Wikipedia:Today's featured article/August 3, 2004

Economics is the social science studying the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. Understanding choices by individuals and groups is central in economics, as choosing one alternative often means foregoing another (see opportunity cost). The term economics was coined around 1870 and popularized by Alfred Marshall in his book Principles of Political Economy. Before the 1930s, most economic analysis concentrated on individual firms and industries (microeconomics); however John Maynard Keynes pioneered the more modern macroeconomics, a branch of economics that attempts to make predictions about an entire economy. (more...)

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