(BQ) Part 1 book "Macroeconomics" hass contents: The economic approach; some tools of the economist; supply, demand, and the market process; difficult cases for the market, and the role of government; the economics of collective decision making; taking the nation’s economic pulse,.and other contents. | The Eight Guideposts to Economic Thinking These eight guideposts provide the foundation for the economic way of thinking (they are discussed in Chapter 1). To do well in this course you will need to understand and be able to apply these ideas to a wide range of issues. 1. The Use of Scarce Resources Is Costly; Trade-offs Must Always Be Made. 2. Individuals Choose Purposefully — They Try to Get the Most From Their Limited Resources. 3. Incentives Matter — Choice Is Influenced in a Predictable Way by Changes in Incentives. 4. Individuals Make Decisions at the Margin. 5. Although Information Can Help Us Make Better Choices, Its Acquisition Is Costly. 6. Beware of the Secondary Effects: Economic Actions Often Generate Indirect As Well As Direct Effects. 7. The Value of a Good or Service Is Subjective. 8. The Test of a Theory Is Its Ability to Predict. Special Topics These Special Topics covered in the “Applying the Basics” section use the basic concepts to analyze important current-day topics. 1 Government Spending and Taxation 2 The Internet: How Is It Changing the Economy? 3 The Economics of Social Security 4 The Stock Market: Its Function, Performance, and Potential as an Investment Opportunity 5 The Crisis of 2008: Causes and Lessons for the Future 6 Lessons from the Great Depression 7 Lessons from the Japanese Experience 8 The Federal Budget and the National Debt 9 The Economics of Health Care 10 School Choice: Can It Improve the Quality of Education in America? 11 Earnings Differences Between Men and Women 12 Do Labor Unions Increase the Wages of Workers? 13 Are We Running Out of Resources? 14 Difficult Environmental Cases and the Role of Government Keys to Economic Prosperity These keys to the economic prosperity of a nation are highlighted throughout the text. 1. Human Ingenuity. Economic goods are the result of human ingenuity and action; thus, the size of the economic pie is variable, not fixed. [Economics Chapter 2; Macroeconomics .
