IN THIS CHAPTER YOU WILL LEARN:

1. How macroeconomics studies both long-run economic growth and short-run fluctuations in output and unemployment.



2. Why economists focus on GDP, inflation, and unemployment when assessing the health of an entire economy.



3. That sustained increases in living standards are a historically recent phenomenon.



4. Why savings and investment are key factors in promoting rising living standards.



5. Why economists believe that "shocks" and "sticky prices" are responsible for short-run fluctuations in output and employment.