Parkes' Introduction to Economics Assignments Page, Spring 2017




  • NOTE that the BCC, FCB 114, is available for help with papers, even on SKYPE but you must book an appointment.

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     Tentative Schedule and Course Assignments:

        PAST ASSIGNMENTS:

                               Week 14

              April 26, 2017      Chapter 23: Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply


              • Chapter 23: Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply
                • Explaining Short-run Variations - The Model of AD-AS
                  • AD slopes downward and shifts due to C, I, G, and NX
                • Long-run Aggregate Supply is vertical - shifts: Land, Labor, Technology and Capital
                • Short-run Aggregate Supply is upward sloped: shifts (LRAS shifts plus) wages and business costs
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 23 Aggregate Demand and Aggregate Supply

                               Week 13

              April 19, 2017      Chapter 22: Money Growth and Inflation


              • Chapter 22: Money Growth and Inflation
                • The Classical Theory of Inflation
                  • Velocity and the Quantity Equation
                • The Inflation Tax
                • The Fisher Effect
                • The Costs of Inflation
                  • A Fall in PP? The Inflation Fallacy
                  • Shoeleather Costs
                  • Menu Costs
                  • Other Costs
                • The Wizard of OZ
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 22 Money Growth and Inflation

                               Week 12

              April 12, 2017      Chapter 21: The Monetary System


                Due at the BEGINNING of Class - Paper #2: What is the CPI? It's uses and problems.
              • Chapter 21: The Monetary System
                • The Meaning of Money
                  • The 3 Functions of Money
                  • The 2 Kinds of Money
                  • M1 and M2
                • The Federal Reserve System
                  • The Fed's Organization
                  • The FOMC
                • Federal Reserve Basics - PowerPoint shown in class
                • Banks and the Money Supply
                  • 100% Reserve Banking
                  • Money Creation and Fractional Reserve Banking
                  • Quiz #13
                  • Money Creation and Fractional Reserve Banking, revisited
                  • The Money Multiplier
                  • Bank Capital, Leverage, and the Financial Crisis
                • The Fed's Tools of Monetary Policy
                • How the Fed influences th Quantity of Reserves
                • How the Fed Influences the Reserve Ratio
                • Problems in Controlling the Money Supply
              • Quiz #14
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 21 The Monetary System

                               Week 11

              April 5, 2017      Chapter 17: Production and Growth - continued



                               Week 10

              March 29, 2017      Chapter 16: Measuring the Cost of Living


              • Chapter 16: Measuring the Cost of Living
                • How is the CPI calculated
                  • Fix the basket of goods
                  • Find the prices
                  • Compute the basket's cost
                  • Choose a base year and compute the basket
                  • Compute the inflation rate
              • Review: How is the CPI calculated
              • Problems in Measuring the Cost of Living
                • 1. Substitution Bias
                • 2. Introduction of New Goods
                • 3. Unmeasured Quality Change
                • 4. It's an Average
              • The GDP deflator versus the CPI
              • Correcting Economic Variables for the Effects of Inflation
                • Dollar figures from Different Times
                • Indexation
                • Real and Nominal Interest Rates
              • PowerPoint for Ch. 16 Measuring the Cost of Living

              • Chapter 17: Production and Growth
                • Economic Growth Around the World
                • Productivity: Its Role and Determinants
                  • Capital per worker, Human Capital per worker, Natural Resources p.c. and Technological Knowledge
                  • The Importance of Saving and Investment
                • Population Growth and Malthus
                • Malthusian Trap
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 17: Production and Growth
              • Quiz 10 AND The The Answers to Quizzes 10 & 11



                               Week 9

              March 22, 2017      Chapter 15: Measuring a Nation's Income



              March 11 - 19, 2017      SPRING BREAK


                               Week 8


              March 8, 2017      Midterm Exam, Chapters 1 – 2, 4 – 7, & 12 – 14


                               Week 7

              March 1, 2017      Chapter 14: Monopoly


              • Chapter 14: Monopoly
                • Why Monopolies Arise
                  • Monopoly Resources - DeBeers
                  • Government Created Monopolies
                  • Natural Monopolies
                • How Monopolies Make Production and Pricing Decisions
                  • Monopoly versus Competition
                  • A Monopoly's Revenue
                  • Profit Maximization
                  • A Monopoly's Profit/Loss
                • Price Discrimination
                • Profit and Loss in Monopoly (QUIZ #8)
                • Answers to Quiz #8 - Monopoly Profit and Loss
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 14: Monopoly

                               Week 6

              February 22, 2017      Chapter 13: Firms in Competitive Markets


                Due at the BEGINNING of Class - Paper #1: Flagstaff's Minimum Wage

              • Chapter 13: Firms in Competitive Markets
                • What is a Competitive Market?
                  • The Meaning of Competition
                  • The Revenue of a Competitive Firm
                  • Marginal Revenue and Average Revenue
                • Profit Maximization and the Competitive Firm's Supply Curve
                  • A Simple Example of Profit Maximization
                  • The Marginal Cost Cuver and the Firm's Supply Decision
                  • The Firm's Short-Run Decision to Shut Down
                  • Spilt Milk and Other Sunk Costs
                  • The Firm's Long-Run Decision to Exit or Enter a Market
                  • Measuring Profit in our Graph for the Competitive Firm
                • The Supply Curve in a Competitive Market
                  • Profit and Loss in Perfect Competition (QUIZ #7)
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 13: Firms in Competitive Markets

                               Week 5

              February 15, 2017      Chapter 12: Production and Costs


              • Chapter 12: Production and Costs
                • What are costs?
                  • Total Revenue, Total Cost, Profit
                  • Costs are Opportunity costs
                  • Economic Profit versus Accounting Profit
                • Production and Costs
                  • The Production Function
                    • Marginal Product
                    • Diminishing Marginal Product
                    • From the Production Function to the Total-Cost Curve
                • The Various Measures of Cost
                  • Fixed and Variable Costs
                  • Average and Marginal Costs
                  • Formulas! TC = TVC + TFC
                  • ATC = AVC + AFC
                  • Average versus Marginal Relationship
                • Drawing Typical Cost Curves (QUIZ #6)
                • Short Run versus Long Run
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 12: Production and Costs

                               Week 4

              February 8, 2017      Chapter 5: Elasticity and It's Application

                               Week 3

              February 1, 2017      Chapter 4: The Market Forces of Supply and Demand

              • Chapter 4: The Market Forces of Supply and Demand
                • What is a Market? A competitive Market?
                • Demand Side
                  • The price of the good, movement along the curve
                  • Shifts: P-P-P-INT
                • Supply Side
                  • The price of the good, movement along the curve
                  • Shifts: P-P-EST
                • Equilibrium: Qd=Qs
                • Surplus
                • Shortage
                • 3 Steps to Changes in Equilibrium
                • Note what Ambiguous means
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 4: The Market Forces of Supply and Demand

                               Week 2

              January 25, 2017      Chapter 2: Thinking Like An Economist



                               Week 1

              January 18, 2017      Chapter 1: Ten Principles of Economics


              • The Syllabus, Outline, and a little about me
              • Chapter 1: What are these 10 Principles of Economics
                • How people make decisions
                • How people interact
                • How the Economy as a Whole Works
              • PowerPoint for Chapter 1: Ten Principles



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      Last Update: May 2, 2017
      By Andrew L. H. Parkes, Ph. D.