---
entity_slug: interest_of_money
evaluator: null
evaluated_at: '2026-02-23T05:38:11.953127'
overall_score: 4.6
scores:
- name: definition_precision
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: The definition clearly identifies interest as the price for borrowed
    capital and establishes its relationship to profit rates, avoiding circularity.
    The connection between interest rates and profit potential provides a precise
    economic mechanism rather than vague description.
- name: source_grounding
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity is directly grounded in Book I, Chapter 9, where Smith extensively
    discusses interest rates as indicators of profit rates and traces historical legal
    interest rate changes. The definition accurately reflects Smith's actual analysis
    rather than imposing external concepts.
- name: domain_placement
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: '"Regulation" is the correct domain placement since Smith examines both
    legal interest rate regulations and how market forces regulate interest rates
    naturally. The entity sits at the intersection of legal regulation and market
    self-regulation that Smith analyzes.'
- name: vsm_relevance
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: Interest rates map well to S4 (intelligence/environmental adaptation)
    as they provide information about economic conditions and profit opportunities
    across different sectors and time periods. They serve as a key information signal
    for understanding the broader economic environment.
- name: explanatory_value
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: "This entity reveals a crucial mechanism in Smith's analysis\u2014how\
    \ interest rates serve as practical indicators of underlying profit conditions\
    \ and economic health. It illuminates the structural relationship between capital\
    \ markets and productive investment rather than merely naming a financial phenomenon."
---

# Evaluation: Interest Of Money

## definition_precision — 4.0 / 5.0

The definition clearly identifies interest as the price for borrowed capital and establishes its relationship to profit rates, avoiding circularity. The connection between interest rates and profit potential provides a precise economic mechanism rather than vague description.

## source_grounding — 5.0 / 5.0

This entity is directly grounded in Book I, Chapter 9, where Smith extensively discusses interest rates as indicators of profit rates and traces historical legal interest rate changes. The definition accurately reflects Smith's actual analysis rather than imposing external concepts.

## domain_placement — 5.0 / 5.0

"Regulation" is the correct domain placement since Smith examines both legal interest rate regulations and how market forces regulate interest rates naturally. The entity sits at the intersection of legal regulation and market self-regulation that Smith analyzes.

## vsm_relevance — 4.0 / 5.0

Interest rates map well to S4 (intelligence/environmental adaptation) as they provide information about economic conditions and profit opportunities across different sectors and time periods. They serve as a key information signal for understanding the broader economic environment.

## explanatory_value — 5.0 / 5.0

This entity reveals a crucial mechanism in Smith's analysis—how interest rates serve as practical indicators of underlying profit conditions and economic health. It illuminates the structural relationship between capital markets and productive investment rather than merely naming a financial phenomenon.
