UNIT 1 Flashcards
CHAPTER 1 START
what is economics?
a social science concerned with making optimal choices under conditions of scarcity
what is a utility?
the pleasure, happiness, or satisfaction from obtaining a good or service
what makes microeconomics different than macroeconomics?
microeconomics is a discipline that studies the decision-making process of customers, workers, households, and business firms on an individual basis rather than as aggregates
our income comes in what kind of forms?
comes in the form of wages, interest, rent, profit, and even government programs
what is a budget line?
A curve showing various combinations of two products a consumer can purchase with a specific amount of income.
Which of the following can be stated as potentially true about any economy?
Its current choice of position on its production possibilities curve helps determine the curve’s future location.
what is the economic perspective?
it is the way economists view the world through scarcity, choice, opportunity cost of economic decisions, use of utility, and marginal analysis; weighing marginal benefits to marginal costs.
what is the goal of rational self-interest?
to maximize utility or satisfaction. Firms are rational when they make choices about which products to produce in an attempt to maximize thier profits
what is the scientific method?
the procedure for the systematic pursuit of knowledge involving the observation of facts and the formulation of testing hypotheses to obtain theories, principles, and laws
what are economic principles?
generalizations about ecnomic behavior that are true for the average person. Of these include the “ceteris paribus,” the assumption that factors other than those considered did not change
what is the difference between positive and normative economics?
positive economics are economic statements that are factual while normative involves value judgments, subjective.
what is the economizing problem?
limited income and unlimited wants
what is the budget line?
it is used to illustrate the greatest combinations of two good that can be purchased with a certain amount of income
know the four factors of production
what are the functions of entrepreneurs?
- take initiative
- make strategic business decisions
- innovate
- take risk
what is the purpose of the production possibilities model?
it is an economic model that shows different combinations of good and services that society can produce in a fully employed, assuming a fixed availability of supplies of resources and fixed technology. When production is inside the curve, it means that the economy is inefficient
why is the production possibilities curve a curve?
the law of increasing opportunity costs is the reason the PPC is a curve. As more of a particular good is produced, its marginal opportunity costs increase
what happens in international trade?
enables countires to specialize in the production of goods which they produce more efficiently than other countries, resources are allocated more efficiently
CHAPTER 3 START
a change in demand is represented by a _
shift of the demand curve
change in quantity demanded is represented by a _
movement along the demand curve
The ability of the competitive forces of supply and demand to establish a price at which selling and buying decisions are consistent is called _
the rationing function of prices
The effects on equilibrium price and quantity due to an increase in supply and a simultaneous decrease in demand are shown by __ (caused me confusion)
a decrease in equilibrium price and an indeterminate change in equilibrium quantity
what is a market?
interaction between buyers and sellers that can be local, national, and international
where is the price discovered?
in the interactions between buyers and sellers
explain the law of demand
an inverse relationship exists between price and quantity demanded. As the price falls, the quantity demanded rises, and as prices rise, the quantity demanded falls