CRN

14114

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 101 A                           Q course

Title

Introduction to Microeconomics

Professor

Sanjaya DeSilva

Schedule

Mon Wed       10:00 am - 11:20 am     OLIN 203

Cross-listed: Environmental Studies

An examination of the logic of constrained choice, with a focus on the economic behavior of individuals and organizations.  The mechanics of the price system are analyzed in terms of demand (utility) and supply (cost). The characteristics of alternative market structures, from pure competition to monopoly, are derived and evaluated. The conditions under which markets allocate resources efficiently are worked out, and several causes of market failure are examined. Simple graphical and mathematical methods (high-school level of difficulty) are developed, their use reinforced by a variety of applications. Questions of microeconomic analysis and policy raised by current events are debated. Econ. 101 and 102 may be taken in either order.

 

CRN

14115

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 101 B                           Q course

Title

Introduction to Microeconomics

Professor

Tsu-Yu Tsao

Schedule

Mon Wed       1:30 pm -  2:50 pm       OLIN 203

See description above.

 

CRN

14116

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 102 A

Title

Introduction to Macroeconomics

Professor

Tamar Khitarishvili

Schedule

Tu Th            10:00 am - 11:20 am     OLIN 201

This course begins with an examination of the aggregate behavior of modern economies: the factors leading to economic growth, explanations of booms and recessions, unemployment, interest rates, inflation, and budget deficits or surpluses.  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 the government should use monetary and fiscal policy to try to “fine tune” the economy and what the likely effects of such government involvement are.  ECON 101 and 102 may be taken in either order.

 

CRN

14117

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 102 B

Title

Introduction to Macroeconomics

Professor

Tamar Khitarishvili

Schedule

Tu Th            1:30 pm -  2:50 pm       OLIN 204

See description above.

 

CRN

14118

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 110

Title

Economic Dimensions of Domestic Public Issues

Professor

Andrew Pearlman

Schedule

Tu Th            1:30 pm -  2:50 pm       OLIN 203

This course examines the economic dimensions of a few public issues with domestic scope. (International and global concerns will be addressed in ECON 115.)  The goal of this course is for students to learn a few basic economic tools to understand how economists analyze topics with public policy implications. Students will participate in the selection of four or five topics of general interest. “Ripped from the headlines” issues for Spring 2004 might include, for example, energy markets and regulation; the Bush administration’s tax, energy, environmental, and other policies; or the rise and fall of the “new economy.” Public issues of enduring interest might include the distribution of income, wealth and property; welfare reform; health care; Social Security and demographic changes; education; crime; pollution; or transportation. Students will work in teams to conduct research and give class presentations on each of the cases selected. Information will be drawn from media coverage; scholarly analysis from academicians and think tanks; U.S. Government publications and statistics; and the publications of advocacy groups on opposing sides of an issue. After a general review of each issue we focus on its economic dimensions. A few simple theoretical principles will be introduced and used to illuminate the economic forces at work. In the standard economic approach, individuals are assumed to behave rationally as they seek to maximize their subjective utility, subject to constraints on the resources available to them. Irrational social outcomes are explained as the consequence of interacting choices by rational individuals.

Prerequisite:  None.

 

CRN

14119

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 202

Title

Intermediate Macroeconomics

Professor

Tamar Khitarishvili

Schedule

Wed Fr          3:00 pm -  4:20 pm       OLIN 307

A treatment of the determinants of national income, employment, and price levels in the short run; a study of the problem of business fluctuations in the economy and theoretical attempts to explain them; integration of short-run macroeconomic analysis with the theory of long-run economic growth.

Prerequisite:  ECON 102, Introduction to Macroeconomics

 

CRN

14120

Distribution

C

Course No.

ECON 217

Title

Economic History of the World

Professor

Kris Feder

Schedule

Tu Fr             1:30 pm -  2:50 pm       OLIN 308

This course surveys world economic history from Paleolithic times to the present. Major themes include the role of social institutions in promoting or inhibiting economic development; competition for territory and natural resources; population growth and decline; the disparity of wealth among nations; class structure and class struggles. Topics addressed include feudal systems, colonial systems, industrialization, urbanization, globalization, transition economies, economic imperialism, and environmental impacts of economic activity.

Prerequisite:  One economics course.

 

CRN

14121

Distribution

C/E

Course No.

ECON 221

Title

Economics of Developing Countries

Professor

Sanjaya DeSilva

Schedule

Mon Wed       1:30 pm -  2:50 pm       OLIN 303

Cross-listed:  AADS, ES, Human Rights, LAIS

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.

 

CRN

14122

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 224

Title

The Economics of Marriage, Family, and Other Things in Life       

Professor

Tsu-Yu Tsao

Schedule

Mon Wed       10:00 am - 11:20 am     OLIN 305

Cross-listed: Gender and Sexuality Studies
In this course, we extend the basic economic model of decision making to study some of the more interesting choices one makes in life. The main topics we will focus on are dating and mating, childbearing, household behavior, the allocation of time, marital dissolution, religion, health, death, and intergenerational relations. The section on dating and mating mainly explores the question of “why do we marry who we marry?” using the theory of assortive mating. The issues of prostitution and the recent decline of marriage rates are also discussed. The topic of childbearing covers the demand for children and the fertility trends of the U.S. The effects of sex education and the socioeconomic consequences of teen childbearing may also be examined. Household behavior deals with division of labor in households as well as altruism in the family. For the section on marital dissolution, we read articles discussing the importance of financial considerations in divorce decisions and the effects of divorce laws on suicide, domestic violence and spousal murder. A formal economic model of church and sect will be introduced when we talk about the economics of religion. The section on health addresses the issue of substance addiction and its relation to labor market success. Our discussion of the topic of death examines the connection between life expectancy and economic behavior in addition to the rise in youth suicide. Finally, the focal point of intergenerational relations is on bequest behavior and its relation to the U.S. distribution of wealth.

Prerequisite:  ECON 101 (Introduction to Microeconomics) or permission of instructor.

 

CRN

14123

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 242

Title

Environmental Economics

Professor

Kris Feder

Schedule

Tu Th            3:00 pm -  4:20 pm       OLIN 204

Cross-listed: Environmental Studies

The interrelationships between economic and ecological systems: the materials balance; the economic role of ecosystem services; the economic value of extractive and in situ uses of the environment as a source of productive inputs and a repository for wastes; market and non-market allocations of natural resources among alternative uses.  The standard neoclassical analysis of pollution as a consequence of externality and market failure is developed, general conditions for efficient resource use and waste disposal are derived, and rationales for public management of environmental resources are examined.  Conventional policy solutions are evaluated with particular focus on United States environmental policy.  Orthodox analyses of environmental problems are contrasted with alternative interpretations, including those of ecological economics, steady-state economics, and geoclassical economics.  Of special interest are the questions of land tenure and entitlement—of individual and collective rights to nature.

Prerequisite:  ECON 102.

Note: Professor Papadimitriou will teach EITHER Economics 302, OR Economics 311.  Please see him at registration.

 

CRN

14124

Distribution

C

Course No.

ECON 302

Title

Topics in Macroeconomics

Professor

Dimitri Papadimitriou

Schedule

Mon               3:00 pm -  5:20 pm       OLIN 310

This course will examine advanced topics in macroeconomics and critically review contemporary macroeconomic theories and models with regard to their historical development. The foundations of macroeconomic theory will be studied and alternative approaches to economic growth, distribution, increasing returns, and endogenous change will be analyzed. The monetary and financial aspects in macro foundations will be discussed, focusing on the work of Minsky, Tobin, Sargent, Lucas, post-Keynesians, neo-Keynesians, new Keynesians, and Sraffians. Readings will be mainly from primary journal literature.  

Prerequisite: Economics 102, Introduction to Macroeconomics and Economics 202, Intermediate Macroeconomics.

Note: Professor Papadimitriou will teach EITHER Economics 302, OR Economics 311.  Please see him at registration.

 

CRN

14127

Distribution

C

Course No.

ECON 311

Title

Seminar in National Economic Policy

Professor

Dimitri Papadimitriou

Schedule

Mon               3:00 pm -  5:20 pm       OLIN 310

Cross-listed: American Studies

The seminar is aimed at enabling students to explore and assess macroeconomic decision‑making in the United States and throughout the world. Public policy decisions are not made solely on the basis of economic theory; indeed, political considerations are often the dominant factors explaining particular actions of the government, the Federal Reserve, and other agencies. Using an elementary framework of macroeconomic concepts, the seminar analyzes national economic events that involve the application of policy to domestic and international problems. Special emphasis is placed on the use of monetary, fiscal, international trade, and exchange rate policies to deal with unemployment, inflation, budget deficits, and instability.

Prerequisite:  Introduction to Macroeconomics, or permission of the instructor.

 

CRN

14125

Distribution

E

Course No.

ECON 329                             Q Course

Title

Econometrics

Professor

Sanjaya DeSilva

Schedule

Fr    8:30 am - 10:50 am    HDRANX 106

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.

 

CRN

14133

Distribution

A/E

Course No.

ECON 335

Title

Labor Economics

Professor

Andrew Pearlman

Schedule

Tu Th            10:00 am - 11:20 am     OLIN 304

This course focuses on the economic forces and public policies that affect employment and wages. We examine theoretical models of labor markets and how well they hold up to real-world empirical data. Topics emphasized include labor demand and supply, minimum wage laws, theories of unemployment, job search and matching models, family and life-cycle decision-making, human capital, efficiency wage theory, compensating wage differentials, worker mobility and migration, unions, and discrimination. 

Prerequisite: ECON 101 (Introduction to Microeconomics).

 

CRN

14126

 

 

Course No.

ECON CONF

Title

Senior Conference

Professor

Economics Faculty

Schedule

Mon               6:00 pm -  7:20 pm       ALBEE 102

Students writing Senior Projects in Economics will be required to attend the Senior Conference, which will meet not more than one evening every two weeks throughout the fall and spring terms. Not for credit.