Miller Economics Vocab #1

need

something that we need for survival

want

a desire that is unlimited while resources are limited

economics

study of how humans seek to satisfy their wants and needs

good

any physical object that can be purchased

service

an action or activity that a person performs for another

value

a worth that can be expressed in dollars and cents

wealth

an accumulation of products that are tangible, scarce, transferable, and have utility

consumer

person who buys goods or services for personal use

producer

person who makes goods or provides services

gross domestic product

monetary value of all final goods, services, and structure produced in a country during a year; most comprehensive measure of a country’s total output; key measure of a nation’s economic health

entrepreneurs

those who decide to combine land, labor, and service

incentives

benefits offered to encourage people to acct in certain ways

utility

capacity to be useful and provide satisfaction

trade-off

when you give one alternative for another course of action

opportunity cost

when an alternative is given up as result of a decision

guns or butter

(trade-offs) to produce more military goods and less consumer goods

marginal cost

cost of using just one more unit of a good or service

marginal benefit

benefits or satisfaction we receive from using just one more unit of a good or service

underutilization

when an economy uses fewer resources than capable of using

cost

alternative we give up when we choose one option over another

statistics

numerical data or information

micro

small

macro

large

graph

visual representations of numerical relationships

efficiency

conditions in which resources are being used to maximize production or output of goods and services

self-interest

own personal gain