# data[].attributes.body
The Economic Way of Thinking

News Article: Industry worried of delayed forest clearance as ministry weighs cost- benefit to environment

Economic Systems

Blog: A crazy comparison of life in North Korea and South Korea

Market Structures

Blog: The oligopoly problem

The Role of Labor

News Article: Mother wins disability discrimination case

Economic Indicators and Measurements

News Article: UK economy is overheating and veering towards stagflation

Facing Economic Challenges

Blog: Inequality in India: what's the real story?

Using Fiscal Policy

Video: Sri Mulyani: Debt Increase due to tax revenue dip

The Federal Reserve and Monetary Policy

News Article: Decisions regarding monetary policy implementation

Issues of Economic Development

Article: North Korea experiments with freer markets

Personal Finance

News Article: Mark Cuban : Don't use credit cards

Population Demographics

Blog: The impact of the increase in life expectancy

Reflection on the course
Bibliography

# data[].attributes.body
"Industry worried of delayed forest clearance as ministry weighs cost- benefit to environment"
The article talks about the Environment Ministry of a country using the concept of cost- benefit analysis. The Environment Ministry plans to modify existing guidelines for conducting a cost-benefit analysis of diversion of forest land for non-forest purposes. It relates to the chapter “Economic Way of Thinking”. One of the concepts in the chapter is cost -benefit analysis. Cost- benefit analysis is basically the examination of costs and expected benefits of choices. It is one of the most useful tools for evaluating the relative worth of economic choices. So it is basically a review that measures the advantages that will accumulate out of a venture against the expenses in implementing it. For this reason, all social and natural expenses are changed over into money related esteems and the decision is implemented only if the benefits outweigh the costs. Thus this analysis will help the Environment ministry to decide whether or not to use forest land for industrial purposes.

Read the article: Nandi, Shreya. "Industry Worried of Delayed Forest Clearance as Ministry Weighs Cost-benefit to Environment." Moneycontrol. MoneyControl, 07 June 2017. Web. 08 June 2017. <http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/economy/industry-worried-of-delayed-forest-clearance-nod-as-ministry-weighs-cost-benefit-environment-2298831.html>.

Glossary...

Cost-benefit analysis- An approach that weighs the benefits of an action against its costs.

Opportunity Cost- The value of something that is given up to get something else that is wanted.

Economize- To economize means to make decisions according to the best combination of costs and benefits.

# data[].attributes.body
"A crazy comparison of life in North Korea and South Korea"
The article/ blog compares the economies of North Korea and South Korea. After being divided into two different nations at the end of World War II, each of them followed very different paths in terms of economic systems. North Korea remained a command economy, led by a family dynasty. South Korea, on the other hand, went on to become a market economy. After almost 7 decades of the division, huge differences can be seen in the performance of both the economies. South Korea, which is a market economy, is now an economic powerhouse, with several renowned MNCs like Samsung, Hyundai, and LG. However, North Korea, which continues to be the only command economy in today’s world, has transformed into a severely poor and capricious country. Thus the article accounts for the drastic financial and social differences between the two. It relates to the chapter “Economic Systems” as it compares two different economic systems. A command economy is an economy in which production, investment, prices, and incomes are determined centrally by the government. A market economy, on the other hand, is an economic system in which production and prices are determined by unrestricted competition between privately owned businesses. The chapter talks about how market economies have always proved to perform better as compared to command economies, using the example of North and South Korea.

Read the blog: Taylor, Adam. "A Crazy Comparison Of Life In North Korea And South Korea." Business Insider. Business Insider, 08 Apr. 2013. Web. 01 June 2017.
<http://www.businessinsider.com/life-in-north-korea-vs-south-korea-2013-4>.
Glossary...

Market Economy- An economic system in which individual choice and voluntary exchange direct economic decisions.

Command Economy- An economic system in which the government makes all economic decisions.

Economic System- The way a society uses resources to satisfy its people's wants.

# data[].attributes.body
" The oligopoly problem"
This blog by Tim Wu talks about the existent problem of oligopolies in the Unites States. Some of the major industries, like sunglasses, pet food, toothpaste, mobile phones and numerous others are dominated by a few giant companies. It also talks about how most of the nations and the governments focus on the problem of monopoly, but fail to realize that oligopolies pose the same problems to the consumers and competition as monopolies, except the act that there are three to four companies/ individuals involved instead of one. The blog also describes how the companies controlling almost 80% of the industry indulge in collusion in order to mislead the consumers. This collusion affects the competition as well. It makes it difficult for the newcomers to industry to perform well. Some of the companies in the U.S. indulge in such a collusion in spite of the deregulation of certain industries in the 1980s and the 1990s. This blog relates to the chapter “Market Structures” in many ways. The chapter discusses various market structures like monopoly, oligopoly, monopolistic and perfect competition. It also talks about how companies indulge in collusion in order to deceive the consumers. They also revel in collusion in order to eliminate competition in the industry. The chapter also analyzes the effects of regulation and deregulation on the market.

Read the blog: Wu, Tim. "The Oligopoly Problem." The New Yorker. The New Yorker, 24 May 2017. Web. 01 June 2017. <http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/the-oligopoly-problem>.

Glossary...

Market Structure- An economic model of competition among businesses in the same industry.

Monopoly- It occurs when there is only one seller of a product that has no close substitutes.

Oligopoly- A market structure in which only a few sellers offer a similar product.

# data[].attributes.body
" Mother wins disability discrimination case"
The news article talks about how a lady, Maria McKeith has won her fight against workplace discrimination. She was wrongfully dismissed from work with her daughter’s disability as an excuse. She has been provided with a huge compensation of £18,886, which includes the remuneration for injury to feelings, loss of earnings and interest. This article relates to the discrimination concept of the wage determination section of the chapter “Role of Labor”. At times, people are discriminated on the basis of race, ethnicity and other factors like disability, as in the case of Maria McKeith. This is called the glass ceiling. The company/ institution guilty of the discrimination provides the compensation to the victim.

Read the article: "Mother Wins Disability Discrimination Case." BBC News. BBC, 09 May 2017. Web. 08 June 2017. <http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-39849855>.
Glossary...

Wage- Payment received in return for work.

Glass Ceiling- It is an artificial barrier to advancement faced by women and minorities.

Carer- someone who takes care of a person who is young, old, or sick.

# data[].attributes.body
"UK economy is overheating and veering towards stagflation"
The news article talks about the UK economy, which is heading towards a stagflation, due to a constant increase in the inflation since the economic crisis in 2008. Joined with the sharp 70% ascent in oil costs over a similar time allotment, UK vitality and sustenance expenses are set to take off. Moreover, the people, working in all industries are demanding higher wages. All this is happening following the Brexit referendum when the country is already facing an economic slowdown. The Bank of England is constantly increasing the interest rates in response to this grave situation. Increasing the interest rate would mean lesser people would borrow money. As a result, people will have less money and thus would demand less. This might help in curbing the costs of various goods, depending on their elasticity of demand. This article relates to the chapter “Economic Indicators and Measurements” as it describes how inflation and stagflation might affect an economy. A stagflation is basically a period during which prices rise at the same time that there is a slowdown in business activity. The chapter also discusses how the government and the central bank deal with the situation.

Read the article: Butler, John. "UK Economy Is Overheating and Veering towards Stagflation." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 16 Jan. 2017. Web. 07 June 2017. <https://www.theguardian.com/business/economics-blog/2017/jan/16/uk-economy-bankofengland-stagflation-inflation-growth>.

Glossary...

Commensurate- suitable in amount or quality compared to something else; matching in degree.

Deleverage- to reduce a company's borrowing in relation to its share capital.

Exacerbate- to make something that is already bad worse.

# data[].attributes.body
" Inequality in India: what's the real story?"
This blog by Nisha Agrawal talks about the increasing income inequality/ gap in India and other countries of the world. In India, the rich are getting richer, while the poor are getting poorer. This is harming the economy and the government needs to make changes to its policies in order to curb this. The blog relates to the chapter “Facing Economic Challenges” as it discusses what income inequality actually is and how it affects the growth of an economy. Income inequality is the unequal distribution of income. The chapter also talks about the steps taken by the government in order to decrease the income disparity.

Read the blog: Agrawal, Nisha. "Inequality in India: What's the Real Story?" World Economic Forum. N.p., 04 Oct. 2016. Web. 30 May 2017. <https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/10/inequality-in-india-oxfam-explainer/>.

Glossary...

Egalitarian- based on the idea that people are equally important and should have the same rights and opportunities.

Jostle- to push against someone in order to move past that person or get more space when you are in a crowd of people.

Sustainability- the ability to continue at a particular level for a period of time.

# data[].attributes.body
"Sri Mulyani: Debt increase due to tax revenue dip"
This video shows Sri Mulyani, finance minister of Indonesia talking about the growth of the national debt. She says that the increase in the debt is due to the cumulative budget deficits in the recent years, due to huge tax cutoffs. It relates to the chapter “Using Fiscal Policy”. The chapter talks about budget deficits and how it leads to national debt. A budget deficit occurs when the government spends more than it takes in. The National debt is the total amount of money the government owes. The chapter also talks about the effects of national debt on the economy. One of the major steps the Indonesian government could take in order to get rid of the debt is to increase the taxes so that the government has enough money to repay the debt.

Watch the video: Beritasatuenglish. "Sri Mulyani: Debt Increase Due To Tax Revenue Dip." YouTube. YouTube, 21 Feb. 2017. Web. 07 June 2017. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGPaPVYA09k>.

Glossary...

Directorate- a department or organization that is responsible for one particular thing, especially in government.

Incentive- something, especially money, that encourages a person or organization to do something.

# data[].attributes.body
"Decisions regarding monetary policy implementation"
The article talks about some of the monetary policy decisions taken by the central bank and the government. It also indirectly illustrates the role of the central bank in an economy. The article says that the Federal Bank took decisions regarding interest rates and reserve ratios, which are important tools of monetary policy. Another decision taken by them is regarding open market operations, which is another important tool of monetary policy. Open- market operations is the sale and purchase of government securities to expand or contract the money supply.

Read the article: "Decisions Regarding Monetary Policy Implementation: Text." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, 03 May 2017. Web. 09 June 2017. <https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-03/decisions-regarding-monetary-policy-implementation-text>.

Glossary...

Unanimous-  if a group of people is unanimous, everyone agrees to something.

Mortgage- a legal agreement to borrow money from a bank or other financial organization, especially to buy a house or other property, or the amount of money borrowed.

Convention- the accepted or traditional method of doing something, or an example of doing something in the traditional way.

# data[].attributes.body
" North Korea experiments with freer markets"
This news article talks about how North Koreans are currently experimenting with free markets. They have tried and experimented with private property. Moreover, the highly conservative government under Kim Jong-un has been liberal with some of the black markets that have come into existence in a while now. This clearly indicates that North Korea might shift from a strict command economy to a free- market economy. However, this transition does not come easily. In order to achieve this goal, the country must maintain stability in some areas like the effectiveness of government institutions, the cost of goods and protection of property rights. The transition from a centrally planned economy to a free market often poses the challenge of inflation, i.e. high rise in prices. This challenge can be overcome only if the government is able to maintain the stability of prices. Also, privatization poses another difficulty in a transition like this. The government must provide equal property rights in order to confront this huge challenge. The investors will invest only if they are confident enough, which can only be done by securing property rights. The country can make use of a few opportunities. They can open their international trade routes and eliminate government regulation. Also, the government should provide incentives to people for moving to higher income brackets. Along with an increase in the person’s individual income, it contributes to the nation’s GDP. Moreover, poor infrastructure might pose a challenge to this economic transition. The government also needs to work on it. Also, the North Korean government has a reputation for being one of the most corrupt institutions in the world. It must eliminate corruption and establish rule of law for the economy to grow.

Read the article: Flows, Capital, John Dale Grover, and Avik Roy. "North Korea Experiments With Freer Markets." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 01 June 2017. Web. 08 June 2017. <https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2017/06/01/north-korea-experiments-with-freer-markets/#530e5488f4ae>.
Glossary...

Cannibal- a person who eats human flesh, or an animal that eats the flesh of its own type of animal.

Coup- an unexpectedly successful achievement.

Anathema- something that is considered completely wrong and offensive.

# data[].attributes.body
"Mark Cuban: Don't use credit cards."
The article talks about how some of the world’s billionaires like Mark Cuban and Jay Leno don’t use credit cards and prefer cash over credit. It basically analyzes its disadvantages and how a person owning a credit card might run into a debt, if he/she does not follow a few basic guidelines, such as paying off the bills every 30 days. Mark Cuban says that he would rather invest in stock market, instead of paying interests on credit cards. This is related to the chapter “Personal Finance”. The chapter’s basic goal is to analyze stock market investments and credit cards and its pros and cons. There are few basic guidelines a person must follow in order to escape falling into debt and to get a high credit score. But not everyone who owns a credit card is able to do so and as a result, they fall into the debt trap.

Read the article: Elkins, Kathleen. "Mark Cuban: 'Don't Use Credit Cards'." CNBC. CNBC, 31 May 2017. Web. 02 June 2017. <http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/26/mark-cuban-dont-use-credit-cards.html>.

Glossary...

Not mince words- to say what you mean as clearly and directly as possible.

Exorbitant- much too large.

Fortune- a lot of money.

# data[].attributes.body
"The impact of the increase in life expectancy"
This blog discusses the increasing life expectancy of people around the world. The life expectancy has risen from 68.2 to 79.12 years. All this because of the recent advancements in areas such as food production and distribution, public health and medical technology. This spurt in life expectancy has led to an increase in the elderly population all over the world. Just like everything has its own advantages and disadvantages, the increasing elderly population has quite varied impacts on the society and the economy. Elderly people usually have more knowledge about the culture and tradition, which they can pass on to the young. They utilize their free time to provide valuable services to the society. However, at the same time, aging population, which is implied by a rectangular shaped population pyramid, is stressing the medical and health care industry. Old people are usually more prone to get sick with diseases like dementia, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, cancer and other health problems. They need a lot of care and since they don’t contribute to the nation’s GDP, all the resources are drained on them and nothing is left for the others.

Read the blog: "The Impact of the Increase in Life Expectancy." Segue Technologies. N.p., 24 June 2016. Web. 07 June 2017. <http://www.seguetech.com/the-impact-of-the-increase-in-life-expectancy/>.

Glossary...

Geriatrician- a doctor who specializes in the care and treatment of old people.

Unprecedented- never having happened or existed in the past.

# data[].attributes.body
Economics is the investigation of how social orders, governments, organizations, family units, and people dispense their assets. Economics is one of the most important subjects a person gets to study in high school. Good general awareness is one of the most important traits of a literate person. However, it is impossible to have a full understanding of the world, its happenings, and issues with little or no knowledge of economics. Economics helps us to get a thorough understanding of why things happen the way they do.

As for me, taking economics has helped a lot in understanding some of the major things I never understood and probably would not have understood, had I not taken the course. One of the topics I found difficult to understand was the running of the stock market. People around me used to talk about the stock market: that they are thinking of investing in some stocks, that it has crashed and a lot more. If someone asked me about it, I used to be absolutely confused and was really embarrassed as I had no knowledge about the topic. But after I studied the topic in the economics class, I have been a lot more comfortable with the topic of personal finance. I can easily differentiate between a bear market and a bull market and know when people are likely to buy or sell stocks. I also got to know about the working of credit cards. I now know what some of the commonly used terms like credit, debit, mutual fund, stock exchange etc. mean.Thus after taking economics, I have gained some confidence in the topic of personal finance.

Also, the currency fluctuation has been another confusing topic for me. It used to be very difficult for me to understand currency fluctuation and its effects on the economy. But after studying the chapter "International Trade", I now know how exchange rates work. Terms like balance of trade, which seemed confusing previously, are some of the easiest topics to me.  I did not know that currency and its fluctuation plays such an important role in the international trade. But after studying the unit in this course, I have got to know a lot about all this.

The discussion about North Korean economy’s performance is a globally important issue now. Thus it is important for a person, especially who wants to have a good general awareness, must have some knowledge about it. It is important for the person to know why the economy is performing so poorly. Taking the course has helped me a lot in understanding all this. I got to know about the economic system in North Korea, which is a command economy and its disadvantages. I also got to compare South Korea’s economy to the North Korean economy. Now I have gained a lot of knowledge about the two. Previously I thought that it was just due to the dictator’s inexperience and adamance that the North Korean economy lags behind in all aspects. But after studying the chapter “Economic Systems”, I got an understanding of how the setting of the economy also affects its performance. I also got to know how South Korea has developed by leaps and bounds since it became a market economy.

There has been lots of talk regarding developing and under developing economies nowadays. Taking economics has helped me to thoroughly analyze developed, developing and underdeveloped economies. I got to know the challenges economy faces while moving from a command economy to a free market economy, or while developing. Also, I found the many opportunities developing economies could take advantage of. I also got an understanding of the functions of the central bank of a nation and how important a role it plays in the running of the economy.

Thus economic literacy is very important to be a well-informed person. As an individual, studying economics has helped me a lot in understanding many concepts regarding which I had little or no knowledge at all. I can now very confidently talk about some of the major issues of the world and their causes. Life seems a lot easier if you know about the way the world runs. And for a person to understand the working of the world, it is important to study economics as it imparts a lot of important knowledge about the world.

# data[].attributes.body
1. Nandi, Shreya. "Industry Worried of Delayed Forest Clearance as Ministry Weighs Cost-benefit to Environment." Moneycontrol. MoneyControl, 07 June 2017. Web. 08 June 2017.
2. Taylor, Adam. "A Crazy Comparison Of Life In North Korea And South Korea." Business Insider. Business Insider, 08 Apr. 2013. Web. 01 June 2017.
3. Wu, Tim. "The Oligopoly Problem." The New Yorker. The New Yorker, 24 May 2017. Web. 01 June 2017.
4. "Mother Wins Disability Discrimination Case." BBC News. BBC, 09 May 2017. Web. 08 June 2017.
5. Butler, John. "UK Economy Is Overheating and Veering towards Stagflation." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 16 Jan. 2017. Web. 07 June 2017.
6. Agrawal, Nisha. "Inequality in India: What's the Real Story?" World Economic Forum. N.p., 04 Oct. 2016. Web. 30 May 2017.
7. Beritasatuenglish. "Sri Mulyani: Debt Increase Due To Tax Revenue Dip." YouTube. YouTube, 21 Feb. 2017. Web. 07 June 2017.
8. "Decisions Regarding Monetary Policy Implementation: Text." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, 03 May 2017. Web. 09 June 2017.
9. Flows, Capital, John Dale Grover, and Avik Roy. "North Korea Experiments With Freer Markets." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 01 June 2017. Web. 08 June 2017.
10. Elkins, Kathleen. "Mark Cuban: 'Don't Use Credit Cards'." CNBC. CNBC, 31 May 2017. Web. 02 June 2017.
11. "The Impact of the Increase in Life Expectancy." Segue Technologies. N.p., 24 June 2016. Web. 07 June 2017.