What economic and social motivations resulted in the discovery and exploration of the new world?

The three main reasons for European exploration of the North American continent were finding an alternate passageway to China and the eastern trade markets, the exploitation of labor and resources in the new world and spreading European-style civilization. In addition to building colonial empires in North America, the European powers were able to use the wealth extracted from those colonies to finance building empires elsewhere. Europeans also obtained new foods from North America, such as tomatoes, beans, squash 

The mountains on the east would be taller