Beginning with a concise overview of brain evolution in early hominids and what appears to be barter behavior in chimps, this program traces the rudiments of the human wealth orientation as it developed at Wadi Faynan, a prehistoric agrarian settlement; at the ancient town of Catal Hoyuk; and at Uruk, a major Sumerian trading city
As ancient trading broadened and became more complex, barter became inadequate. In this program, host Peter Jay; Andrew Meadows, curator of the British Museum; Exeter University's Richard Seaford; and archaeologist John Camp examine history's first surge of coinage, from the stamped nuggets of electrum used at Sardis to the dominance of the denarius throughout the far-flung Roman Empire. The rise of the Agora in Athens as a locus for commerce and information, the effects of Roman law on trade, and other topics are discussed-along with the massive limestone currency used on the Micronesian island of Yap.
As recession enfolded Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire, the economic axis shifted to the Islamic world, where the concept of risk management was born. This program, hosted by Peter Jay, explores the Muslim commercial empire in Egypt, the reemergence of trade in northwestern Europe with the waning of the Dark Ages, and the rise of banking and sophisticated accounting methods among the Italian states. Stefan Reif, of Cambridge University Library, and historians Christopher Dyer and Rheinhold Mueller discourse on subjects ranging from centuries-old financial records preserved in Cairo's Ben Ezra synagogue to Venetian maritime trade.
This program, hosted by Peter Jay, focuses on Europe's hunger for wealth as it relates to the exploitation of the New World and the First Industrial Revolution. Expert commentary on the Aztec civilization, Europe's bullion famine, England's cottage industries, and expanding markets in North America-combined with the prescient writings of Daniel DeFoe and Bernard de Mandeville-lay the groundwork for a deep understanding of modern economics. The lesson? Spanish plunder, unproductively invested, was soon depleted, whereas British commercial enterprise paved the way for sustainable economic growth.
Fueled by one scientific breakthrough after another, the Second Industrial Revolution supercharged both manufacturing and trade, but it also led to economic rivalries that indirectly resulted in two world wars. In this program, host Peter Jay, Henry Kissinger, historians Richard Overy and Chris Ellmers, and Miller Carnegie, great-grandson of Andrew Carnegie, analyze the importance of science and technology, banking and big business, immigration, nationalism, and laissez-faire capitalism as forces for rapid societal change. Economic collapse in post-World War I Germany and America is also addressed.
Just as there was once a time without wealth, might there come a time without poverty? In this program, host Peter Jay scrutinizes the attempts by Great Britain, Russia, the People's Republic of China, and Tanzania to stabilize and recharge their economies during the last half-century, while interviews with citizens who have lived through both good times and bad reveal the mixed results of governmental and institutional efforts to raise their standards of living. In addition, Jay looks ahead to the year 2300 and makes intriguing predictions as to the state of the world's economy.