Lecture 1- Evolution of Money- from Barter system to Bank of England- Download PDF
Video’s worth Watching
- Construction of The Pyramids
- Problems in Barter System
- Mostly Harmless- Novel by Douglas Adams– Mostly Harmless is a 1992 novel by Douglas Adams and the fifth book in the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series. In chapter 11, the protagonist observes: He had been extremely chastened to realise that although he originally came from a world which had cars and computers he didn’t, by himself, know how any of it worked. … Left to his own devices he couldn’t build a toaster. He could just about make a sandwich and that was it.
- Toaster Project- TED Talk by Designer Thomas Thwaites
- Hobson’s Choice– A Hobson’s choice is a free choice in which only one thing is offered. Because a person may refuse to accept what is offered, the two options are taking it or taking nothing. In other words, one may “take it or leave it”
- Debasing the Currency– A debasement of coinage is the practice of lowering the intrinsic value of coins, especially when used in connection with commodity money, such as gold or silver coins. A coin is said to be debased if the quantity of gold, silver, copper or nickel in the coin is reduced.
- Gresham’s Law– In economics, Gresham’s law is a monetary principle stating that “bad money drives out good”. For example, if there are two forms of commodity money in circulation, which are accepted by law as having similar face value, the more valuable commodity will gradually disappear from circulation.
- Marco Polo and Paper Money– Paper money was introduced as a new idea to western civilization by Marco Polo from details of his Travels to China
- History of Banks
- Gold Standard
- History of Money in 10 Minutes
Extra Resource Materials
- Read The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith
- Read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
- https://www.academia.edu/ Site for Research Articles
- https://escholarship.org/ – Site Research Articles
- Atlas of Economic Complexity is a Harvard Growth Lab’s research and data visualization tool used to understand the economic dynamics and new growth opportunities for every country worldwide
- The Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC) is an online data visualization and distribution platform focused on the geography and dynamics of economic activities.
- The Evolution Institute – The Evolution Institute is a non-profit think tank with a global presence. Our mission is to provide science-based solutions for today’s most pressing social issues in order to improve quality of life
Construction of The Pyramids
Problems in Barter System
Toaster Project- TED Talk by Designer Thomas Thwaites
Debasing the Currency
Gresham’s Law
History of Banks
The Gold Standard Explained
History of Money in 10 Minutes
