99038

ECON 101 A Introduction to Microeconomics

Andrew Pearlman

. . W . F

10:30 - 11:50 am

RKC 103

SSCI

Cross-listed: Economics & Finance, Environmental Studies; GIS; Social Policy This course covers the essential ideas of economic analysis. Students will learn how economists explain human behavior as we seek to satisfy our needs and wants. The first part of the course develops models of consumer and firm behavior, including demand and supply, in the context of an idealized competitive market. From there we analyze several ways in which the real world deviates from this model, including monopoly and other forms of imperfect competition, information problems, minimum wages and other price controls, taxes, and government regulation. Along the way we will explore public policy problems such as pricing the environment, winners and losers from international trade, health care costs and insurance, and the high price of textbooks. Econ 101 and 102 may be taken in either order.

99039

ECON 101 B Introduction to Microeconomics

Roxana Julia

. . W . F

3:00 -4:20 pm

HEG 102

SSCI

See description above.

99868

ECON 101 C Introduction to Microeconomics

Roxana Julia

. . W . F

12:00 – 1:20 pm

HEG 102

SSCI

See description above.

99041

ECON 102 A Introduction to Macroeconomics

Tamar Khitarishvili

M . W . .

9:00 - 10:20 am

RKC 103

SSCI

Cross-listed: Economics and Finance, Social Policy; GIS This course begins with the examination of the aggregate behavior of modern economies: the factors leading to economic growth, explanations of booms and recessions, unemployment, interest rates, inflation, budget deficits or surpluses, and international trade. We will also analyze the government’s ability (or inability) to use monetary and fiscal policies to achieve economic goals such as full employment and price stability. Throughout the course, we will debate whether government should use monetary and fiscal policy tools to try to ‘fine tune’ the economy and what the likely effects of such government involvement are. We will analyze these issues using current domestic and international examples. Econ 101 and 102 may be taken in either order.

99042

ECON 102 B Introduction to Macroeconomics

Kris Feder

. T . Th .

1:00 -2:20 pm

RKC 103

SSCI

See description above.

99046	*ECON 201* Intermediate Microeconomics	Tsu-Yu Tsao	M . W . .	9:00 - 10:20 am	HEG 102	SSCI
		LAB:	. . . Th .	4:00 -6:00 pm	HEG 102

Cross-listed: Economics and Finance, Social Policy Microeconomics is the study of how individual economic units (households and firms) interact to determine outcomes (allocation of goods and services) in a market setting. In this course, we attempt to achieve the following three objectives: (1) Understand all the concepts covered in Introduction to Microeconomics in terms of mathematics; (2) Study advanced topics such as choice under uncertainty and information asymmetry that have traditionally relied on mathematics for illustration of ideas; and (3) Learn how to use mathematics to conduct in-depth economic analysis. In order to meet the last objective, we will devote most of the weekly “lab” sessions toward problem solving. During the lab sessions, students are expected to take turns explaining how to solve a particular problem to the rest of the class. A firm grasp of the materials covered in this course is essential to reading economics journal articles and pursuing advanced studies in economics. Prerequisites: Calculus I and Introduction to Microeconomics.

99869

ECON 205 Mathematical Economics

Roxana Julia

. . W . F

1:30 –2:50 pm

HEG 201

SSCI

Introduction to the use of elementary calculus and linear algebra in economic theory. This course provides the basic mathematical skills necessary to approach the professional economics literature. Emphasis is on formulating economic problems and building economic models in mathematical language. Applications are based upon simple micro- and macroeconomic models. Prerequisites: ECON 101 or 102; calculus.

99047

ECON 210 History of Economic Thought I

Kris Feder

. . W . F

12:00 -1:20 pm

ALBEE 106

SSCI

Cross-listed: Science, Technology & Society The early history of the yet-young science of economics: Petty, Locke, Hume, and the age of mercantilism; the Physiocrats of 18^th century France, inventors of the first circular-flow analysis of the macroeconomy; the revolutionary work of philosopher Adam Smith in 1776; and the century of classical political economy that followed him in the English-speaking world: Thomas Malthus, David Ricardo, John Stuart Mill, and others who studied the virtues and vices of the market system and debated the great questions of the relations of land, labor and capital. At its maturity, the classical school gave rise to two very different attacks on existing politico-economic institutions: in continental Europe, the socialist critique of Karl Marx; and in the United States and England, the Lockean critique of Henry George. This course focuses on the classical period to the late 19^th century, when classical political economy gave way to the "marginal revolution," which, applying the mathematical insights of calculus to economic questions, focused more on subjective choice and perhaps less on political issues and institutions. Prerequisite: One economics course.

99048

ECON 214 Economic Transition

From Socialism To A Market-Based System

Tamar Khitarishvili

M . W . .

3:00 -4:20 pm

ALBEE 106

HIST

Cross-listed: Russian and Eurasian Studies, GIS The course investigates the challenges that former socialist-block countries experienced since the early 1990s in their attempt to turn their economies into well-functioning market-based systems. We will study a range of topics, including privatization, price liberalization, inflation, unemployment, changes in the composition of output, foreign direct investment (FDI), national debt and budget deficits, informal economy, and the fight against corruption, among other topics. Particular attention will be paid to the role of institutional factors in explaining the divergent performance of countries in this seemingly homogenous group.

99050

ECON 221 Economics of Developing Countries

Sanjaya DeSilva

. T . Th .

10:30 - 11:50 am

OLIN 204

SSCI

Cross-listed: Africana Studies; Asian Studies; Environmental Studies; GIS; Human Rights; LAIS, Social Policy; STS

This course explores the economic conditions and problems faced by the majority of the world’s population that live in the developing countries of Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. The concept of economic development is defined and related to ideas such as economic growth, sustainable development and human development. Economic theories of development are introduced, and policies designed to promote development at the local, national and international levels are evaluated. Considerable attention is paid to understanding how household decisions in rural agricultural societies are shaped by the institutional and policy environments. Topics include the economic consequences of colonialism and economic dependence; poverty and income distribution; investments in physical and human capital; economic aspects of household choices such as schooling, and fertility; rural-urban transformation; the effects of trade, industrial and agricultural policies; the role of foreign capital flows; political economy aspects of development policy; population growth and the environment; gender and development. Students will be expected to carry out a case study of the development experiences of a country of their choice. Prerequisites: One Economics course, or permission of the instructor.

99051

ECON 242 Ecological Economics

Kris Feder

. T . Th .

2:30 -3:50 pm

ALBEE 106

SSCI

Cross-listed: Environmental Studies, Social Policy Ecological economics (ECE) is a transdiscipline that draws upon principles of physics, ecology, and other natural and social sciences as well as economics. ECE views the economy as “an open subsystem of a larger ecosystem that is finite, nongrowing, and materially closed (though open with respect to solar energy).” As human population and production grow, say proponents, ECE is “a necessary evolution of economic thought” (Daly and Farley). The positive analyses of ECE are motivated by three normative social goals: (1) efficient allocation of scarce resources, including those—such as ecosystem services—that do not pass through markets; (2) justice in distribution; and, perhaps most importantly, (3) an ecologically sustainable scale of economic activity.

99052	*ECON 329* Econometrics	Sanjaya DeSilva	. T . Th .	1:00 -2:20 pm	OLIN 107	SSCI
		LAB:	. . . . F	10:30 - 12:30 pm	HDRANX 106

Cross-listed: Economics & Finance, Social Policy Econometrics is the artful blending of economic theory with statistics. Economic theory helps us to develop behavioral hypotheses, while statistics help us to test these hypotheses. For example, consumer theory tells us that there is an inverse relationship between price and quantity demanded; we use econometrics to see if consumers actually behave in this way. This course covers the proper use of statistical tools, such as linear regression, multivariate regression and hypothesis testing. Students will have an opportunity to apply these tools to analyze a variety of economic issues. Prerequisites: ECON 229 and either ECON 201 or ECON 202.

99053

ECON 386 Health Economics

Andrew Pearlman

. . W . F

1:30 -2:50 pm

ALBEE 106

SSCI

Cross-listed: GIS; STS; Social Policy Why have health care costs increased so quickly? How does a consumer with chest pain differ from a consumer in the market for a non-medical service? How are those consumers similar? What is the proper role for government in health care markets? Do government health care programs work? Where did HMOs come from, and have they made health care worse? Why does the U.S. have such amazing health technology but so many people without access to basic care? Health spending is now 16% -- almost one-sixth -- of all U.S. output, far above the 5.3% level of 1960. The health sector presents several peculiar challenges to basic economic theory: asymmetric information, the influence of insurance on demand, uncertainty and risk, imperfect competition, and extensive government intervention in health markets. This course extends basic microeconomic theory in a topical approach to understanding the unique features of health care markets. We begin with demand and supply for health outputs, and consider various methods for measuring the costs and benefits of health outcomes. Subsequent topics address the information asymmetries in health services and insurance; the market for private health insurance (including managed care); features of physician and other labor markets; reasons for and effects of social insurance programs; and questions surrounding U.S. health care reform, including spiraling costs and incomplete access to care. Prerequisite: Economics 101 (Intro to Microeconomics).

99179

ECON 390 Contemporary Developments

in Finance

Dimitri Papadimitriou

. T . . .

2:30 -4:50 pm

OLIN 107

SSCI

The seminar will contrast the academic analysis of financial economics with the coverage it receives in the newspapers and on the nightly newscast. The stories on the news are almost always connected with people, whether we observe them shouting bids in a trading floor or talking on two phones simultaneously. Financial markets are dominated by people behaving in many different ways. Yet traditional finance theories concentrate on efficient markets, predictable prices that are determined by the concepts of present value, rates of return and analysis and pricing of computable risks. Human behavior has neither a place in the theory nor a need to be studied. This prevailing view has recently been challenged by the new paradigm of behavioral finance that considers the many anomalies of "rational" behavior and "efficiency" of markets. The new paradigm concerns itself with economic decision-making and investor psychology, and specifically with questions relating to how and why people exhibit a mixture of rational and irrational behavior. The seminar will examine the influence of economic psychology in the decision-making process of various agents as well as in the market's dynamics. Several guest lecturers will also offer their informed views in the development of contemporary finance.

99562

ECON / SST COL Reading Colloquium:

Euphoria and Depression Economics

Charles Stevenson

. . W . .

10:30 -12:30 pm

HEG 300

0 credit This colloquium will focus on money and markets, using selected texts to investigate financial booms and busts, and to explore the concept of predictability in financial markets. The reading list will include: Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds by Charles MacKay, Fiat Money Inflation in France by A. D. White, The Great Crash by J. K. Galbraith, Once in Golconda by John Brooks, Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Taleb, (Mis)Behavior of Markets by Bernard Mandelbrot, Fortune's Formula by William Poundstone, Reminiscences of a Stock Operator by Edwin Lefèvre, and Liar's Poker by Michael Lewis, Manias, Panics, and Crashes: A History of Financial Crises by Charles P. Kindleberger, The Ascent of Money by Niall Ferguson, The Origin of Financial Crises: Central Banks, Credit Bubbles, and the Efficient Market Fallacy by George Cooper, Meltdown: A Free-Market Look at Why the Stock Market Collapsed, the Economy Tanked, and Government Bailouts Will Make Things Worse by Thomas E. Woods, Jr., The Road to Serfdom by F. A. Hayek. Limited to 12 students, the class will meet for 10 weeks beginning the last week of September. (Open to first-year students. Credit-bearing tutorial option.)