Mankiw
Thinking Like an Economist
Multiple Choice – Section 00: Introduction
1. Which of the following is not correct?
a. Economists use some familiar words in specialized ways.
b. Economics has its own language and its own way of thinking, but few other fields of study do.
c. Supply, demand, elasticity, comparative advantage, consumer surplus, and deadweight loss are all
terms that are part of the economist’s language.
d. The value of the economist’s language lies in its ability to provide you with a new and useful way
of thinking about the world in which you live.
ANSWER: b
POINTS: 1
DIFFICULTY: Difficulty: Moderate
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: ECON.MANK.15.5 - LO: 2-0
NATIONAL STANDARDS: United States - BUSPROG: Analytic
TOPICS: DISC: Thinking Like an Economist
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: Comprehension
2. Economists use some familiar terms in specialized ways
a. to make the subject sound more complex than it is.
b. because every respectable field of study has its own language.
c. to provide a new and useful way of thinking about the world.
d. because it was too difficult to come up with new terms.
ANSWER: c
,POINTS: 1
DIFFICULTY: Difficulty: Easy
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: ECON.MANK.15.5 - LO: 2-0
NATIONAL STANDARDS: United States - BUSPROG: Analytic
TOPICS: DISC: Thinking Like an Economist
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: Comprehension
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3. The language of economics is
a. needlessly arcane.
b. valuable because it provides a new and useful way of learning about the world.
c. easy to learn within a day.
d. unnecessary to learn for a thorough understanding of economics.
ANSWER: b
POINTS: 1
DIFFICULTY: Difficulty: Easy
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: ECON.MANK.15.5 - LO: 2-0
NATIONAL STANDARDS: United States - BUSPROG: Analytic
TOPICS: DISC: Thinking Like an Economist
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: Comprehension
Multiple Choice – Section 01: The Economist as Scientist
1. Economists, like mathematicians, physicists, and biologists,
a. make use of the scientific method.
b. try to address their subject with a scientist’s objectivity.
c. devise theories, collect data, and then analyze these data in an attempt to verify or refute their
theories.
d. All of the above are correct.
ANSWER: d
POINTS: 1
DIFFICULTY: Difficulty: Moderate
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: ECON.MANK.15.6 - LO: 2-1
NATIONAL STANDARDS: United States - BUSPROG: Analytic
TOPICS: DISC: Thinking Like an Economist
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: Comprehension
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2. The essence of science is
a. the laboratory experiment.
b. the scientific method.
c. the study of nature, but not the study of society.
d. All of the above are correct.
ANSWER: b
POINTS: 1
DIFFICULTY: Difficulty: Easy
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: ECON.MANK.15.6 - LO: 2-1
NATIONAL STANDARDS: United States - BUSPROG: Analytic
TOPICS: DISC: General
Principles
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: Knowledge
3. The scientific method is
a. the use of modern technology to understand the way the world works.
b. the use of controlled laboratory experiments to understand the way the world works.
c. the dispassionate development and testing of theories about how the world works.
d. the search for evidence to support preconceived theories about how the world works.
ANSWER: c
POINTS: 1
DIFFICULTY: Difficulty: Easy
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: ECON.MANK.15.6 - LO: 2-1
NATIONAL STANDARDS: United States - BUSPROG: Analytic
TOPICS: DISC: General
Principles
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: Knowledge