What is scarcity?

Factors of production

Capital: the most common AP mistake

How scarcity creates trade-offs

2040608010020406080100Consumer GoodsCapital GoodsA (Inefficient)B (Efficient)C (Unattainable)PPC

The PPC shows all efficient output combinations given scarce resources

Reading the PPC

Opportunity cost on the PPC

Worked example

2040608010020406080100Consumer GoodsCapital GoodsXYPPC

Moving from X to Y: gaining 45 consumer goods costs 38 capital goods

Why the PPC bows outward

Marginal analysis

246810121424681012QuantityDollars ($)Optimal (MB = MC)MBMC

The optimal quantity is where the MB and MC curves intersect

Reading the MB/MC graph

Applying marginal analysis

The three fundamental questions

Economic systems

How the price mechanism works

Scarcity vs. shortage

Free goods vs. economic goods

AP exam tips for 1.1

Common mistakes

Key equations

Vocabulary