Civics 101 is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Okay, your level sound good, Professor. Are you ready to jump in?

Absolutely. Absolutely.

So my first question and maybe it's foolish to start with this one.

What is money?

So, um, if you really want me to try to answer that?

You may be willing to trade some of that bubble gum for the glass coffee maker to give your mom for her birthday,

but the man in the hardware store just may not be interested in that gum.

That's why money was invented.

This is Civics 101, the podcast press reports on the basics of how our democracy works.

I'm Nick Capitice. I'm Hannah McCarthy.

And yeah, today we're talking about it, talking about money.

American money.

History, bills, coins, the mint you name it.

Did you get an answer from him?

I did. That is Steven Mem, by the way.

He's a professor of history at the University of Georgia,

and he wrote a book called A Nation of Counterfeiters,

Capitalist Conman and the Making of the United States.

And he is the first guest on Civics 101 to deal with natural disaster.

I don't mean to be troubled here, but Athens Clark County is under a tornado warning.

A tornado warning for us means that there is a likelihood there is a tornado in our area.

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