Vocab for social studies

amendment

changes in, or additions to, a constitution; must be proposed by a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress or by a convention called by Congress at the request of two-thirds of the state legislatures; ratified by approval of three-fourths of the states

Articles of Confederation

the first constitution of the United States (1781); created a weak national government; replaced in 1789 by the Constitution of the United States

authority

the power to influence or command thought, opinion, or behavior

balance of trade

the difference between the total amount of exports and imports for a country in one year

barter

the direct exchange of one good or service for another without the use of money

B.C.E and C.E

Before the Common Era (formerly known as B.C.) and Common Era (formerly known as A.D.)

bicameral

a legislative body composed of two houses

Bill of Rights

the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution; ratified in 1791; limits governmental power and protects basic rights and liberties of individuals

bureaucracy

an administrative organization that implements government policies

business cycle

the periods of recession and expansion that an economy goes through because production does not increase continuously over time

cabinet

secretaries, or chief administrators, of the major departments of the federal government; appointed by the president with the consent of the Senate

capital

manufactured resources such as tools, machinery, and buildings that are used in the production of other goods and services; sometimes called real capital

capital gains tax

money paid to the federal government out of profits from the sale of land, buildings, stocks, and other capital assets

capitalism

an economic system that is based on the private ownership of property and the resources of production

case study

an in-depth examination of an issue

chart

a visual aid that lists information in orderly rows and columns with easily readable headings and captions; also called a table

checks and balances

the Constitutional mechanisms that authorize each branch of government to share powers with the other branches and thereby check their activities

citizen

a member of a political society who owes allegiance to a government and is entitled to its protection

civil rights

the protections and privileges of personal liberty given to all U.S. citizens by the Constitution and Bill of Rights

civilization

an advanced state of a society possessing historical and cultural unity

command economy

an economic system in which the means of production are publicly owned and economic activity is controlled by the government, which assigns quantitative production goals and gives raw materials to productive enterprises

common or public good

to the benefit, or in the interest, of a politically organized society as a whole

communism

a political and economic system in which factors of production are collectively owned and directed by the state

compare

to look for ways in which two things are similar

competitive behavior

when a business or individual acts in a self-interested way intending to increase wealth or personal gain

comprehend

to understand what something means

concurrent powers

powers that may be exercised by both the federal and state governments

confederate

of, or pertaining to, a group of states more or less permanently united for common purposes

conservatism

a general preference for the existing order of society and an opposition to all efforts to bring about rapid or fundamental change in that order

consumer

a person or organization that purchases or uses a product or service

consumer sovereignty

the power consumers have in directing market economies because goods and services are produced and exchanged mostly to satisfy consumer wants

contrast

to look for ways in which two things are different

criminal justice

the branch of law that deals with disputes or actions involving criminal penalties; regulates the conduct of individuals, defines crimes, and provides punishment for criminal acts

criteria

standards or reference points used to judge the worth or value of something

cultural diffusion

the adoption of an aspect (or aspects) of another group’s culture, such as the spread of the English language

cultural landscape

the visual outcome of humans living in a place

culture

the learned behavior of people, such as belief systems and languages, social relations, institutions, organizations, and material goods such as food, clothing, buildings, and technology

cyclical unemployment

unemployment caused by a recession or other unstable economic times

deflation

a general lowering of prices; the opposite of inflation

delegated powers

powers granted to the national government under the Constitution, as enumerated in Articles I, II and III

demand

how much a consumer is willing and able to buy at each possible price

democracy

the practice of the principle of equality of rights, opportunity, and treatment

demographics

the statistical data of a population

developing nation

a country with low levels of well-being, as measured by economic, social, and technological sophistication

dictatorship

a system of government in which one person has absolute authority, including complete domination of the citizens’ lives; the most basic of citizens’ rights are taken away in order to guarantee the leader’s hold on power

distribution

the arrangement of items over an area

distributive system

an economic system in which every member in a society receives as much as he or she needs

due process of law

the right of every citizen to be protected against arbitrary action by government

economic growth

an increase in an economy’s ability to produce goods and services, which brings about a rise in standards of living

economics

the study of the process of producing and distributing a good and how it relates to buying, selling, and making a profit in a society

ecosystem

the interaction of all living organisms with each other and with the physical environment

emigration

the process of leaving a country (or other political unit) to live in another country

entrepreneur

a person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture

environment

everything near and on Earth’s surface

Equal Protection Clause

The Fourteenth Amendment provision that prohibits states from denying equal protection of the laws to all people; prohibits discrimination against individuals in an arbitrary manner, such as on the basis of race

equal protection of the law

the idea that no individual or group may receive special privileges from, nor be unjustly discriminated by, the law

exchange rate

the price of one currency in terms of another

fact

a statement that can be proved to be true

Federal Reserve System

a system of 12 district banks and a Board of Governors that regulates the activities of financial institutions and controls the money supply

federal supremacy

a concept established in Article VI of the Constitution providing that the Constitution and all federal laws and treaties shall be the "supreme Law of the Land;" therefore, all federal laws take precedence over state and local laws

federalism

a form of political organization in which governmental power is divided between a central government and territorial subdivisions—in the United States, among the national, state, and local governments

Federalist Papers

a series of essays written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison that were published to support the adoption of the proposed United States Constitution

Federalists

advocates of a strong federal government and supporters of the adoption of the U.S. Constitution

feudalism

a political and economic system in which a lord required services from a vassal, and in return granted the vassal certain privileges, such as control over a castle and the surrounding territory

fiscal policy

how the government uses taxes and/or government expenditures to change the level of output, employment, or prices

foreign policy

policies of the federal government directed to matters beyond U.S. borders, especially relations with other countries

free enterprise

the freedom of private businesses to operate competitively, for profit, and without government controls

freedom of expression

the freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition that are protected by the First Amendment

freedom of the press

the freedom to print or publish without governmental interference

frictional unemployment

unemployment caused by workers quitting jobs because they are dissatisfied

genocide

the systematic destruction of an entire cultural or ethnic group

global warming

the progressive gradual rise of Earth’s surface temperature thought to be caused by the greenhouse effect and responsible for changes in global climate patterns

globalization

the integration and democratization of the world’s culture, economy, and infrastructure through transnational investment, rapid proliferation of communication and information technologies, and the impacts of free-market forces on local, regional, and national economies

good

a product that is desired and purchased by consumers

government

a political organization constituting the individuals and institutions authorized to formulate public policies and conduct affairs of state

graph

a visual aid that makes comparisons of numbers or amounts by using lines, bars, circles, or pictures

Great Compromise

an agreement made at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 that balanced the interest of the small and large states, resulting in the United States Senate being made up of two senators from each state and a House of Representatives based on population

gross domestic product

a measure of how much an economy produces within its borders each year, stated in the dollar value of final goods and services

gross national product

a measure of the total amount of goods and services produced by an economy, both domestically and internationally

hemisphere

the northern or southern half of Earth divided by the equator or the eastern or western half divided by a meridian

human capital

the knowledge and skills that enable workers to be productive

human characteristics

the pattern that people make on the surface of Earth, such as cities, roads, canals, farms, and other ways people change Earth

human resources

labor used to produce goods and services

hypothesis

a conjecture that is made for the purpose of explaining an event; may be proved or disproved with the passage of time or the acquisition of more information about why or how events occur

immigration

the process of moving to a country (or other political unit)

impeachment

the act of accusing a public official of misconduct in office by presenting formal charges against him or her by the lower house, with a trial to be held before the upper house

imperialism

the practice by which powerful nations or peoples seek to extend and maintain control or influence over weaker nations or peoples

inalienable rights

fundamental rights of the people that may not be taken away; a phrase used in the Declaration of Independence

incentive

a benefit offered to encourage people to act in certain ways

income tax

a percentage of wages, profits, and other income paid to federal, state, and local governments

indigenous

a group that derives its identity from its environment

infer

to read between the lines to determine the writer’s key thought

inflation

a general rise in the level of prices

initiative

a form of direct democracy in which the voters of a state can propose a law by gathering signatures and having the proposition placed on the ballot

innovation

the process of putting an invention to use and modifying it as the situation demands

interdependence

reliance on people in other places for information, resources, goods, and services

invention

an adaptation of a discovery to practical use

isolationism

the belief that the United States should not be involved in world affairs and should avoid involvement in foreign wars

judicial review

the doctrine that permits the federal courts to declare unconstitutional, and thus null and void, acts of the Congress, the executive branch, and the states; the precedent was established in the 1803 case of Marbury v. Madison

justice

fair distribution of benefits and burdens, fair correction of wrongs and injuries, or use of fair procedures in gathering information and making decisions