Announcements

Tuesday, February 23, 2010 5 to 6:30 p.m.
Morris Dailey Auditorium
"Freefall: America, Free Markets, and the Sinking of the World Economy"
Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Laureate in Economics, Professor of Finance and Economics at Columbia Business School, Executive Director and Co-founder of Initiative for Policy Dialogue

Wednesday, February 24, 2010 5:15 to 6:45 p.m.
Provocative Lecture 1 of 3
Engineering 189
Debate: "Should the Government Fix the Financial Crisis?"
Co-Sponsored by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute
Participants:
Barry Eichengreen, the George C. Pardee and Helen N. Pardee Professor of Economics and Political Science, University of California Berkeley
Gary Wolfram, William E. Simon Professor of Economics and Public Policy, Hillsdale College




Emily C.
Schaeffer, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Economics

San Jose State University

Principles of Micro
Our general goal in a Principles of Microeconomics class is develop a framework for critical thinking and decision making -- in other words, think like an economist.  The tools of economic reasoning are applicable to a wide range of fields in business, academics, governance and nonprofit sectors.

 Students will develop the economic way of thinking, emphasizing the application of three aspects:
  •   Incentives Matter

·         the role of self interest

·         the law of demand

·         the law of supply

·         rational choice: evaluating additional benefits versus additional costs

  • Opportunity Cost

·         sunk costs

·         production possibilities

·         “there is no such thing as a free lunch”

·         recognizing and evaluating tradeoffs

·         gains from trade

·         comparative advantage

  • Supply and Demand

·         social coordination through mutually beneficial exchange

·         the S&D model as a representation of individual choices in exchange based on individual preferences, knowledge and context

·         identifying movements along the curve versus shift of the curve

Course Readings