Microeconomics vs. Macroeconomics: Definition, Explanation and Comparison in One Minute
Basic Ideas in Economics - Streaming Videos
- An Economic History of the World Since 1400 (The Great Courses) Economics created our world. As the process through which societies provide for their citizens, it has driven everything from trade and politics to warfare and diplomacy. There's not a single aspect of history that has not been influenced by economics. Discover a riveting, centuries-long story of power, glory, and ideology that reveals how economic ideas emerged, evolved, and thrived or died.
- What Is a Price? Basic Ideas in Economic Literacy Everything has a price tag, but who sets all these prices? What hides behind a price tag? How does price control your life? We all know "the best things in life are free" and "you can't buy happiness", right? So why do we insist on putting a price on just about everything? Well, we don't. That's the first of many surprising lessons viewers learn in What Is a Price?: a price is not an arbitrary number someone "puts" on something. Viewers learn that a price is information disguised as a number. (Learning Seed USA)
- Adam Smith: The Wealth of Nations (Films for the Humanities) DESCRIPTION In 1776, Adam Smith published The Wealth of Nations, a treatise that would forever change our understanding of how work, value, and money are interrelated. This program details Smith’s life and traces the impact of his work as Europe began the arduous transition from mercantilism to the laissez-faire philosophy of the Physiocrats. After Smith, labor was seen as the source of a country’s wealth, not its stores of gold or silver. Ironically, The Wealth of Nations would both inspire Karl Marx’s socialist ideas and facilitate the rise of liberalism, upon which the capitalist economies of subsequent centuries would be built. Quotes from The Wealth of Nations are woven into the narrative, including the famous passage describing how an “invisible hand” guides individuals towards the common good. (19 minutes)
- Global Capitalism and the Moral Imperative (University of Notre Dame) In the rising tide of the global economy, some boats are riding high, and some are being left high and dry. Moral leaders warn that global laissez-faire is producing consequences similar to those of the 19th century, when gaps between rich and poor kept thousands in abject poverty for generations. In this new era of social Darwinism, moral leaders are asking who in the world community will care for the needs of the poor, and how it will be accomplished. If economic and political reforms are necessary, as they were in the 19th century, we must determine who will initiate them, and how they will be enforced. (29 minutes)
- Capitalism is a Blessing (Intelligence Squared Debates) Dovan summarizes opening statements. Sunkara questions the point of production—freedom for whom? Mangu-Ward counters that capitalism defends the rights of a minority. Wolff states that life is about more than outputs; Mackey cites negative socialist outcomes.
- Ecological Economics Richard Norgaard, Energy and Resources Program, University of California, Berkeley, surveys the history of human economies and the myths and premises of current economic practices. In place of our ecologically destructive practices, he endorses an ecological economics that emphasizes care, co-evolution, and protection from the environment.
- Inequality (PBS) Is it justified that professional athletes earn exponentially more than elementary school teachers? Professor Sandel conducts a discussion with the participants, including Jeroen Woe and Philip Huff, about the ever-increasing gap between the poor and rich. Distributed by PBS Distribution.
- A Look at Communism (Prelinger Archives) This is the first of a bracket of three films examining the major political and economic systems of the world today. (12 minutes)
- Introduction to Economics - The Operation of an Economy (Discovery Education) Goods and services drive economies. In this program viewers explore the concept of production and how needs and wants are linked to economic growth. The stages of production and the importance of meeting demand are detailed along with specialization, the circular flow of income, the role of the government, and foreign trade. In addition, viewers will see a historical perspective on the concepts.
- Citizenship and civic responsibilities This Prelinger Archives film from 1955 asks young citizens to study the American way of life while opposing communism, socialism, and their propaganda techniques. Dr. Clifton L. Ganus, Jr., an instructor in the National Education Program Workshop at Harding College, speaks in front of a classroom of young people about the importance of free enterprise, the profit motive, and other tenets of conservative economics. Ganus employs simple graphic elements which he manipulates himself--for example, he stacks cardboard bricks labeled with political concepts into a tower, then knocks over the tower to illustrate the vulnerability of American freedom. Other props include a globe used to show how Communism is spreading across the planet. He also engages students in the discussion, and they respond in the same scripted manner of speech used by Ganus. National Education Program. (11 minutes)
- The Nature of Economics (Introduction to Economics) This program explains the relationship between people's wants and available resources. It also defines the principle of Opportunity Cost and relates its application to everyday life.
