Within a year of publication of The Economy Today's fourth edition, the foun dations of communism began to tremble. By the time most students got to the chapter on socialist planning, central planners were looking for new jobs. And teachers of introductory economics were looking for new textbooks Today's students want explanations for the collapse of communism. They are newly motivated to understand how the "invisible hand of the marketplace works and why central planners look with envy at its efficiency. This changing world requires a new approach to economics, going back to basics" and highlighting the comparative appeal of free markets.