most cases.

d. none of the above.

18. In the United States, social security transfers as a percentage of the gross national product have

a. increased.

b. decreased.

c. remained the same.

d. fluctuated but with a significant downward trend.

19. In the industrialized capitalist systems, taxes as a percentage of the gross national product have

a. increased.

b. decreased slightly.

c. decreased greatly.

d. remained the same.

20. In contemporary capitalist economic reforms, privatization means

a. expansion of private ownership of the means of production.

b. improvement of planning methods.

c. implementation of worker management.

d. none of the above.

brownmoose882

Need help revising, and recommendation for a conclusion.

Throughout this paper is my understanding of what I have learned in class chapters 1-4, expressing my understanding and opinions. Economics is the study of how we deal with scarce resources. Microeconomics specially deals with business in the home country exclusively. This type of economics affects small businesses in the home country only. On the other hand, macroeconomics concerns our national welfare concerning trade and international business.

I believe that many things affect our economy on a microeconomics level. Things such as our understanding of our country in reflection to the world are very important. That is why we study ourselves before we study the macroeconomic principle of the world. Understanding ourselves is what microeconomics teaches us. Working from the inside out. The world is a place where there are differences in our wants and what we get. That is what makes items scarce. That is what positive economics is. Positive economics deals with what is and what we have. The other type of economics is called normative statements. This deals with what we should receive instead of what is and deserved to some extent. It's our scarce resources that determine our allocation of resources and how we use our resources and time. This is where opportunity costs come in, giving up something to do something. A successful business or country never ignores opportunity costs. We must ensure that we have a comparative advantage instead of the absolute advantage. Our resources must be used to achieve maximum output. Comparative is met when we have fewer opportunity costs to make some certain products than the other person or entity.

My initial understanding was scarcity was oil potentially running out, but we have so much of it that you can always find more with techniques such as fracking. Now it's obvious to me, one of our most scarce resources is time. You cannot avoid the 8,760 hours in a year. I understand that people have unlimited wants but limited resources. Everything has a cost and we must make a choice as we don't have unlimited farms, factories workers, etc. scarcity forces choices and this ties in with opportunity cost, for every gun made, a theft from the hungry is made. The opportunity cost not being used to feed the poor, but to make guns. And I find it easy to understand no one can have everything choices must be made on benefits. If I'm going to school, imp giving up making cash, as I'm giving up money for an education, I value education more. Scarcity is also related to the invisible hand. As it's an achievement that leads free markets and capitalism through competition for scarce resources.

My understanding of the invisible hand is a person neither intends to promote public interest and does not know how much he is promoting it. Only intending on his own gain. Without being his intention a person can be lead by the invisible hand to do good for society by pursuing one's own self-interest. Going into equity and efficiency the invisible hand does ensure both equity and efficiency. People work in their selfish ways to maximize profit while also contributing to the economy as a whole. It can also be argued that as the invisible hand wants to ensure efficiency, it cannot guarantee efficiency, because it can fail to produce an efficient allocation of resources, which in turn lead to a market failure. It can also be argued that it can't guarantee equity because not everyone gets a fair price. The way I like to remember efficiency is with a real-life example, like a reduction in the number of workers needed to produce a particular good for a particular amount. Equity refers to the ownership interest in an asset, for example, if a person owns a house with a market value of $800,000 and owes $100,000 on the mortgage leaving a $700,000 equity in the home.

It can be predicted that if the price of beef increases - ceteris paribus-the quantity of beef demanded by buys will decrease. In other words, if the price of beef increases, then the quantity of beef increases, then the quantity of beef demanded will decrease because all things have to be equal. In-class lecture thought me all other things remaining the same. Economists use ceteris paribus to determine the effect of a factor when all other factors have been held the same and helps simplify the study and get a more refined data set.

Economists deal with many issues that pertain to assuring that both a countries domestic output is efficient and that there is an effective trade balance. This means that there are a balance and limit on the amount of imports. Also, this means home production must be able to meet export demands. There are many factors that affect the production of goods and their effect on shifting the production possibilities frontier. This involves evaluating every detail including knowing the products and any close substitutes and compliments. It also involves knowing how an action or other external force will affect demand. This is called price elasticity; Substitutes are products that can replace any given product or service. An example of this would be Coke and Pepsi. The presence of substitutes affects price elasticity because if there are other options, then any change to the price or quality of the product will cause a shift of the demand curve. O course, price is a huge reason why the demand for a product decreases or increases yet it doesn't shift the curve because of the price only. This price change will cause a domino effect that will end with the shifting of the demand curve because it will cause an increase or decrease in demand of the substitute good if the price change is either lower or higher respectively. This price change serves as a catalyst that will change people's desire to spend more money on a more expensive product and that will instead choose to buy the substitute good for cheaper or buy more of the desired product. The change in the price of actual products will not shift the demand curve yet the change of the price of substitutes will because it serves to change people's purchasing behavior. On the other hand, compliments serve to boost demand when there is a decrease in price. The use of complementary goods is dependent upon another product. An example of this would be hot dogs and buns. If the price of hotdogs decreases then, conversely, the demand for hot dog buns will increase because of this change in price. In this scenario, the decrease in price will cause a positive shift in the demand curve because of people's desire and willingness to buy more buns. This is an example of a demand shifter. There are a few other demand shifters. The shifters of the demand curve are changes in expectations, disposable income, price of substitute goods and complements, tastes and preferences, and population size and composition. Changes in income affect the demand curve because if income is lower then people tend to save any extra income instead of wasting it. Disposable income is minimized and spending is lower. This also causes people to see a perceived value of things and distinguishing between what is necessary and what is a relative luxury. The lower the income, the higher the saving and avoidance to spend. An example of this would be if someone needs to buy some medication and it is relatively expensive, that doesn't mean that someone won't buy the medication just because it is expensive. It is necessary. Other factors that contribute to spending and demand are having a price ceiling and price floor. Having a price ceiling is a limit on the price of the product this is a government-imposed idea that is meant to protect consumers from unfair pricing and other conditions that may be malicious or obscure. This affects demand because if there is a price ceiling there is a limit on profit on a unit-to-unit basis. The other factor is the price floor. This price floor was created to encourage competition and affect consumers' willingness to pay because sometimes this new price may be higher than the original price. This causes a negative impact on a product that has a less than wanted perceived value. Many factors contribute to economic prosperity and certainly do help assure that information is analyzed and implemented into an economic and business plan.

limejellyfish231

""Please give answer with simple explaination""""Please give answer with simple explaination""""Please give answer with simple explaination""

1. In every society, choices must be made because resources are

a. Infinite, but economic want are finite

b. Finite, but economic wants are insatiable

c. Unlimited, but economic wants limited

d. Limited, and so are economic wants

2. Which question is an illustration of a microeconomic question

a. Is the quantity of wine purchased in one year dependent upon the price of wine?

b. Does government spending influence the total level of employment in the economy?

c. Is the purchasing power of the dollar higher or lower today than it was in 2000?

d. Is capitalism superior to socialism?

3. The purpose of the ceteris paribus assumption used in economic analysis is to :

a. Avoid making normative statements

b. A void the post hoc, ergo propter hoc fallacy

c. Make sure that all relevant factors are considered

d. Restrict the analysis to effect of a single economic factor

4. The profit motive is

a. Ineffective at producing consumer goods

b. Inherently beneficial to society if left alone to pursue its own self interests

c. Effective at producing goods when consumption is non-rival or non-excludable

d. Is often at odds with societies interests

5. In the system of central planning

a. There is repaid of the infrastructure

b. There is severe inflation in wholesale and retail prices

c. Economic growth leads to widespread unemployment among workers

d. The outputs of some industries become inputs for other industries

6. The market system communicates changes in supply and demand and elicits appropriate responses from businesses and resource suppliers. This is known as the:

a. Rationing function of prices

b. Guiding function of prices

c. Monetary function of prices

d. Circular flow of income

7. An increase in the quantity of automobiles supplied would be caused by which be caused by which of the following?

a. An increase in the demand for automobiles

b. A decrease in the demand for automobiles

c. Higher prices for steel

d. Higher prices for gasoline

8. All of the following would cause an increase in the demand for private airplanes at a given price, except a:

a. Decrease in interest rates

b. Increase in consumer incomes

c. Decrease in taxes on luxury goods

d. Decrease in the costs of constructing private airplanes

9. In modern economies of mass production,

a. Biological need motivates most consumption

b. The intrinsic value of goods and services motivates mass consumption

c. Affluence makes relative depravation meaningless

d. Invidious comparison motivates much of mass consumption

10. a more equal distribution of income in the United States would result in greater total consumer satisfaction. This statement is based on the concept that:

a. Income inequality is unfair

b. Income inequality is undemocratic

c. Income equality stimulates efficiency

d. Incomes are subject to diminishing marginal utility

11. While command systems suffer from incentive problems, market economies

a. Have no incentive problems

b. Suffer from incentive problems of their own

c. Tend to resolve all problems by their own dynamics

d. Have problems to the degree that there is government interference.

12. What economic concepts can be used to explain the reason that a new car purchased by a consumer and driven off a new car lot decrease in value almost immediately compared with the value of the same make and model of a car still on the new car lot?

a. Positive and negative externalities

b. Liability rules and lawsuits

c. The Coase theorem and moral hazard

d. Asymmetric information and adverse selection

13. Consider a situation where the U.S. Congress wants to place a special tax on private airplanes to increase tax revenue. This tax would only be effective in raising new tax revenues if the price elasticity of:

a. Supply is elastic

b. Supply is inelastic

c. Demand is elastic

d. Demand is inelastic

14. Under what circumstances would you expect economic profits to be zero in a particular industry?

a. During a recession

b. When there is little competition in the industry

c. When the industry is neither expanding nor contracting

d. When the demand for the product being produced is increasing

16. If economic resources are perfectly interchangeable between the two products shown on a production possibilities graph:

a. The economy will always be at full employment

b. More of one product can be produced without producing less fo the other product

c. The production possibilities curve would be straight line

d. The two products are of equal value to the economy

17. Opportunity cost is best defined as:

a. Marginal cost minis marginal benefit

b. The time spent on an economic activity

c. The value of the best foregone alternative

d. The money cost of an economic decision

18. All of the following would affect the position of a country production possibilities curve expect:

a. The quality of labor

b. The level of employment

c. The amount of the capital stock

d. Technological progress

19. The post hoc, ergo propter hoc fallacy consists of:

a. Using an example to a different point

b. Inferring causality from chronological sequence

c. Jumping to conclusions from an inadequate number of cases

d. Arguing for or against the person rather than the position being supported

20. Which is one of the five fundamental question that needs to be answered by economic system

a. What is the rate of unemployment?

b. Who will be the richest person in the economy?

c. What goods and services will be produced?

d. Why are the prices for goods and services so high?

21. The institution of private property is sustained over time by:

a. Competition

b. Bequests

c. Self-interest

d. Free enterprise

lilacmosquito322

ECON 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Sunk Costs, Human Capital, Free Education

Document Summary

Get access

Related Documents

ECON1130 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Allocative Efficiency, Marginal Cost, Planned Economy

ECON 1202 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Family Medicine, Human Capital, Financial Capital

ECON 1202 Study Guide - Final Guide: Deadweight Loss, Allocative Efficiency, Price Floor

Related Questions