economics

economy

a way a country manages its money and resources to produce, buy, and sell goods and services

market economies

buyers and sellers make most economic choices

command economies

a central authority, such as a government, makes all economic choices

traditional economies

rely on custom, tradition, and beliefs to make economic choices

factors of production

resources required to produce a good or service

examples of factors of production

labor, land, natural resources, capital (money, machinery, tools, buildings)

scarcity

a limitation to the amount of a resource, good, or service

trade-off

the result of a decision in which something is gained and something else is lost

opportunity cost

the value of the option that was not chosen whenever a choice is made

barter

the act of trading one good or service for another

money

it is a medium of exchange: material that can be used as payment

it provides a standard value: a unit that can be used to communicate how much something is worth

it provides a store of value: something that can be saved up and used at a later date

credit

a promise to pay in the future for goods or services obtained in the present

interependence

the idea that economies rely on each other

marketplace

physical stores, online retailers, stock market

standard of living

a degree of wealth / material comfort normal in a region

mansa musa

a Malian king who encouraged the construction of mosques and an Islamic system of education

silk road

a series of trade routes connecting Europe and Asia

pax mongolica

a time of relative peace and prosperity in the Mongol Empire

marco polo

a Venetian traveler welcomed to China by Kublai Khan for 17 years (1271 - 1295)

bubonic plague

likely originated in Asia and spread along trade routes decimating much of Europe

maya civilization

mesoamerica from c. 1800 BCE - 900 CE

classical period 300-900 CE

achievements in calendar system, astronomy, and pyramid buildings

were able tp grow corns, beans, squash, and cassava

aztec empire

meramerica from c. 1325 - 1521

created chinampas, floating agricultural islands

traded goods like cacao, cotton, gold, and jaguar pelts

inca empire

Andes region of South America from c. 1400 - 1533

classical period 300 - 900 CE

terraced field on mountain sides; grew potatoes, quinoa, maize

traded alpaca wool

“Gold, God, Glory”

Gold: gain wealth through accessing trade in East Asian spices

God: spread Christianity

Glory: power

columbian exchange

europeans conquered the Americas and gained access to their food, animals, and resources

mercantilism

an economic policy in which the goal is to have a favorable balance of trade by reducing a nation’s need for imports by using colonies as a source of raw materials

cottage industry

manufacturing inside the home

capitalism

private ownership of businesses, land, etc. and the free market of exchanging labor, raw materials, and finished products

joint-stock companies

businesses in which investors pool capital by purchasing shares, allowing them to share profits and risks

socialism

political and economic system advocating that the means of production (factories, mines, land) should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole or the government to create an equal distribution of wealth, rather than for private profit

democratic socialism

socialist reforms that are achieved peacefully and through democratic means