1. Explain the causes of the Great Depression in terms of what you know about the economy today. Do you think another Great Depression is possible?
2. Assume that you were in business and intended to build a plant to turn out a promising new item-say, a pencil that would last twice as long as the kinds available now. Discuss what sorts of developments might discourage you from making this investment? Discuss how much would your final decision hinge on what you anticipated for the future, compared with what you knew to be the situation today?
3. Discuss how can the money you put into the bank get back into someone's hands as his or her income? The money you put into insurance? The money you put into a newly formed business?
4. What sorts of businesses would be hit by your reduced spending? Would they, in turn, curtail their expenditures? If your income (or your parents') were suddenly reduced to half, by how much would your expenditures fall?
5. Explain why is investment so critical in determining the level of prosperity?