North America (USA, Canada)

Central America (Mexico – Panama)

Andean South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile)

Caribbean-South America (Venezuela, Suriname, Guyana, Fr. Guiana)

Industrial South America (Brazil, Argentina)

West Europe: UK east to Germany and South to Italy. (EU)

East Europe: (Poland east to Western Russia and South to Bulgaria)

East Russia: (Russia east of the Urals / Siberia to the Kamchatka Pen.)

Middle East: (Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Cyprus)

Persian Gulf States: (Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Quitar, Oman, Yemen, Iran)

North Africa: (Western Sahara, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt)

West Central Africa: (Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, Senegal, guinea, Liberia, Cote de Ivoire, ghana, Nigeria)

Central Africa: (Cameroon, Central African Rep., Congo, Gabon, Dem. Rep. Of Congo)

East Africa: (Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania)

South Africa: (Angolia, Zambia, Mozambique, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa)

Central  Asia: ( Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan)

Subcontinent: (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan)

East-Central Asia: (Mountain West China, Tibet, Mongolia)

Eastern Asia: (Coastal China, North & South Korea, Japan)

Southeast Asia (Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines)

Oceania: (Pacific Islands from Northern Marianas south to Indonesia)

Australia and New Zealand

Select three countries from an economic region and record common factors which will provide reasons for the development of the economic region.

Topography: What is the lay of the land; flat, hilly, mountainous, wetland. 
- How does topography affect their economic development?

Climate: What climate region do these countries fall under. 
- How does this climat affect their economic development?

Natural Resources: What natural resources are available.  Minerals, forest, pastureland, energy sources.
- How does these natural resources affect their economic development?

Water: How much water is available for agricultue and the population?  Is it easy or difficult to get?
- How does the availability of water affect their economic development?

Cultural Influences: Various languages, religion, traditions, family structure, food source, acceptance of change, independent thought, educational system.
- How does culture affect their economic development?

Technology: How technologically advanced is the country?  How accepting are the people of new technology?  How much research and development is found in the country. 
- How does technology affect their economic development?

Economic freedom: Does the country allow for individuals to have a choice in their occupation?  Is it easy for individuals to start their own businesses?  Can individuals invest their money?  Is innovation and personal incentive a part of their economy.
- How does economic freedom affect their economic development?

Government regulations:  How much does government regulation influence the economy?  Does government regulation inhibit economic growth or make it fair for everyone?  Does government regulation promote individual incentive or restrict it?
- How does government regulations affect their economic development?

Currency: Does the country have a stable currency that can easily be used on the world market?  Does inflation affect the value of the currency?  Are imports and exports bought and sold using the country’s curriency?
- How does the value of their currency affect their economic development?

Economic system: Using the three economic question, what economic system does the country have? 
- How has their economic system affected their economic development?

Need: Something like air, food, or shelter that is necessary for survival.

Want: An item that we desire, but that is not essential to survival.

Economics: The study of how people seek to satisfy their needs and wants by making choices.

Goods: Physical objects such as cloths or shoes.

Services: Actions or activities that one person performs for another.

Scarcity: Limited quantities of resources to meet unlimited wants.

Shortage: A situation in which a good or service is temporarily unavailable.

Factors of Production
   Land: Natural resources that are used to make goods and services.

   Labor: the effort that people devote to a task for which they are paid.

   Capital: Any human resource (usually money or credit) that is used to create other goods and services.

Entrepreneur: Ambitious leader who combines land, labor and capital to create and market new goods and services. (Business owner)

Trade-off: An alternative that we sacrifice when we make a decision.

Guns or butter: A phrase that refers to the trade-offs that nations face when choosing whether to produce more or less military or consumer goods.

Opportunity Cost: The most desirable alternative given up as the result of a decision.

Thinking at the margin: Deciding whether to do or use one additional unit of some resource.

Efficiency: Using resources in such a way as to maximize the production of goods and services.

Economic system: The method used by a society to produce and distribute goods and services.

Standard of living: Level of economic prosperity.

Traditional economy: Economic system that relies on habit, custom, or ritual to decide questions of production and consumption of goods and services.

Free Market economy: Economic system in which decisions on production and consumption of goods and services are based on voluntary exchange in markets.

Command Economy: Economic system in which the government makes all decisions on production, consumption, of goods and services.

Mixed economy: Economic system that combines traditional and free market with limited government involvement.

Free enterprise: An economic system that permits the conduct of business with a minimal government intervention.

Safety net: Government programs that protect people experiencing unfavorable economic conditions.

Market: An arrangement that allows buyers and sellers to exchange things.

Specialization: The concentration of the productive efforts of individuals and firms on a limited number of activities.

Profit: The financial gain made in a transaction.

Self interest: One’s own personal gain.

Incentive: An expectation that encourages people to behave in a certain way.
Competition: The struggle among producers for the dollars of consumers.

Consumer Soverignty: The power of the consumers to decide what gets produced.

Voluntary Exchange: A which is not forced because the traders anticipate that the benefits will outweigh the costs. 

Friendly Competition: A competitive market place where individuals compete for the consumers money in an ethical manner.  Where competition is based upon the incentives of offering the best product at the lowest price.

Specialization: The concentration of the productive efforts of individuals and firms on a limited number of activities.

Socialism: A social and political philosophy based on the blief that democratic means should be used to evenly distribute wealth throughout society.

Communism: A political system characterized by a centrally planned economy with all economic political power resting in the hand of the central government.

Authoritarian: Requiring strict obedience to an authority such as a dictator.

Laissez Faire: the doctrine that states that government generally should not intervene in the marketplace.

Transition: Period of change in which an economy moves away from a centrally planned economy toward a market-based system.

Privatize: To sell to individuals state-run firms, which are then allowed to compete with one another in the marketplace.

Communism: Political system that is characterized by a centrally planned economy with all economic and political power resting in the hands of a central government, usually one political party. 

Socialism: Economic system based upon the political philosophy based on the belief that democratic means should be used to distribute wealth evenly throughout a society. 

Free market: A self-regulating economic system directed by individuals acting in their own best interest and the factors of production are privately owned. 

Public interest: The concerns of the public as a whole.

Public policy: Laws and standards on topics of public interest.

Public good: A shared good or service for which it would be impractical to make consumers pay individually and to exclude non-payers.

Interest group: A private organization that tries to persuade public officials to act or vote according to group members interests. (Example: National Rifle Assn. &  Sierra Club)

Poverty Threshold: An income level below that which is needed to support families or households.

Public sector: The part of the economy that involves the transactions of the government.

Private sector: The part of the economy that involves the transactions of individuals and businesses.

Free Rider: Someone who would not choose to pay for a certain good or service, but would get the benefits anyway if it were provided as a public good.

Resources: The materials, people, and money available to a community.

Consumer: A person who buys and uses products

Supply: the amount of a good or service available to consumers.

Demand: the amount of a good or service That consumers are willing to buy.

Marketing: Getting goods to consumers who want them.

Developed nation: A nation with a higher average level of material well-being.

Less Developed nation: (Developing nation) A nation with a low level of material well-being.

Per Capita Gross Domestic Product: A nation’s gross domestic product (production) divided by the total population.

Industrialization: The extensive organization of a economy for the purpose of manufacture.

Subsistence farming: Level of farming in which a person raises only enough food to feed the family.

Literacy Rate: The proportion of the population over 15 years of age that can read and write.

Infrastructure: The services and facilities necessary for an economy to function.

Population growth rate: The increase in a nation’s population in a given eyar, expressed as a percent.

Arable land: Land suitable for producing crops.

Malnutrition: Inadequate nutrition.

Absolute Advantage: The ability of a nation to produce a particular good at a lower cost than another nation.

Law of Comparative Advantage: The idea that a nation is better off when it produces goods and services for which it has a comparative advantage.

Export: A good that is sent to another country for sale.

Import: A good that is brought in from another country for sale.

Trade Barrier: A means of preventing a foreign product or service from freely entering a nation’s territory.

Import Quota: A limit on the amount of a good or service that can be imported.

Voluntary export restraint: A self imposed limitation on the number of products shipped to a particular country.

Tariff: A tax on imported goods.

Protectionism: The Use of trade barriers to protect a nation’s industries from foreign competition.

NAFTA: (North American Free Trade Agreement) An agreement that will eliminate all tariffs and other trade barriers between Canada, Mexico and the USA.

Topography: The physical or natural features of the landscape according to the relative position, elevation above sea level, slope and steepness and orientation of direction.

Climate: Long term weather patterns indicating precipitation, temperature, wind flow and likelyhood of sever weather.

Natural Resources: Resources taken from the natural environment, below and above the surface, that people use to meet their needs.. Example: Coal, Water, Fossil Fuel, and lumber.

Culture: The beliefs, customs, practices, and social behavior of a particular nation or people. (Language, religion, food, social customs, dress, art and recreation)

Technology: The development, and application of devices, machines, and techniques for manufacturing and production. 

What is the difference between a Good and a Service?
- goods are physical objects (chairs, bananas). Services are actions or activities performed by one person for another (mowing the grass, teaching).

Why is the idea of Scarcity a starting point for thinking economically?
- Economics seeks to solve the scarcity problem, which exists because resources are limited whereas needs and wants are unlimited.

How is Scarcity different from Shortages?
- Scarcity always exists because goods and services are produced from limited resources. 
- Shortages can be temporary or long-term and occur when producers will not or cannot offer goods or services at current prices.

What role do Entrepreneurs play in the economy? 
- Entrepreneurs decide how to combine factors of production to create new goods and services.

Why might an economist look at hundreds of cars moving along an assembly line and say, “there is an example of scarcity.”
- Materials used to make the care are in limited supply. 
- Only so many workers are available to assemble cars. 
- The land that the factory is on is part of a fixed amount of land on earth.

Present three examples that illustrate how all decision involve Trade-offs.
- Example: What shall I do after school? 
1. Do homework (improve grades)
2. Go out with friends (have fun)
3. Clean up my room (make parents happy)

Why must the Opportunity cost of a decision always be something desirable?
- An opportunity cost must be desirable because there would be no meaningful decision to be made between a desirable and undesirable option.

Which factors would an employer consider if he or she were trying to decide whether to hire an additional worker?
- The cost in wages and benefits of hiring another worker.
- The production benefits of having another person on the workforce.

How do a Traditional economy, a Market economy, a Centrally planned economy, and a Mixed economy differ?
- The differences between economic systems are based on how each system answers the three key economic 
questions. 
1. What goods and services should be produced?
2. How should these goods and services be produced?
3. Who consumes these goods and services?

List Influences on the formation of Economic Systems
- Available resources: Energy, minerals, fertile land, River for transport
- Availability of water
- Culture: Tribal, Hunter gatherer, Oceanic, Urban, Rural, Religion
- Government: Democratic, Welfare state, Tribal, Communist, Theocracy
- The Mix of goods and services to be produced.

Why aren’t all people paid the same amount in Factor payments for the resources they provide?  Provide your own example of two unequal factor payments?
- Factor payments differ because societies place different values on different resources and products.
- Examples: Principal  & Teacher.  Principal receives more money than a teacher because Principal has more experience and has more responsibility. 

Why do governments provide Safety nets for their citizens?
- Governments provide safety nets to fulfill the goal of economic security and predictability. 

How does competition among firms benefit the consumer?
-  Competition causes firms to sell higher quality goods at a lower price.

What is the connection between incentives and consumer soverignty in the free market?
- Consumer soverignty has to do with the power that consumers have to choose what they will buy, so that they exert control over what is produced by creating the incentive for firms to produce high quality goods and services.

When is a purchase or an exchange is not voluntary?
-When the government make you.
-When you are forced to purchase an inferior product due to a crisis situation.

How does specialization make us more effficient?
- Specialization alows each of us to focus on individual tasks and not worry about all of our basic needs at once. 
- Individuals who specialize in a difficult task may become very efficient at that task because it is all they have to focus on.

How do socialism and communism differ?
- In Socialist countries the government owns major industries.  Socialism has been achieved peacefully through democracy.
- In Communist nations all economic and political power rests in the hands of the cental government.  Communist governments are authoritarian.

Why did Soviet collectives offer little incentives to farmers?
- The government paid farmers a set wage and told them what to produce, thus providing very little incentive to produce more or to produce goods more efficiently

In the Soviet Union, what was the opportunity cost of the emphasis on heavy industry?
- There was a lack in consumer goods

Why have some nations begun a transition to free enterprise?
- In order to keep up with the evolving global economy. (China, Eastern Europe)

Why are nations with centrally planned economies sometimes slow to succeed when they privatize industry?
- Because few enterprises or businesses existed before privatization and the business community has little experience with this concept.
- Governments are slow to release the power of central planning.

What benefits would a citizen of a centrally planned economy receive with a move toward a market based system.
- A gain in economic freedom and increased consumer choices.

How does Welfare attempt to raise poor people’s standard of living?
- By collecting tax money from individuals and a business and redistributing it to people with little or no income.

An old adage states, “Give a person a fish, feed him for a day; Teach a person how to fish, feed him for a lifetime.”  do any of the government programs in this section reflect this saying?   Explain you answer.
- Examples: Temporary assistance for Need Families (TANF) Program which aims     to move people from welfare dependence to the work force.
    Workfare: Program designed to train unskilled workers and give them 
    an opportunity for a well paying job.

You and your friends decide to earn money by washing cars.  How are the three economic questions answered in this market?
- 1. Service to be produced?  Car washing.
- 2. How is it produced?  By my friends and me washing the cars.
- 3. Consumers?  People who want their cars washed.

Identify the major sources of revenue available to the Pikes Peak economic region.
- Ranching and farming, electronics and computer industry, military bases.
- Mining and casinos in Teller County
- Tourist Industry

Identyfy the cultural influences found in the Pikes Peak economic region.
- Mountain culture found in Teller county (independent, conservative)
- Urban culture found in Colorado Springs (metropolitan, available consumer goods and leisure activities)
- Military culture found in the Military bases (transient, expendable income, disciplined)
- Ranching culture found on the planes east of Colorado Springs and in Teller County

Identify the energy resources found in the pikes peak economic region.
- Electricity: Produced mainly by coal
- Natural gas available from Wyoming and N. Colorado
- Petrolium available by truck from distribution centers in Colorado Springs and Denver.

Describe the various governmental bodies which influence the Pikes Peak economic region.
- National government (regulations on safety, health & the environment)
- State govrnment (civil and criminal laws, regulations safety and the environment)
- County government (zoning, licensing, property tax)
- City government (zoning, licensing)

How does the scarcity of water effect the Pikes Peak economic region
- The only water available comes from the winter snow pack.
- Surface water is very limited (Fountain creek, various man made lakes)
- Ground water: Deep aquafers which supply limited city water and residential wells
- Water is available according to Colorado water ownership laws and is treated as a comodity

Why are developed nations often referred to as industrialized nations?
- Developed nations usually have adequate industrial facilities for producing consumer and capital goods. 

Why is Per Capita GDP a better measure of development than GDP?
- Per Capita GDP shows how much is being produced per person which indicates the productivity of the individual worker.

List and describe three characteristics of developed nations and three characteristics of developing nations.
- Developed Nations: Increased consumer spending, fully industrialized, high agricultural output, healthy population, educated population, developed infrastraucture.
- Developing Nations: Low per capita GDP, low energy consumption, low level of industrialization, subsistence agriculture, low literacy rate.

How does arable land play an important role in a nation’s development?
- The amount of arable land indicates the potential for agricultural output and a country’s ability to feed itself.

How does malnutrition affect human capital?
- Malnutrition causes low birth weight, brain damage, and birth defects.
- It will indirectly affect education and reduce literacy rate. 
- It will increase the cost of health care per person.
- This will greatly hinder the development of human capital.

The USA has a population of approximately 303 million and a population growth rate of 0.8%.  By how many people do you expect the nation’s population to increase next year.
- 2.2 million

Susan grows coffee in a North Dakota green house under sunlamps.  Growing coffee this way takes a lot of effort and money.  She also grows sunflowers, which are easy to grow in the dry climate in which she lives.  In which crop does she have a comparative advantage?  Explain why.
- Sunflowers
- She can produce greater amounts of sunflowers with less effort and cost. 

Why is a nation with abundant rresources better off trading than being self-sufficient?
- Trade allows that nation to specialize and produce the most goods at the lowest cost.

Specialization and trade can result in shifting employment patters.
   (a) What possibilities are available to people who lose their jobs due to changes in employment patterns.
   (b) What are the advantages and disadvantages of each possibility.
- (a) People may relocate or retrain.
- (b) Relocation could lead to better opportunities, but could be disruptive to family structure. 
        Retraining may also lead to better opportunities, but may result in a less than desirable job.

Explain the effects of trade barriers on manufacturers, workers, and consumers.
- Trade barriers may help domestic manufacturers but harm foreign manufacturers.
   On the other hand they may reduce the incentive for improvement of products.
- Trade barriers may help domestic workers, but harm foreign workers.
  On the other hand they may result in higher process with no change in wages.
- Trade barriers often make imported goods expensive for consumers  and reduce the availability of certain imported items.

Describe the three arguments in favor of protectionism. 
- Shelters domestic jobs.
- Protects infant industries.
- Protects national security.

What are the four natural influences on the development of an economic region?
- Topography, Climate, Natural resources and Water.

What are the four human characteristics the influence the development of an economic region?
- Culture, Technology, Economic freedom, and Government regulations.

Explain how culture helps define an economic region.
- The culture of a nation determines how well the people of that nation will accept the use of natural resources, economic growth, education and the formation of a government.
- The culture of a nation determines how goods and services will be distributed.
- The culture of a nation determines the acceptable worth ethic and health care and standard of living.

Explain how education and technology help determine the economic growth of an economic region.
- An educated workforce will have the ability to accomplish more complex tasks
- An educated workforce will have a greater understanding of technology and thus use technology to increase production.

How does increased economic freedom work towards a greater standard of living?