Wednesday March 27: last call for the assignments from Monday

See below for the exact and detailed instructions

Cheers,
Mr. L

PS When the online grade-books for the fourth quarter are opened, these grades will be going in immediately thereafter. That means sometime during the vacation. So do 'em now, or do 'em during your time off. Your choice

Monday March 25: what does it mean?

Greetings children!

We've been talking for some time about industrial development, growing economies and differences in income between people and nations. Today, I would like you to begin by helping to define the following words. Words are used so often by so many people, often without any thought to what they actually mean.

Tell me, what do these words mean? (Not less than four complete sentences to explain each one. And please give specific examples of what you mean, either from your own personal experience, study of history, your extensive reading of the Wall Street Journal, etc etc) 

money  --

wealth --

resource --

raw materials --

property --

patent --

copyright --

economic development --

Please send your results to me in an email, with your name and the phrase "what does it mean?" in the subject line

cheers,
Mr. L

Monday March 25: why does it happen?

Greetings children,

You will find as you get older that all too often, people SAY a lot without really THINKING about the words which come out of their mouths. We like to think that here in America, we're somehow "immune" to the effects of propaganda. (I believe that the very fact so many of think that we're not being subjected to it only proves just how all pervasive it is.)

In any event, in this morning's exploration into economic development we will examine some commonly held beliefs. And just to stire the pot, you will have to see at least two sides of the issue

WHAT TO DO

Argue for each side, for and against, not less than three complete sentences to explain each argument. Please give specific examples when making your arguments 


Do rich nations get that way by taking their wealth from poor nations?

Which is more important for economic development: lots of raw materials or people being allowed to make use of them?

Do rich nations stop developing because their people begin to take their wealth for granted?

Can a rich nation use its power to suppress economic development in other nations to protect its own economy, which has also stopped developing?

Can the larger businesses and corporations in a rich nation use their power to suppress smaller businesses which might (someday) pose a threat to them?

Please send your results to me in an email, with your name and the phrase "why does it happen?" in the subject line

cheers,
Mr. L

Thursday March 21: Last Call for Further Explorations Part 2

Greetings one and all,

Today will be the last day we are working on the assignment found here:

http://hugeosect1.blogspot.com/2013/03/thursday-march-14-further-explorations.html


Next week we shall be moving onwards and upwards. Also, speaking of next week, Third Quarter grades close next Tuesday the 26th. 


And of course, speaking of grades, I have -- as promised -- put in the grades for these assignments :


http://hugeosect1.blogspot.com/2013/03/thurs-march-7-some-followup-questions.html

AND

http://hugeosect1.blogspot.com/2013/03/tuesday-march-12-further-examination-of.html

If you have any questions of any kind about any of these assignments, or the grades which you have received, then by all means please come up and talk to me, or send me an email

cheers,

Mr. L

PS Those of you who have sent in the latest assignment have had instructions for improving your responses sent back to you. Those of you who haven't sent it in, what in blue blazes are you waiting for? 

Tuesday March 19: wrapping up these three assignments

Greetings, one and all!

Today we will be working on finishing up the following assignments:

A) Starting from yesterday, the assignment found here:
http://hugeosect1.blogspot.com/2013/03/thursday-march-14-further-explorations.html


B) The following two assignments have been due for some time now, and the grades for them will be going in later on today

http://hugeosect1.blogspot.com/2013/03/thurs-march-7-some-followup-questions.html

AND

http://hugeosect1.blogspot.com/2013/03/tuesday-march-12-further-examination-of.html


These last two I have sent out an email to everyone who still owes this assignment. If you have them finished already, then you should immediately bring it to me. If  they're not finished, you should finish them today during class. If they are not yet begun, well then what are you waiting for?

Cheers,
Mr. L

PS I have examined many of the assignments which WERE turned in for point "A"; I will be sending you some detailed instructions on how to improve them

Monday March 18: finish up further explorations of economic development PART 2

This was the assignment we began last Thursday. You need to finish it and send it my way by email attachment. Even if you have worked cooperatively, each of you needs to send your individual answers to me from your individual email accounts.

Following that, you will need to send me any and all assignments which you also still owe, especially from the following:

http://hugeosect1.blogspot.com/2013/03/tuesday-march-12-further-examination-of.html 

http://hugeosect1.blogspot.com/2013/03/thurs-march-7-some-followup-questions.html

These two assignments will be going either tonight or by the end of class tomorrow at the latest

cheers,
Mr. L

Thursday March 14: further explorations of economic development PART 2

1) In America, life is good. We have wealth beyond the dreams of emperors, and most people who live here live very well. In many respects, all but our very poorest live better than perhaps half the population of the world. I would like you to list – and briefly explain, using at least one complete sentence per item – not less than 13 items, services, stuff that we have here in abundance. Do not leave out or overlook those items which perhaps we take for granted

2) Take a look at the map above. It is, admittedly, 10 or 12 years old; yet let us assume that it is correct in its assumption that both China and India are low per capita income countries. They have big economies, but lots and lots of people, so that when all the wealth is divvied up, most of the people in those countries don’t have very much.

Now let us assume that both China and India continue to grow and develop economically. Let us assume that 10 per cent – that’s 1/10th —of the people who live in those countries achieve some version of the comfortable middle class lifestyle so many of us enjoy here in America.

Approximately how many people would that be?  at least one complete sentence

How comparable is that number to the total American population? at least one complete sentence

Lets assume that all those people will want a lifestyle similar to what we have here in America. How will all the stuff that we have get produced? How will it happen? WHERE will that “stuff” be produced? At least four complete sentences

That “stuff” is made from raw materials. Using the list of stuff from the very first question you answered today, I would like you to now produce a list of the raw materials that are used to make those items. Match the item to the list of stuff, like so:

Item 1 – material A, material B, Material C, material D, material E

Item 2 – material A, material B, Material C, material D, material E

Etc

Etc

  

So let’s say you are one of the leaders of either one of those nations (China or India). You know that the new middle class in your country will want stuff and that its politically expedient to make sure they get what they want. Formulate a strategy to make sure this happens.

This strategy should include the following:

Who will produce all the stuff that your people will buy?

Where will that stuff be manufactured?

How will you make sure that ALL the raw materials your country needs be secured?

Other countries might want the very same raw materials…what will you do about that?
not less than seven complete sentences


3) The map above makes it all look so simple, but even within "green" countries with advanced economies, there are often vast areas that are anything but advanced. Oftentimes, they WERE advanced once upon a time, but have slipped back into being less advanced and lower income. For example, in this article
http://www.wilx.com/news/headlines/87054002.html
about the city of Detroit

A) what, generally speaking, does the article talk about? what has happened to Detroit? What do they plan on doing about it? three complete sentences

B)  Discuss the possibility that what has happened in Detroit could also take place across America, given the correct circumstances. Is it possible that nations have life cycles just like people: they are born, grow, mature then die?  four complete sentences

Tuesday March 12: a further examination of economic development

Greetings and exhortations!

Today, we will continue to explore models of economic development. Below are the remaining slides from the second round. Here is what I wish you to do:

A) read the slides

B) answer the following questions about those slides

C) send your answers my way in an email with your name and todays date in the subject line

cheers,
Mr. L

QUESTIONS:

1) One of the slides maintains that "expendable income" is what is left over after all bills have been paid. Is it possible that bills automatically go up as income goes up? Please discuss this possibility, with at least two arguments in favor of this proposal and two arguments against it. A complete sentence for each argument

2) As a followup, it has been said that taxes collected by government at all levels is the biggest set of bills anyone pays. Please discuss the possibility that taxes as a percentage of income go up as societies go from being less to more developed Not less than three complete sentences

3) In the slide for "demographic indicators", there is some talk of "gender equality, meaning equality of opportunity. Presumably, this means that as societies progress economically, women will have more equality of opportunity vis a vis men. How true is this? How much proof can you offer that this is so? Not less than four complete sentences, with two being in favor of this proposition being true and two that it is not true

4) In the slide which discusses "Primary, Secondary Tertiary" economic activity -- plus the slide which immediately follows it -- it is stated that as societies advance and become wealthier, there is a smaller and smaller percentage of people involved in "primary" activities. Is this good for society as a whole, or is it merely a bubble that can potentially explode if economic growth stops, or even regresses and goes backwards. Two complete sentences arguing that it is a good thing, two opposing sentences arguing how it can be harmful

5) In the slide for Technology, it states that the "technology gap" means that some people have more access to technology, or know more about how to use it. Which comes first? An argument for each one being the cause, with the other being the effect, two complete sentences for each argument

6) In the slide about "raw materials" it is stated that a nation can have a lot of raw materials and still not be wealthy; it further explains that it depends upon who OWNS the raw materials and can profit from them. Question: are raw materials inherently worth something. Please give three examples of some raw materials which you believe ARE inherently valuable vs three that only have value because people figured out what the heck to do with them. Explain to me WHY those raw materials are inherently valuable

7) In the slide pertaining to the "Human Development Index", HDI is defined as being comprised of life expectancy, literacy, education, and standard of living. They don't define any of these terms. How would you define "standard of living"? Not less than three complete sentences

8) Which comes first, greater literacy and education, or a a longer life expectancy. Create at least one argument for literacy/education being first, one for longer life expectancy. At least two complete sentences explaining each position

9) Create your own question, and answer it

10) Repeat number 9 above

Monday March 11: making up for lost assignments

Each of you has been emailed a list of assignments which you owe. You will need to spend this morning tending to those

cheers,
Mr. L

Thurs March 7: some followup questions for the notes (questions A to G)

Greetings everyone... before we begin, be it known that I will need -- from each of you -- copies of ALL emails you have sent to ALL sources you have contacted. Please collect all such correspondence into one document, so that I can get an accurate measure of how many people you have located, emailed and gotten a response from.

Greetings once again,

Now that you have sent in the first round of notes, I thought it might be a good idea to derive some questions from them, and answer them too. (It's also a good idea not to be "overly succinct" in your explanations; lets just say of minimum of six complete sentences per answer are in order here.) Here are my questions for you:

A) The very first slide talks about the division between "haves" and "have nots", between people (and nations) that have got wealth, and those that don't. The author also notes that

"Energy and other resources are distributed unevenly among countries."  

My question to you is this: "What IS a resource, anyway? What defines something as being a resource? Is a resource automatically a resource, or does it have to become one

B) There are many times when you will hear or read about resources being "limited". If people believe that this is the case, what might they do about it? I would like you to list at least two possible reactions to this idea of "limited resources", one is that is positive, and one that is shall we say NOT so positive. How are either of these reactions caused by the notion of "limited resources"?

C) On the second slide, the "pessimistic viewpoint" slide, there is a statement which runs as follows

"Usually, when there is a need for a product, the market fills that need.  However, what happens when no market exists for a product?  The market may not be ready for the production of a particular product."

This makes it sound as if "the market" is some abstract entity, or perhaps some visitor from a distant planet. Which is clearly nonsense.

So, what IS "the market"? What is meant by "the market"? (Be forewarned, throwing back prepackaged definitions you find online here will NOT help you. This is something which you are going to have to think about) 

D) Also on this same slide, it has been stated that 

"The last concern is that investment is not allocated equally around the globe but rather is concentrated in only a few locations.   A lack of investment seriously limits some areas’ opportunities for growth."

To my mind, this makes it seem that there will never be economic development in some parts of the world, because people who HAVE money to invest will never invest it in those regions. Here's a question: how did the people with investment money come by it in the first place? How did the countries they come from get rich in the first place? 

E) Slides 5 and 6 talk about "Rostow's theory of economic development", which has several stages or steps. In the first step, there is a very low level of economic development, yet in the very next step, the "preconditions for economic growth arise".

The question: HOW does this happen? How do you achieve economic growth of any kind where previously there was none?

F)   Rostow goes on to say that FOREIGN INVESTMENT precede any serious economic growth. Again, here's the question: WHY would anyone invest money in some place that previously had little or no economic growth? What are they seeing that others do not?

G) On Slide 7, the assertion is made that there are some places on earth that might not ever experience economic growth the way some other places have;

"Nepal’s economy may never look like Denmark’s because the two countries’ cultures and histories are inherently different"

While it is true that countries can have vastly different cultures, does this mean that some cultures are inherently superior to others? And if so, how can you tell which ones are which? Which cultures are more receptive to economic growth? For example, in my youth it would have been considered laughable to think that China and India would become emerging economic superpowers; yet now they are

Please send your thoughts my way. By email. With your name and "A - G" in the subject line

cheers,

Mr. L

Tuesday March 5: Economic development part two

Greetings everyone... as you may have surmised, I am not here today. That much notwithstanding, we can still move forward; just not quite in the same manner that I had hoped. Here is what we will be doing today:

A) ALL assignments posted up until now --if they have not already been declared so -- are now officially due. Meaning, if you haven't done them by now, do them today and send them my way

B) Assuming that you are done with that then you will need to begin by typing up the following information, and then sending it to me by email with your name and today's date in the subject line

Cheers,
Mr. L