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- •Иванова о.В., Кирильчик т.К.
- •Introduction to economics Введение в экономику
- •What is economics?
- •What is economics?
- •Economic or economical?
- •1.Complete the following sentences with the appropriate word from the list below.
- •1. Read the text and focus on the following points:
- •The meaning of economics
- •4. Expand the sentences, using the information from the text.
- •Satisfying people’s wants
- •2.Read the text again and say if the following statements are true or false according to the information in the text.
- •3.Match the beginnings and endings of the following statements.
- •Economic systems
- •1.Say whether the following characteristics of economic systems are typical for a)traditional economic systems, b) command economic systems, c)market economic systems.
- •2.Answer the following questions on the contents of the text.
- •3.Read the text again and say if the following statements are true or false according to the information in the text.
- •4.Complete the following table.
- •1. Match the words listed below with the definitions that follow.
- •2. Group the words that follow into six synonymous groups.
- •3. Group the words that follow into six antonymous groups.
- •4. Complete the sentences with appropriate terms from the list below.
- •5.Add an appropriate preposition to each of the following sentences where indicated.
- •6.Match the words and their definitions.
- •7.The snowball definition game.
- •8.Translate into English.
- •Passive Voice
- •1. Make these sentences passive. Use by if it is necessary to say who did the action.
- •If possible, rewrite these newspaper headlines as passive sentences. Begin each sentence with It has been … that.. . If it is not possible write X after the headline.
- •Import-Export
- •How to make a good presentation
- •Introducing the first point
- •Inviting questions
- •Adam smith
- •The Vision of Adam Smith
- •Vocabulary
- •1. Answer the following questions.
- •2. Which of the following statements are true/false?
- •3. Do you agree or disagree with the following opinions? Why yes and why not? Write an essay of 150-200 words to support your opinion.
- •Vocabulary
- •1. Answer the following questions.
- •2. Which of the following statements are true/false?
- •3. Questions for discussion.
- •Сlassical liberalism
- •Vocabulary
- •1. Answer the following questions.
- •2.Complete the following sentences:
- •3. Questions for discussion.
- •Neoclassical economics
- •The subschools
- •Vocabulary
- •1. Answer the following questions.
- •2. Which of the following statements are true/false?
- •3.Questions for discussion.
- •Reference Literature
4. Expand the sentences, using the information from the text.
Economics is the study of how ……
Economy is …..
Scarcity is the condition in which….
Macroeconomics is the branch of economics that ….
Microeconomics is ……
READING II
Read the text and focus on the following:
- a difference between wants and needs;
- economic goods;
- economic services;
- factors of production/productive resources;
- sectors in the economy;
- opportunity cost
Satisfying people’s wants
Economics is the study of how individuals and society choose to use limited resources in an effort to satisfy people's unlimited wants. It is important to point out that there is a difference between wants and needs. Needs are basic necessities such as food, clothing and shelter. Other so-called “needs” are really “wants”. For example, you may want new clothes, but whether or not you need them is a value judgement. Most people’s needs are limited. In contrast, people’s wants are unlimited. Satisfying such wants involves the production of economic goods and services.
Economic goods are things of value that you can see and show to the others. They are things like bicycles, books, stereos, and clothing. Economic goods also include such things as factories, stores, machines, and tools.
Economic services are intangible things that have value but often cannot be seen, touched, or shown to others. The examples of economic services are medical care, legal advice, movies and national defence.
Factors of production are also called productive resources. These are the basic resources which are needed for the production of economic goods and services. Economists divide factors of production into four basic categories: (1) natural resources, (2) capital goods, (3) labour and (4) entrepreneurship.
Natural resources are things provided by nature. Land, air, water, forests, coal, iron ore, oil, and other minerals are examples of natural resources. They are the starting points of all production, and they represent the most basic limitations of the productive capacity of an economy. In other words, no matter how much skilled labour and technological knowledge an economy has, it cannot create goods if it lacks natural resources.
Capital goods are human-made resources that are used for the production of other goods and services. Factories, machines, tools, trucks, and business buildings are all examples of capital goods.
It is important to distinguish between capital goods and consumer goods.
Consumer goods, which are not a factor of production, are finished products sold to consumers for their own personal use. They include such things as food, clothing, TV sets, and newspapers. In contrast, capital goods are things that are used in the production of consumer goods and services. A factory that manufactures TV sets is a capital good. Some things can be either consumer goods or capital goods, depending on how they are used. For example, an automobile purchased for personal use is a consumer good. However, automobiles purchased for use as taxis or for other business purposes are capital goods
Labour, sometimes called human resources, is any form of a human effort exerted in production. It includes all kinds of work. The work of a teacher, lawyer, engineer, and the governor of your state are all examples of labour. Labour is essential to production, since natural resources and capital goods are of no value unless they can be put to use.
The three factors of production described above - natural resources, capital goods and labour must be combined and organized before production can take place. This is where entrepreneurship, the fourth factor of production, enters the picture. Entrepreneurship may be defined as the function of combining and organizing natural resources, capital goods, and labour, assuming the risks of business failure, and providing the creativity and managerial skills necessary for production to take place. An entrepreneur is a person who carries out these tasks in the hope of making financial gains from the endeavour.
The economy includes several sectors (also called industries), that evolve in successive phases. They are the following:
Primary sector. It involves the extraction and production of raw materials.
Secondary sector. It involves the transformation of raw or intermediate materials into goods.
Tertiary sector. It involves the provision of services to consumers and businesses.
Quaternary sector. It involves the research and development needed to produce products from natural resources.
Economists use the term opportunity cost to refer to the value of what is foregone in order to have something else or it is the next best alternative which is given up when a decision is made to use limited resources in a particular way. Opportunity cost is an important concept in microeconomics. Many courses of action are valued in terms of what is sacrificed so that they might be undertaken. For example, the opportunity cost of a public project is the value of the additional goods that the private sector would have produced with the resources used for the public project. Opportunity cost is different for each individual and nation. Thus, what is valued more than something else will vary among people and countries when decisions are made about how to allocate resources.
Answer the following questions on the contents of the text.
1. What is the difference between economic goods and economic services? Give examples to illustrate them.
2. What are the basic categories of the factors of production?
3. Are consumer goods considered to be factors of production? What is the difference between consumer and capital goods?
4. How can you prove that labour is an essential factor of production?
5. Are there any other factors that influence production in the modern world?
6.What are the four main sectors of economic activity in modern economies?
7.What is opportunity cost?