15402 |
ECON
100 A Principles of Economics |
Olivier Giovannoni |
. T . Th . |
1:30pm-2:50pm |
HEG 204 |
SSCI |
Cross-listed: Economics & Finance; Environmental & Urban Studies ; Global
& Int’l Studies This course is a one-semester introduction to
the essential ideas of economic analysis. The microeconomics component of the
course develops the basic model of consumer and firm behavior, including demand
and supply, in the context of an idealized competitive market and examines
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. The
macroeconomics component studies 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 – and
the government’s ability (or inability) to use monetary and fiscal policies to
achieve economic goals such as full employment and price stability. This course
replaces the two-semester introductory microeconomics and macroeconomics
sequence and is the foundational course in the economics curriculum.
Prerequisite: passing score on Part I of the Mathematics Diagnostic.
Class size: 22
15403 |
ECON
100 B Principles of Economics |
James Green-Armytage |
M . W . . |
3:10pm-4:30pm |
OLIN 205 |
SSCI |
See
above. Class size: 22
15401 |
ECON
100 C Principles of Economics |
Andy Felkerson |
. T . Th . |
11:50am-1:10pm |
ALBEE 106 |
SSCI |
See
above. Class size: 22
15352 |
ECON
135 Understanding Financial Crises |
Andy Felkerson |
. T . Th . |
1:30pm-2:50pm |
RKC 103 |
SSCI |
In the fall of
2008 financial systems worldwide became engulfed in a financial crisis of
extraordinary proportions. Despite the intervention of global
authorities, trillions of dollars in financial wealth disappeared, almost
overnight. In the half a decade since, most developed countries have
experienced lackluster economic growth, which have also impacted social
conditions. All this has happened before and, most certainly, will happen
again. The purpose of this course is to provide students with an introduction
to some of the causes and effects of historical episodes of financial crisis.
We will find that while certain similarities do exist, no two financial
crises are exactly the same; that is, generating from the same causes, or
creating the same economic effects, or being resolved in the same manner.
Reviewing approximately four centuries of financial crisis through the
examination of historical sources written by individuals living through the
crises themselves, as well as subsequent scholarly and popular studies, we will
develop a historically-based understanding of the impact of financial crisis
upon social and economic conditions. In the course of our
historical investigation into the causes and effects of financial crisis, we
will attempt to answer such key questions as: Are financial crises themselves
unavoidable? And, if not, what are the policy options available to authorities
in the mitigation and resolution of financial crises. Class
size: 22
15404 |
ECON
202 Intermediate Macroeconomics |
Olivier Giovannoni |
. T . Th . |
10:10am- 11:30am |
HEG 102 |
SSCI |
Cross-listed: Environmental & Urban Studies, Global
& Int’l Studies
This course is the continuation of the introductory macroeconomics course. In it,
students will get acquainted with main models that macroeconomists use to
analyze the way economies behave. The course starts by looking at the models
that explain long run economic growth. We then focus our attention on
investigating economic theories that explain short run business cycles, the
periods of recessions and booms that occur on a regular basis. An important
part of the course is to investigate the role of governments in affecting the
long run and short run economic prospects of their countries. We apply the
acquired theoretical knowledge to a range of current economic issues, including
budget deficits and national debt, international trade, and the role of
institutions.
Prerequisite: either ECON 100, or the combination ECON 101 /
ECON 102, MATH 110.
Class size: 22
15405 |
ECON
203 Game Theory |
Aniruddha Mitra |
. T . Th . |
8:30am-9:50am |
OLIN 205 |
SSCI |
Cross-listed:
Economics and Finance,
Environmental and Urban Studies, Global
and Int’l Studies, Political Studies Game Theory is the study of how rational
actors behave when they know that their actions hold consequences not just for
themselves but for others as well and they are, in turn, affected by the
actions taken by others. While the discipline has come to be regarded as a core
area of economics, its applicability extends far beyond the analysis of
economic behavior. The object of this course is to introduce you to the basics
of game theory, emphasizing its generality as an analytical paradigm for social
science. We shall, therefore, focus on a wide variety of applications taken
from economics, political science, and the study of the environment. Prerequisite: Econ 100 or Econ 101. Class
size: 22
15406 |
ECON
218 Asian Economic History |
Sanjaya DeSilva |
M . W . . |
3:10pm-4:30pm |
ALBEE 106 |
HIST |
Cross-listed: Asian Studies, Global
& Int’l Studies This course surveys the historical events and
circumstances that have shaped the economic landscape of modern Asia. We begin
in the nineteenth century when European contact had initiated a process of
dramatic change throughout the continent; Japan began a process of
unprecedented modernization, China confronted a series of internal conflicts
and external threats, and much of the rest of the continent was absorbed
directly into the colonial economy. We then compare the trajectories of
economic change during the twentieth century. Particular attention is paid to
the various economic models pursued in the region, including the colonial
export economy of Southeast Asia, export-oriented industrialization in Japan,
South Korea and Southeast Asia, import-substituting industrialization in India,
and the communist economy of Mao’s China and mainland Southeast Asia. The
regions covered are East Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia. Prerequisite:
Econ 100 or prior coursework in Asian Studies. Class size: 22
15407 |
ECON
225 Economic Perspectives |
Pavlina Tcherneva |
M . W . . |
1:30pm-2:50pm |
HEG 204 |
SSCI |
Why do economists
disagree? As economic systems evolve, so have the theories used to explain
them. Since Adam Smith, economists have used different assumptions, models and
methodologies to study the role of markets, states, and institutions in the
process of social provisioning. This course will survey the diverse traditions
in economics and introduce students to competing paradigms. It covers several
distinct approaches including Classical Political Economy, Neoclassical,
Institutionalist, Post Keynesian, Marxist, Feminist, Development and Green
Economics. The objective is to gain a broad appreciation of the specific
problems that each of these traditions emphasizes and the contributions to
theory and policy each has made. Students will examine not only the evolution
of ideas and theories, but also their practical application today.
Some of the specific issues that the course
will consider include the causes and cures for unemployment, the evolution and
interaction of culture, technology and the environment, and the role and nature
of money in shaping the modern world. As we contemplate modern economic
problems, sometimes the good old ideas produce the best new ideas. Prerequisite: Econ 100. Class
size: 22
15408 |
ECON
226 Urban and Regional Economics |
Kris Feder |
. T . Th . |
11:50am-1:10pm |
RKC 200 |
SSCI |
Cross-listed: American Studies, Environmental & Urban
Studies, Science, Technology & Society
An
introduction to the economic analysis of the spatial distribution of human
behavior, addressing such questions as: Where and why do cities
arise--why do people cluster their homes and workplaces together in certain
places? What factors determine the market allocation of land among users, and
the variations in land value from place to place? What determines the size,
density, and number of urban areas? What are the causes and consequences of
suburbanization and sprawl, so evident in the US and Canada in recent decades?
The spatial structure of cities and of regional systems of cities is analyzed
from the perspective of economic theory. Also, contemporary urban problems are
examined from an economic point of view: housing and homelessness; crime;
transportation; social services; segregation; inner-city blight. Particular
attention is paid to historical patterns of urbanization and to the causes and
consequences of urban sprawl in the US.
PREREQUISITE: ECON 100 or the equivalent. Class
size: 20
15409 |
ECON
229 Introduction to Econometrics |
Sanjaya DeSilva |
M . W . . |
11:50am-1:10pm |
ALBEE 106 |
MATC |
Cross-listed: Economics & Finance; Environmental &
Urban Studies; Global & Int’l Studies This is the first
of a two-course sequence designed to explore the tools economists use to
summarize and interpret data. The first half of the course introduces the
concepts of random variables, probability distributions, sampling, descriptive
statistics and statistical inference. The second half of the course focuses on
simple and multiple regression analysis. The emphasis is on acquiring a
practical knowledge of econometric methods (theoretical foundations and
advanced techniques are covered in Econ 329); students will learn how to
organize and analyze data using Excel and STATA, how to read and interpret
published empirical research, and how to carry out an empirical research
project. This course fulfills the statistical methods requirement for the
economics major. Prerequisite: Economics 100 and Pre-calculus. Class
size: 22
15410 |
ECON
237 Economics of the Public Sector |
James Green-Armytage |
. T . Th . |
4:40pm-6:00pm |
OLIN 204 |
SSCI |
Cross-listed: Environmental & Urban Studies
The public sector is a large component of every national economy, even
of “market” economies such as that of the United States. Public sector
economics (or public economics) covers four general areas: Government revenue,
government spending, regulation, and
public choice (study of incentives influencing the behavior of voters,
politicians, and bureaucrats, and of the consequences of alternative decision
structures). This course focuses on the microeconomics of the public sector.
Specific topics covered include market failures, externalities, public goods,
optimal taxation, the economic theory of voting, regulatory capture, and fiscal
federalism. As the field is broad, we focus on applications to the US economy.
Prerequisite: Econ 100. Class size: 22
15354 |
ECON
254 Women and the Economy |
Pavlina Tcherneva |
M . W . . |
10:10am- 11:30am |
ALBEE 106 |
SSCI/DIFF |
Cross-listed: Gender & Sexuality Studies
This is an economics course with a strong interdisciplinary bent. While
the focus is on women’s role and place in the economy, the analysis of gender
roles and imbalances cannot be conceptually separated from the discrimination
faced along other lines of marginalization such as race, age, class, and other.
The course has two main objectives. The first is to introduce students to
different theoretical approaches and methodologies for analyzing labor markets,
household production, pay practices and other economic outcomes that affect
various socio-economic groups. The second is to use the different theoretical
lenses for analyzing key policy concerns such as pay differentials,
discrimination, comparable worth policies, unpaid care burden, labor force
participation, poverty and other. The course will introduce students to some
advanced academic literature and policy-relevant papers to help them improve
their research and writing skills. Prerequisite: Econ 100. Class size: 20
15538 |
ECON
317 INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATION |
Aniruddha Mitra |
. T . Th . |
1:30pm-2:50pm |
HEG 201 |
SSCI |
Cross-listed: Economics & Finance
Industrial organization is the study of how industries function and how
firms interact within an industry. While this is part of the general agenda of
microeconomics, industrial organization distinguishes itself by its emphasis on
the study of firm behavior in imperfectly competitive markets. The primary
objective of this course is to investigate how firms acquire market power or
the ability to influence the price of their product; the strategic behavior of
firms that possess market power; and the effect of policy intervention in such
industries. Prerequisite: Economics 201 Class size: 15
15353 |
ECON
321 Seminar in Economic Development |
Sanjaya DeSilva |
. T . . . |
1:30pm-3:50pm |
ALBEE 106 |
SSCI |
Cross-listed: Environmental & Urban
Studies, Global & Int’l Studies, Human Rights
The goal of this seminar is to introduce upper college students to the
current academic literature on economic development. We will focus on two very
different research directions that development economists have pursued in
recent years. The first literature asks “big” questions on why some economies
are less developed than others, focusing on long-term historical, ecological
and political determinants. Relying on innovative policy experiments, the second
literature attempts to answer “small” questions on whether a specific policy
intervention (e.g. micro loans) can help improve a specific development outcome
(e.g. small business growth). Students are expected to write an original
research paper that draws on both traditions to address a specific development
problem or policy. Prerequisites: Econ 229 and Econ 201, 202 or
221.
Class size: 15
15411 |
ECON
330 Seminar in GEOCLASSICAL Economics |
Kris Feder |
. . . . F |
10:10am-1:00pm |
ASP 302 |
SSCI/DIFF |
Cross-listed: Environmental &
Urban Studies Geoclassical economics focuses on the role
of property institutions in shaping political and economic life, and offers a
systematic way of organizing our understanding of our relationships to each other
and to the earth. Its research agenda reaches broadly into diverse aspects of
economic and social theory. As a practical philosophy, geoclassical thought has
roots in ancient Arabic and Hebrew traditions. As an analytical system, it
emerged during the 17th through the 19th centuries in the
political economy of John Locke, François Quesnay, Adam Smith, David Ricardo,
John Stuart Mill, and Henry George. We review the classic and contemporary
literature of geoclassical economics and explore its relationship to other
schools of economic thought—neoclassical, ecological, and institutional. We
also examine applications to both contemporary and enduring social problems,
including: the Great Recession of 2008; rising inequality; crushing private and
public debt burdens; distortionary taxes and subsidies; ecological destruction,
urban blight, and suburban sprawl; and territorial disputes. This course satisfies the Economic Thought
field requirement in Economics. Students must be moderated in either ECON or
EUS. Prerequisites: MATH 141; either ECON 101 and ECON 102 or ECON/EUS
206. Class
size: 15
15413 |
ECON
/ FIN 391 Corporate Finance |
Andy Felkerson |
. . W . F |
10:10am- 11:30am |
OLIN 101 |
SSCI |
Cross-listed:
Economics and Finance Capital is a scarce resource. Access to
capital and its efficient use are critical to business success. This course
discusses how capital can be raised and allocated within corporations to the
advantage of corporate shareholders. Topics include: allocation of capital for
investments, measurement of the opportunity cost of capital, capital structure,
cash-distribution policy, corporate restructuring, and long-term financing. At
the end of course, you will know how to value a company. On the way the topics
we shall cover those that are important to all managers whether or not they
specialize in finance: (1) procedures for analyzing companies’ financial data
to determine how efficiently they have been run; (2) methods for projecting funding
needs based on principles of good working capital management; (3) rules for
choosing the maximal safe, or optimal, level of debt in the structure of
capital used for funding company operations; (4) figuring the costs of the
various types of funds that a company uses and its weighted average cost of
capital; and (5) combining all the foregoing into a methodology, to wit,
discounting free cash flows and adding salvage value, for establishing a
company’s value or price.
Class size: 15