Part 1
One group of Americans that would love inflation would be fast food restaurant owners and workers. When there is a period of increased inflation, the average American's purchasing power is less than what it was before inflation. When your purchasing power is not as strong, you can not splurge on things as much such as expensive dinners or luxurious activities. Fast food is a cheeper alternative than going to an expensive restaurant. These owners will actually be more profitable in a time of inflation.
Part 2 (EXTRA CREDIT)
3 Groups of Americans Facing Poverty:
1. Native Americans
2. Mentally Ill
3. Inner City Minorities
The best group of Americans to donate money to would be the Native Americans. For us to have built the great and powerful nation that is now the United States of America, we had to relocate the native Americans. Since being relocated, the native Americans have always lived in impoverished conditions. They are some of the poorest people in the country and could no doubt use aid. Northern Students should donate money to one of the many native American reservations to help them live a more enjoyable life. Either direct aid or money to help send some of their children to college would help them greatly.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Post 24: Unemployment Scenarios
Frictional Unemployment:
My name is Joe. I have been working for a major corporation in Philadelphia for a year. I recently resigned because I was offered a higher and more satisfying job in NYC. I am currently frictionally unemployed.
Structural Unemployment:
My name is Joe. I went to college for a four year degree and ended up with a masters after 6 years. My degree was an MBA in business administration. Since there is not a high enough demand for high level business administrators, I am structurally unemployed.
Cyclical Unemployment:
My name is Joe. I have worked for an electric company for the past 10 years. I was recently laid off because the economy is going through a recession and the need for electric workers has decreased. I am cyclically unemployed.
Seasonal Unemployment:
My name is Joe. I have worked on a farm with my friends every summer for the past 5 years. I pick grapes from vines and apples from trees. Since it is now the winter time there are no apples or grapes to be picked so I am seasonally unemployed.
My name is Joe. I have been working for a major corporation in Philadelphia for a year. I recently resigned because I was offered a higher and more satisfying job in NYC. I am currently frictionally unemployed.
Structural Unemployment:
My name is Joe. I went to college for a four year degree and ended up with a masters after 6 years. My degree was an MBA in business administration. Since there is not a high enough demand for high level business administrators, I am structurally unemployed.
Cyclical Unemployment:
My name is Joe. I have worked for an electric company for the past 10 years. I was recently laid off because the economy is going through a recession and the need for electric workers has decreased. I am cyclically unemployed.
Seasonal Unemployment:
My name is Joe. I have worked on a farm with my friends every summer for the past 5 years. I pick grapes from vines and apples from trees. Since it is now the winter time there are no apples or grapes to be picked so I am seasonally unemployed.
Post 22: Quiz Facts
Quiz 1:
1. The ideal percentage of the population to be part of the labor force is 95%.
2. If you are not employed or unemployed, you are not in the labor force.
3. If you are working in a job which is below your skill level, you are underemployed.
4. Agricultural workers are affected by seasonal unemployment.
5. The unemployment rate is the most closely watched and highly publicized labor force statistic.
1. The ideal percentage of the population to be part of the labor force is 95%.
2. If you are not employed or unemployed, you are not in the labor force.
3. If you are working in a job which is below your skill level, you are underemployed.
4. Agricultural workers are affected by seasonal unemployment.
5. The unemployment rate is the most closely watched and highly publicized labor force statistic.
Quiz 2:
1. As the value of the dollar decreases, so does the purchasing power of people on fixed incomes.
2. A supply shock is an event that increases the cost of production for all or many firms.
3. The worst degree of inflation is called hyperinflation.
4. High interest rates leads to less consumer spending.
5. Aggregate supply is the total amount is the total amount of goods and services produced through the economy.
Quiz 3:
1. A way to improve the income equality is by raising the minimum wage.
2. The income gap between Americans was more diverse in the 1990's than at any other time since World War II.
3. The poverty theshold is the lowest income level that a family needs to maintain a basic standard of living.
4. Poverty thresholds are adjusted annually based on changes in the consumer price index.
5. The data used to ploy a Lorenz Curve can also be used to compute the Gini index.
Post 21: Vocab
Gross Domestic Product- Total value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given year.
Output Expenditure Model- A method of computing the GDP by adding the total value of consumer and government spending.
Personal Consumption Expenditure- Total spending by consumers for durable goods, nondurable goods, and services during a specified period of time.
National Income Accounting- Process used for tracking production, income, and consumption in a nations economy.
Gross Investment- Total value of private spending in the economy for capital assets.
Nominal GDP- The value of a nations GDP at the current prices of the period being measured.
Real GDP- The value of a nations GDP after it has been adjusted for inflation.
Price Index- A set of statistics that allows economists to compare prices over time.
Underground Economy- Illegal economic activities or unreported legal activities that are not accounted for in national income measures.
Gross National Product- Total value of all final goods and services produced with factors of production owned by citizens of a different country.
Business Cycle- A recurring pattern in economic activity that is characterized by alternating periods of expansion and contraction.
Expansion- A period of the business cycle during which economic activity is increasing toward a peak.
Peak-The point of the business cycle during which employment production and wages are at their highest.
Contraction- A period in the business cycle during which business activity slows down and overall economic indicators decline.
Recession- Substantial and general decline in over all business activity over a signifigant period of time.
Depression- A prolonged and severe recession.
Trough-The lowest point of the business cycle.
Leading Indicators- Set of economic factors that anticipate the expansions and contractions of the business cycle from one month up to two years before similar changes in overall economic activity occur.
Coincident Indicators- Set of economic factors that move up or down with the economy.
Lagging Indicators- Set of economic factors that help economicts predict the duration of economic up or downturns.
Real GDP Per Capita-The monetary value adjusted for inflation of all final goods and services produced per person in an economy in a given year.
Labor Productivity- Measure of how much each worker produces in a given period of time.
Productivity Growth- Increase in output per worker per hour worked.
Capitol-to-labor- ratio- Amount of capital resources available per worker.
Capital Deepening- The increasing of capital resources at a faster rate than the increasing of the labor force.
Output Expenditure Model- A method of computing the GDP by adding the total value of consumer and government spending.
Personal Consumption Expenditure- Total spending by consumers for durable goods, nondurable goods, and services during a specified period of time.
National Income Accounting- Process used for tracking production, income, and consumption in a nations economy.
Gross Investment- Total value of private spending in the economy for capital assets.
Nominal GDP- The value of a nations GDP at the current prices of the period being measured.
Real GDP- The value of a nations GDP after it has been adjusted for inflation.
Price Index- A set of statistics that allows economists to compare prices over time.
Underground Economy- Illegal economic activities or unreported legal activities that are not accounted for in national income measures.
Gross National Product- Total value of all final goods and services produced with factors of production owned by citizens of a different country.
Business Cycle- A recurring pattern in economic activity that is characterized by alternating periods of expansion and contraction.
Expansion- A period of the business cycle during which economic activity is increasing toward a peak.
Peak-The point of the business cycle during which employment production and wages are at their highest.
Contraction- A period in the business cycle during which business activity slows down and overall economic indicators decline.
Recession- Substantial and general decline in over all business activity over a signifigant period of time.
Depression- A prolonged and severe recession.
Trough-The lowest point of the business cycle.
Leading Indicators- Set of economic factors that anticipate the expansions and contractions of the business cycle from one month up to two years before similar changes in overall economic activity occur.
Coincident Indicators- Set of economic factors that move up or down with the economy.
Lagging Indicators- Set of economic factors that help economicts predict the duration of economic up or downturns.
Real GDP Per Capita-The monetary value adjusted for inflation of all final goods and services produced per person in an economy in a given year.
Labor Productivity- Measure of how much each worker produces in a given period of time.
Productivity Growth- Increase in output per worker per hour worked.
Capitol-to-labor- ratio- Amount of capital resources available per worker.
Capital Deepening- The increasing of capital resources at a faster rate than the increasing of the labor force.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Post 17: Business Cycle Charts
Graph 1:
Strengths: Colors to represent different scenarios and arrows to represent patterns.
Weakensses: No examples to relate to and very general terms.
Graph 2:
Strengths: Color coated with terms and important points to show trends in the business cycle. The key is numbered and very easy to navigate. Also an unrelated strength is that it includes the colors of the Minnesota Vikings which is a big strength.
Weaknesses: May be confusing between the two flows, some information could be mixed up if read incorrectly.
And the winner is.......
CHART 3!
This chart is by far the best representation of the business cycle. Its color coding and easily accessible key make it both comprehensible and visually appealing. All major points along with other helpful information is included, yet not jumbled together. Yet the other charts have their own value, this one sets itself apart from the rest. This would be extremely helpful to use on the economics midterm.
Weakensses: No examples to relate to and very general terms.
Graph 2:
Strengths: Pictures to show examples of situations and many terms to show the flow of the cycle.
Weaknesses: Not in depth and does leave out some possible terms that could be useful.
Chart 3:
Weaknesses: May be confusing between the two flows, some information could be mixed up if read incorrectly.
And the winner is.......
CHART 3!
This chart is by far the best representation of the business cycle. Its color coding and easily accessible key make it both comprehensible and visually appealing. All major points along with other helpful information is included, yet not jumbled together. Yet the other charts have their own value, this one sets itself apart from the rest. This would be extremely helpful to use on the economics midterm.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Post 18: Twitter Man
INVESTIGATOR
Site 1: EcEdWeb: Economic Education Web
This resource has a very large supply of terms and concepts that we have been using over the course of semester. Not only is this site easy to use but also very informing and has terms that give you the information you need without excess useless information; it is to the point.
This resource is particularly helpful because of its search feature. On the midterm especially, where there is a time limit for how long you have to take the exam, this search bar is extremely efficient and effective. These terms are just as useful as the terms in the first site, but the search feature makes them easier to access. They can both be used hand in hand.
Site 3: Economics Guides
Shmoop is an extremely effective and student friendly tool. It features all of the major topics we have learned about in the economics course and also covers some topics even further. The topics are separated into easy to navigate sections and labeled along with pictures, making it as simple as can be.
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