What is Economy: Definition and 98 Discussions

An economy (from Greek οίκος – "household" and νέμoμαι – "manage") is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services by different agents. In general, it is defined 'as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the production, use, and management of resources'. A given economy is the result of a set of processes that involves its culture, values, education, technological evolution, history, social organization, political structure and legal systems, as well as its geography, natural resource endowment, and ecology, as main factors. These factors give context, content, and set the conditions and parameters in which an economy functions. In other words, the economic domain is a social domain of interrelated human practices and transactions that does not stand alone.
Economic agents can be individuals, businesses, organizations, or governments. Economic transactions occur when two groups or parties agree to the value or price of the transacted good or service, commonly expressed in a certain currency. However, monetary transactions only account for a small part of the economic domain.
Economic activity is spurred by production which uses natural resources, labor and capital. It has changed over time due to technology, innovation (new products, services, processes, expanding markets, diversification of markets, niche markets, increases revenue functions) such as, that which produces intellectual property and changes in industrial relations (most notably child labor being replaced in some parts of the world with universal access to education).
A market-based economy is one where goods and services are produced and exchanged according to demand and supply between participants (economic agents) by barter or a medium of exchange with a credit or debit value accepted within the network, such as a unit of currency. A command-based economy is one where political agents directly control what is produced and how it is sold and distributed. A green economy is low-carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive. In a green economy, growth in income and employment is driven by public and private investments that reduce carbon emissions and pollution, enhance energy and resource efficiency, and prevent the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. A gig economy is one in which short-term jobs are assigned or chosen via online platforms. New economy is a term that referred to the whole emerging ecosystem where new standards and practices were introduced, usually as a result of technological innovations. The global economy refers to humanity's economic system or systems overall.

View More On Wikipedia.org
  1. chwala

    Calculate the speed of car for maximum economy

    This is the problem, This is the textbook solution ; i think the textbook solution is not correct! My thought, ##S_{max}## will be given by $$\frac {dy}{dS}=0$$ $$\frac {dy}{dS}=\frac {-1}{400}S+\frac {1}{5}=0$$ $$S=80$$ It is maximum economy because ##y{''}<0##, i.e by use of the second...
  2. jk22

    World Economy Crash: Impact & Causes

    Suppose the world's economy crashes, this would mean : 1) it was not the whole world, since the Earth economy is a closed system, so the well going economy went somewhere else not known ? 2) there are extraterrestrial economies outside the solar system maybe ?
  3. G

    Math In the current economy, how competitive are actuarial jobs?

    I am considering switching to a math major with a track in actuarial science (curriculum here https://catalog.louisville.edu/undergraduate/majors/mathematics-bs/#trackrequirementstext), with a minor in computer science (since that will only take me 2-3 more classes). I was wondering, given the...
  4. G

    Is Venus the key to economic success in our solar system?

    I am writing a space opera, that is meant to be hard, except some alien magic. So far, i have the following points : asteroid belt is the most valuable for rare material mining, there they live in O Neil cylinders. Travel is done by fusion ships, that can maintain miliG-s of constant...
  5. M

    Conversion to fuel economy in equivalent MPG using kcal/h and mi/h

    So I'm guessing we need our end unit to be in MPG? a) walking ( 220 kcal/ 1 hr )⋅ ( 1hr / 3 mile ) = 73 .3 kcal/mi⋅⋅ (73 .3 kcal/ 1 mile) ⋅ (4,186 J/1 kcal) = 3,06833.8 J/mi (1.30 x 10^8 J/ 1 gal)(1 mile / 3,06833.8 J) = 423.68 MPG b) bicycling Not sure as it says,"...when riding at 10.0...
  6. bagasme

    Effects and Implications of 100% Income Tax Rate

    Hello all, Suppose that in a monopoly game (board game), a player passed through Go and receive $2000 as salary. Then he landed on Income Tax and he paid $2000 too. It means that he paid 100% tax rate, in other words he paid all of his salary only for the tax. What the effects and implications...
  7. Jarvis323

    Expiration date on the economy as we know it

    More and more it keeps ocuring to me that the modern economies and styles of government that we have now may have a fast approaching expiration date. For example, with AI and autonomous robotics, we could soon have exponentially fast growing industrial complexes in space. And the amount of...
  8. BillTre

    An Ammonia Economy for Energy Transport and Storage

    With a new fuel cell to make ammonia from nitrogen and water (producing oxygen as a side product), Australian researchers are hoping to develop an efficient carbon-free way to store and transport energy from sources like solar panels and wind generators. Ammonia's: Longish Science mag news...
  9. Posty McPostface

    Will climate change stimulate or harm the economy?

    I'm reading about the parable of the broken window, which states: I was wondering if this can be related in some way to climate change as a whole. My reasoning is that given that climate change is a consequence of a lack of knowledge about the sum total negative and positive externalities of...
  10. Posty McPostface

    Your thoughts about excess reserves?

    Chart: Source. So, inflation has been low, which has been troubling economists and the FED over the effectiveness of undertaken Quantitive Easing (QE). What's the cause of this, and are banks holding onto excess reserves the real issue here? What are your thoughts about all this liquidity in...
  11. Grands

    News Is the world economy meritocratic?

    As in the title, I'm curious to know if in you opinion our economy work in a meritocratic way, promoting people that deserve wealthy and penalize who doesn't deserve nothing ? Thanks.
  12. P

    Has the market corrupted the goal of education?

    Forgive my rather philosophical posted question; but, having been in college for little more than a year, I can't but help to feel that what was once considered a noble goal of 'conditioning the soul' (as Plato might say) via education has instead been turned into the gratification of wants and...
  13. P

    Can Economics be guided by science?

    In economics, Adam Smith coined the term (rather unintentionally) 'the invisible hand' of economics that drives all the efficiency gains and progress entailed by using the market to mediate and satisfy human wants and needs. The rather recent advent of the market entity has led to enormous...
  14. P

    How will cheap energy affect the economy?

    I've been following a lot of news and articles about various technologies potentially providing abundant energy at dirt cheap prices. I don't want to advocate about any single technology that will provide cheap and abundant energy; however, it is becoming more and more clear that renewables will...
  15. kyphysics

    How Does a Communist Economy Work?

    I understand that in free-market economies that people have the right to private property and own the means of production, while in a communist economy everything is owned by the government. What does the ladder mean, though? Clearly, even if a communist country, people have their own...
  16. T

    Can one photon be heard by multiple listeners on a radio station?

    In my undergraduate days I remember learning about the double slit experiment etc. in quantum mechanics. And I'm only now starting to learn about the Standard model. So there are these fields; higgs, electro-magnetic, strong and weak nuclear. So if a photon is a perturbation in the...
  17. C

    Automotive Could cars have a better fuel economy at low speeds?

    The part that I roughly understand: 1) Drag equation, drag increases by square of velocity, thus if it was only factor to be taken into account then the lower speed the better. 2) In case of cargo ships there is a policy of decreasing speed to reduce fuel usage, called "slow steaming". It...
  18. J

    Warren Buffet is wrong about the U.S. economy

    A statement I often hear from Warren Buffet in interviews is (I'm paraphrasing here) "The GDP is forecast to grow at 2% per year and the population is forecast to expand 1% per year. So, Americans will continue to get wealthier, at a rate of 1% per year." The big point he's missing is that the...
  19. J

    I came up with a plan to grow our economy

    Hey, guys, I came up with a fool-proof plan to grow the economy. What we will do is inflate asset prices. We'll get real estate agents to appraise houses at artificially high values and we'll also drive people into the stock market through QE/inflation. Then everyone will feel like they have...
  20. jdawg

    Engineering Economy: Depreciation

    Homework Statement Ellen wants to expand her factory with a $8500 addition. It will increase revenue by $7,000 per year, and only increase costs by $1,000. The $8500 consists of $2900 for a building and $5600 for machinery. US depreciation rules apply. The income tax rate is 35%. Based on her...
  21. jdawg

    Engineering Economy: Tricky fixed cost problem

    Homework Statement John pays $500 to a tailor for a regular supply of new shirts. The tailor delivers 5 black shirts. He next wants to purchase 10 red shirts at the contract rate of $11 per shirt. For the black and the red shirts together, what are the fixed and variable cost of the shirts...
  22. Astronuc

    News Outlook for the Global Economy

    Japan Slides Into Recession as Tax Hike Takes Toll http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/japan-slides-recession-tax-hike-takes-toll-26960189 EU seems somewhat optimistic, at least about EU and US. http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/publications/european_economy/2014/pdf/ee2_en.pdf...
  23. S

    Radix Economy of Complex Bases

    On the Wikipedia page for Radix Economy it shows how to find the economy (efficiency for data storage) of a positive real base like 2, e, 3, pi, etc but how would I find the economy of a complex or negative base? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radix_economy I want to find the economy of Donald...
  24. S

    News Does any economy actually have a consumption tax ?

    Does any economy actually have a "consumption tax"? Since it's tax time for individuals in the USA, I have some idle curiosity about proposals for changing the tax laws. In particular, I wonder about replacing income tax with a "consumption tax". Is there any country or economy that acutally...
  25. A

    Is a PhD I This Economy Worth It?

    Is a PhD I This Economy Worth It? As I am currently looking to reapply to grad schools, I noticed when I call/email professors regarding research projects most of them say they have low or no funding and cannot support new grad students. Now, assuming they are not lying to me, the number of...
  26. E

    Modelling fuel economy and more economical options

    Consider a situation in which two motorists, Arwa and Bao, share the same driving route but own different sized vehicles. Arwa fills up her vehicle’s tank at a station along her normal route for US$ p(1) per litre. On the other hand, Bao drives an extra d kilometres out of his normal route to...
  27. K

    PW, FW, and AW method in engineering economy

    Homework Statement i just have a simple question. in engineering economy, when you're comparing alternatives and they don't tell you whether to use PW, FW, or AW method, can you just use any one? Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution
  28. D

    News [Economy] Federal Reserve announces new round of quantitative easing

    The Federal Reserve announced an indefinite $40 billion per month round of quantitative easing. This new phase of easing will combat a weakening economy, strengthen confidence in the financial system and assure that the central bank's mandates on unemployment/housing are met...
  29. L

    Why would fuel cells be good for the economy?

    Congratulations, you've created a fuel cell car! Now you need electricity or fossil fuels to create hydrogen to fuel the car. So burn some coal to get electricity. How exactly does this help the environment again? What am I missing here?
  30. I

    Atom Economy: How to Calculate It?

    To work out the answer to this question, do I just find the total Mr of the products and divide it by the total Mr of the reactants (and then multiply by 100, and pick the biggest percentage?) Cheers
  31. C

    News Find Answers to Economy Questions on a Forum

    Is anyone aware a good forum do as/discuss economy issues? Something like this one, but with the theme economy. Thank you regards
  32. L

    Combining math, cs and economy - Job prospects?

    Long time reader, first time poster here! Scroll down for actual question, here's some back story: Within the coming days/weeks I'll send in my university applications here in Sweden but I have yet to decide what subject to choose. This time last year I applied for a 3-year bachelor's...
  33. J

    Engineering Economy: Present Worth of Projected Savings

    Homework Statement Standby Power for water utility pumps and other electrical devices is provided by diesel-powered generators. As an Alternative, the utility can use natural gas to power generators, but it will be a few years before the gas is available at remote sites. The utility...
  34. Evo

    News The Shadow Banking Market: A Hidden Cause of the Economic Collapse?

    This is an excellent show, IMO. http://billmoyers.com/episode/full-show-economic-malpractice-and-the-millennials/
  35. J

    The case for a methanol-based economy

    Note to mods: this is my first post, unsure about the best forum for this query. Please feel free to move if necessary. Thanks. I have this wild notion that one possible way to “quickly” replace fossil fuels is methanol. Methanol is the simplest alcohol (CH3OH), liquid and stable at room...
  36. J

    News South Korea's Economy: A Look at Growth & Education

    What do people think of South Korea's economy. They seem to have had a lot of growth. What would people attribute this to. They are highly educated in Korea but the Korean market is not able to absorb the amount of people with degrees. Is this a disaster in planing or has this helped to drive...
  37. Evo

    News Does Rick perry have a plan to fix the US economy?

    With the rise in Texas unemployment, the rise in Texas high school dropouts, one of the highest levels of workers being paid minimum wage and below due to the lack of education in Texas, does Perry have a plan to prevent this from happening to the US if he was elected? With a track record...
  38. sophiecentaur

    Another magnetic fuel economy enhancer?

    http://www.fueltec.no/" I don't know whether this is the right place to post but I have come across the above website. It seems to be another of these magnetic treatments for improving fuel efficiency. Does anyone have an opinion as to whether it's a goer or just a way of chucking money away...
  39. fluidistic

    What would happen in the economy if

    I've googled this question and saw some answers already, but they do not convinced me. What would happen in the economy if everyone in the world wake up and see 1 billion dollars in their house or stuff in where they live. Some people would want to build a huge house or buy lots of...
  40. D

    Can Alloy Wheels Really Improve Fuel Economy?

    Will switching to alloy wheels (typically 17% lighter than steel) noticibly improve fuel economy? It seems like we should be able to calculate a rough estimate if we had necessary data but i don't. Has anyone been there?
  41. rootX

    News US economy and Immigrants

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12810828 This tells that African immigrants are finding their home countries better than America. A simple observation linking immigration to the economic cycle is something really interesting. There is not data in that article however, I noticed that...
  42. ThomasT

    News Is outsourcing/offshoring the biggest threat to the US general economy?

    I'm naive on this subject and have no opinion. But I was curious after reading an article in the March 25 issue of The Week what more knowledgeable observers might have to say. The text of the article is reproduced below. <<huge quote of copyrighted material deleted>>
  43. russ_watters

    Fuel Economy Booster: Review of Fuel Doctor Device

    Saw this for sale at Best Buy: http://reviews.bestbuy.com/3545/9754101/fuel-doctor-fuel-efficiency-booster-gray-reviews/reviews.htm The claim is that via power conditioning, the device improves the accuracy of your car's sensors and other electronic devices, thereby improving the car's...
  44. P

    Is Computer Modeling Essential for Understanding the Economy?

    In EE when one has 40 transistor all agree that it is to complex for a person to understand without using computer simulation. In an economy with 7 billion people and millions of groups, organizations, corporation, governments most seem to feel that simple analogies are good enough to understand...
  45. N

    The Achilles heel of the economy

    If trading in company capital on the open market was banned, there could be no more boom and bust cycles caused by dramatic changes in fickle confidence, while an investor could still sell his shares in a company, but only for their real, book value and not for a fictional market price. If banks...
  46. rootX

    News Is Ben Bernanke facing political pressure as Fed chair?

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11678022 Good time to buy US dollars?
  47. V

    Economy Textbooks for Math Lovers

    I'm looking for good economy textbooks for the mathematically inclined (me :-) ). Anybody any suggestions ? Mostly interested in monetary aspects and macro economy but might also be broader.
  48. J

    News Do Low Interest Rates Really Help The Economy?

    The theory goes that lowering interest rates allows people to borrow more and this stimulates consumption. However, as I mentioned in https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=415842" low interest rates allow people to hold onto non perishable goods longer. The consequences is a surplus of...
  49. N

    Optimal Speed for Fuel Efficiency

    hi, what is the exact best speed for fuel economy? why is 5mph less economic than 75mph?
  50. C

    News Could Significantly Upping Defense Spending Help the Economy Recover?

    So I've been thinking, many on the left say we need massive economic fiscal stimulus to recover the economy. They say the reason fiscal stimulus hasn't worked in the past is not enough money spent. However, they say WWII represents a time when the nation finally did spend the massive amount...
Back
Top