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Economics is the study of how people allocate their limited resources to satisfy their
unlimited wants. The ultimate purpose of economics is to understand the choices
we make. Macroeconomics is the part of economic analysis
that studies the behavior of the economy as a whole. It deals with economy-wide
phenomena such as changes in unemployment, the general price level and national
income. Microeconomics is the part of economic analysis that
studies decision making undertaken by individuals (or households) and by firms.
Our topics this semester are divided into five parts. Those topics are listed below
and can be found on the pages linked above. Too, I have included a really good summary
of most of the topics in this course on the Macro Review page linked above. It might
be worth your time to look at that review before starting the course ... it will
give you a good overview of where we're headed.
Economics studies how we, as a society,
decide...
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Economic Term
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Ideal Goal
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...what is produced and how it's produced.
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allocation
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efficiency
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...who gets what and who does what.
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distribution
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equity
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Macroeconomics Margin Notes
Part #1
The Basics of Economics
If you've already taken Micro,
this section will reinforce the basic concepts you've already
learned. If this is your first economics course, it's very important
that you take the time needed to learn these concepts well.
Overview
Basic Economic Terminology
Demand
Supply
Demand and Supply
The Price System
Government Functions in the Economy
The Circular Flow
Part
#2 The Basics of Macroeconomics
National Income Accounting
Inflation
Unemployment
Part
#3 Theory and Policy
Classical and Keynesian Analysis
Fiscal Policy
Government Deficits
Part
#4 Monetarism
Money
Financial Intermediation and Banks
Monetary Policy
Part
#5 Global Growth
and Trade
Economic Development
Economic Growth
Global Trade
Part #6
Review


Need Help with Your Course? Try These Resources!
Time Magazine’s
The Economy's New Rules: Go Glocal
(August 20, 2012)
Globalization
used to be a one-way street that led away from America. Now high energy prices,
political risk and technological shifts are bringing opportunity back home. Welcome
to the era of localnomics.
Until quite recently, globalization was seen as a one-way
street. American companies, which led the charge four decades or so ago into growing
global markets, were its ambassadors, and American workers, whose wages and upward
mobility were flattened, were the victims. The core idea was that globalization,
technological innovation and unfettered free trade would erase historical and geographic
boundaries, making the world ever more economically interconnected and alike. (Foreign-affairs
writer Tom Friedman famously encapsulated this notion with the title of his book
The World Is Flat.) In this vision, all nations would be on an even playing
field, and the US would come under more and more competitive pressure from eager
upstart nations. It worked something like that from the mid-1980s to 2008, a period
of unprecedented market calm that economists call the Great Moderation. Not so much
anymore.
The truth is that the world was never as flat as we
thought, and it's getting bumpier. The flaws in the premise are coming into focus.
Consider the following: when energy prices and political risk go up, far-flung global
supply chains make less economic sense. Low-wage workers in China look attractive
-- until robots operated by highly skilled laborers at home are able to do their
jobs even more cheaply. Unfettered free trade seems great until the world's fastest-growing
economies won't play by the rules of the game.
Read the rest…
Why Are Republican Presidents So Bad for the Economy? GDP, jobs
and other indicators have all risen faster under Democrats for nearly the past
century.
Switching
Costs
Consumer Expectations vs. Reality
Commanding Heights: excellent film series
Financial Globalization: A Controversial Issue
(03:27)
Prelude: Uneven Legacy of NAFTA in Mexico
(02:04)
Costs and Benefits of Government Regulations
(04:52)
Measuring National Success: GDP, HDI and Gross National Happiness
(03:47)
Function of Federal Reserve (04:33)
International Monetary Fund (IMF)
(03:14)
Globalization (02:28)
Gross Domestic Product (04:08)
Comparative Advantage (02:03)
Adam Smith: The Invisible Hand (Online Video, 42 min): mislabeled as video
on Mill so ignore label
The Ascent of Money (2008) BBC (Online
Video)
Creature from Jekyll Island: The Origins of the Federal Reserve (1998)
(Online Video)
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s College Lecture Series
began March 20, 2012. Transcripts and video recordings for each lecture are available
at the site. Each lecture lasts about 50 minutes.
Lecture 1: Origins and Mission of
the Federal Reserve: the functions of central banks, the origin of central
banking in the US and the early experience of the Federal Reserve in dealing
with the Great Depression
Lecture 2: The Federal Reserve after
World War II: developments in central banking from World War II to the recent
financial crisis
Lecture 3: The Financial Crisis and
the Great Recession: the policy responses by the Federal Reserve and others
that sought to restore financial stability in the wake of the crisis and recession
Lecture 4: The Aftermath of the Crisis: monetary policy responses to the recession, the sluggish recovery from the
downturn and the impact of the crisis on financial regulation and central bank
practices
Introduction to Macroeconomics and Microeconomics
(MP3 audio download, 35 min)
This is the first lecture from the Modern Scholar
course Principles of Economics: Business, Banking, Finance and Your Everyday
Life taught by Professor Peter Navarro. In this lecture Professor Navarro
talks about the basics of macroeconomics and microeconomics. He provides numerous
real life examples about how both macroeconomics and microeconomics affect our
personal and professional lives. Professor Navarro is able to articulate a number
of economic principles in a clear and concise way that is relevant to everyday
life.
Economic Analysis: Macroeconomics
(online course, varying lengths)
25 audio lectures from Berkeley Professor
Steven Wood's Macroeconomics course.
FlashEcon
Economics Video and Audio Lectures
Learn Out Loud Economics Audio and Video
Capital: A Critical Analysis of Capitalist Production, Volume 1
(MP3 audio download, varying lengths)
Capital, Volume I is the first of three volumes
in Karl Marx's monumental work, Das Kapital, and the only volume to be
published during his lifetime, in 1867. Marx's aim in this volume is to uncover and explain
the laws specific to the capitalist mode of production and of the class struggles
rooted in these capitalist social relations of production. Marx said himself
that his aim was "to bring a science [i.e. political economy] by criticism to
the point where it can be dialectically represented," and in this way to "reveal
the law of motion of modern society." By showing how capitalist development
was the precursor of a new, socialist mode of production, he aimed to provide
a scientific foundation for the modern labor movement. In preparation for his
book, he studied the economic literature available in his time for a period
of twelve years, mainly in the British Museum in London.
Economic Policy Challenges: Macroeconomics and Fiscal Policy
(online video, 114 min)
IMF chief economist Olivier Blanchard describes
a “two-speed recovery” around the globe, where emerging market countries like
China and India are growing at a brisk clip of around 10%, while developed nations
like the US are lagging behind with growth rates of 3% and below.
The Fed's Monetary Policy Rule (online video, 76 min)
Alan Greenspan retired as chairman of the Federal
Reserve Board after serving more than 18 years, arguably
the most successful period of monetary policy in the history of the Federal
Reserve.
Introduction to Economics (online
course, varying lengths)
The course provides a survey of economic principles
and methods. It covers both microeconomics (the study of consumer choice, firm
behavior and market interaction) and macroeconomics (the study of economic growth,
unemployment and inflation). Special emphasis is placed on the application of
economic tools to contemporary economic problems and policies.
The Strategic Importance of Global Trade
(transcript)
The Strategic Importance of Global Trade
with His Excellency Pascal Lamy, Director-General of the World Trade Organization,
speaking at the Global Strategic Review 2007: The Role of NATO in Meeting Global
Challenges. Professor Francois Heisbourg chairs the discussion.
The Wealth of Nations (MP3 audio
downloads, varying lengths)
An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the
Wealth of Nations is the magnum opus of the Scottish economist Adam Smith,
published on March 9, 1776, during the Scottish Enlightenment. It is a clearly
written account of political economy at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution
and is widely considered to be the first modern work in the field of economics.
Check out the 6 minute video from You Tube titled
Did You Know: Shift Happens ... Globalization and The Information Age.
It’s a little out-of-date but still fairly accurate. I think you’ll be quite surprised
by most of the statistics.
Just for the fun of it, check out Yoram Bauman’s 5-minute
You Tube video,
Principles of Economics Translated. It’s a hoot! You might also enjoy
Every Breath Bernanke Takes, Columbia Business
School’s Spring 2006 Follies spoof on The Police's Every Breath You Take
featuring Dean Glenn Hubbard and aimed at then-Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke.
For a completely different (and conspiracy-theory-oriented)
take on the Fed, watch the following.
Part 1 (07:38)
Part 2 (09:26)
Part 3 (09:37)
Part 4 (09:59)
Part 5 (08:11)
CBO Director Douglas W. Elmendorf held a news conference
on the projected economic outlook and budget deficit for fiscal year 2012 at
2012 Economic Outlook (74
min).
DOL Statistics
Economics Tutorials
Just for fun:
Personal Finance Worksheets
Smart Money
Monetary Policy and the Economy in 2012 (3-hour video): Federal Reserve Chairman
Ben Bernanke testified on the US economic outlook for the year and the future of
economic growth.


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