Economics 1 - Winter 2012 Catalog Description: An Introduction to Microeconomic Analysis. Economic Theory Related to Demand, Production, Competitive And Non-competitive Product Markets, Input Markets, and Welfare. Applications of Microeconomic Theory Including Its Use in Evaluating and Forming Public Policy. We will use chapters from two textbooks in this course. The chapters are: Experiments with Economic Principles: Microeconomics, 2nd Edition by Theodore C. Bergstrom and John H. Miller, Chapters 1, 2, 3, 5 and 8. Principles of Economics by Timothy Taylor, Chapters 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, and 15. Four additional readings will be posted on the course website. A reading will be assigned for each quiz and for the final exam. The reading are: For Quiz 1 Paul Krugman, “The Accidental Theorist” For Quiz 2 Steven Landsbury, “The Indifference Principle” For Quiz 3 Tim Harford, “Why Your Boss Is Overpaid” For Final Exam Tim Harford, “What the Supermarkets Don’t Want You to Know”Economics 1 – Winter 2012 Week Date Place Topic Preparation* 1 M, 1/9 Lecture Introduction 1 W, 1/11 Lecture Experiments in Economics Taylor, 1-13 1 1/11-1/13 Section Experiment 1 Bergstrom-Miller, 3-6 1 F, 1/13 Lecture Benefits and Costs Taylor, 26-29 2 M, 1/16 Lecture Martin Luther King Day 2 W, 1/18 Lecture Supply and Demand Bergstrom-Miller, 7-20 2 1/18-1/20 Section Experiment 2 Bergstrom-Miller, 39-41 2 F, 1/20 Lecture Efficiency Bergstrom-Miller, 21-24 2 F, 1/20 Homework 1 due at 11 pm 3 M, 1/23 Lecture Marginal Cost Taylor, 59-64 3 W, 1/25 Lecture Shifts in Supply Bergstrom-Miller, 42-47 3 1/25-1/27 Section Review 3 F, 1/27 Lecture Price Elasticity of Demand Taylor, 127-132 & 137-141 3 F, 1/27 Homework 2 due at 11 pm 4 M, 1/30 Lecture Shifts in Demand Taylor, 64-67 & 132-136 4 W, 2/1 Lecture Quiz 1 4 2/1-2/3 Section Experiment 3 Bergstrom-Miller, 59-61 4 F, 2/3 Lecture Household Budget Decisions Taylor, 15-19 & 149-157 5 M, 2/6 Lecture Tax Incidence Bergstrom-Miller, 62-68 5 W, 2/8 Lecture Excess Burden Bergstrom-Miller, 69-78 5 2/8-2/10 Section Review 5 F, 2/10 Lecture Negative Externalities Taylor, 259-262 5 F, 2/10 Homework 3 due at 11 pm 6 M, 2/13 Lecture Quiz 2 6 W, 2/15 Lecture Marginal Product Bergstrom-Miller, 119-129 6 2/15-2/17 Section Experiment 5 Bergstrom-Miller, 119-129 6 F, 2/17 Lecture Marketable Pollution Permits Taylor, 263-274 7 M, 2/20 Lecture Presidents’ Day 7 W, 2/22 Lecture Minimum Wage Bergstrom-Miller, 130-136 7 2/22-2/24 Section Review 7 F, 2/24 Lecture Price Ceilings Bergstrom-Miller, 137-139 7 F, 2/24 Homework 5 due at 11 pm 8 M, 2/27 Lecture Quiz 3 8 W, 2/29 Lecture Average Cost Bergstrom-Miller, 225-229 8 2/29-3/2 Section Experiment 8 Bergstrom-Miller, 225-229 8 F, 3/2 Lecture Positive Externalities Taylor, 275-290 9 M, 3/5 Lecture Entry and Exit Bergstrom-Miller, 230-237 9 W, 3/7 Lecture Rising Marginal Cost Taylor, 169-186 9 3/7-3/9 Section Review 9 F, 3/9 Lecture Long Run Supply Taylor, 187-208 9 F, 3/9 Homework 8 due at 11 pm 10 M, 3/12 Lecture Monopoly Taylor, 209-224 10 W, 3/14 Lecture Price Discrimination 10 3/14-3/16 Section Review 10 3/16 Lecture Wrap Up W, 3/21 Lecture Final Exam, 9 am to 11 am *Page numbers refer to numbers in the original text, not numbers added for the readerGrading in Economics 1 To determine your grade, we calculate a course average for each of you based on your percentages in each of five areas: clicker questions, participation in experiments, homework, quizzes, and final exam. Here is how the percentages are calculated for each area: Clicker Questions: Using an i>clicker, you will register your responses to 5 to 10 questions asked each lecture. These questions will begin on Wednesday, January 18. Each lecture will have ten clicker points. You’ll get one point for a correct answer to a question on the assigned reading. You’ll get another point for a correct answer to a true-false question at the end of the lecture. If you respond, right or wrong, to half of the clickers questions, you’ll receive eight points. I will drop your five lowest scores and add the rest. You percentage in this area is your score divided by the most points possible. Quizzes: We will have three quizzes during the quarter. Each quiz will have 10 questions. Your percentage in this area is the number of questions you answer correctly divided by 30. Homeworks: There are five homework assignments. You'll submit your homework answers online, and your score on each assignment will be the percentage of questions you answer correctly. Your average in this area is the average of the percentages for each assignment. Participation in Experiments: Five market-like experiments will be conducted in sections during the quarter. If you participate in at least four of these experiments, your percentage in this area will be 100%. If you participate in three, your percentage will be 75%. For two, your percentage will be 50%. For 1, 25%. If you do not participate in any of the experiments, your percentage will be zero. Final Exam: The final will have 30 questions. Your percentage is the number of questions you answer correctly divided by 30. Your course average is the weighted average of these percentages. It is calculated according to the following formula: course average = 0.10 * (clicker %) +0.10 * (experiments %) +0.20 * (homework %) +0.30 * (quiz %) +0.30 * (final %)This course average then determines you grade according to the following scale: Course Average Grade 92-100 A 90-92 A- 88-90 B+ 82-88 B 80-82 B- 78-80 C+ 55-78 C 50-55 C- 45-50 D+ 40-45 D 35-40 D- Below 35 F Absences and Making Up Missed Scoring Opportunities: We understand that students may miss lectures, experiments, and quizzes because of sickness or other obligations. The grading system was designed with these possibilities in mind. We drop the five lowest clicker percentages, so you can miss five lectures without penalty. You can also miss one experiment without penalty. If you miss a quiz because of sickness or some other legitimate reason, send me an email before the quiz explaining your absence. If I accept your explanation as legitimate, I’ll place the weight of that quiz on the final exam. Your quiz percentage will then be based on two quizzes, the weight on the quizzes will be reduced from 30% to 20%, and the weight on the final will be increased from 30% to 40%. I do not