Time is a given. Having to give a concept of time and money a name is absurd to me. Might as well tell me that it's better to keep breathing than to hold my breath. (Of course there are plenty of individuals for whom getting money now rather than later is NOT the 'greater benefit' overall, such as someone collecting disability, or a child who doesn't like waiting to inherit, but who isn't taxed nearly as much if he waits.)
Any discussion of any other factor such as inflation assumes time.
So what you are asking for really is a theory of inflation.
Now you have opened the whole can of worms of the complexities of how money is valued within the context of all social, economic, and personal conditions.
Inflation means something very definable, but it's relevant in context, different, e.g., for a retired individual vs the Federal Reserve. And again, time is part of that discussion, or any discussion of money.
So are you planning to be an economist? Best job in the world. You don't even have to be right. Just good at talking the talk.
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