To know what economics is, we must first know what an economy is. Perhaps most of us think of an economy as a system for the production and distribution of the goods and services we use in everyday life. This is true as far as it goes, but it does not go far enough. The Garden of Eden was a system for the production and distribution of goods and services, but it was not an economy, because everything was available in unlimited abundance. Without scarcity, there is no need economize - and therefore no economics. A distinguished British economist named Lionel Robbins gave the classic definition of economics:
Economics is the study of the use of scarce resources which have alternative uses.
Thomas Sowell, Basic Economics, pg 2
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To be more precise:
Economics is the study of how scarce resources are allocated among alternative uses to satisfy wants.
Sowell's definition is more universal in that economic concepts are germane to bee colonies and other biological systems.
But Economics is a social science which attempts to relate the issues of scarcity to human wants and needs, not merely an abstract optimization problem. This comprises not only our physical needs and wants, but our psychological, moral, ethical, and social values. Bee colonies don't concern themselves with these things, but we do.
That said, the laws of economics are universal - they'd be as true on the planet Vulcan as they are here.
Speaking of Star Trek, imagine if we had transporters, anti-matter reactors, and replicators to solve our basic energy, transportation, and essential good problems. There would STILL be allocation problems, particularly with time and authority.
Humans would still have a finite life with a need for sleep and a desire for leisure. Every ship would have but one Captain, and decisions would have to be made on how to allocate such positions. The economics of the 24th century really isn't much different. They just allocate a different set of scarce resources.
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