ECONOMICS (2201) - INTERMEDIATE MICROECONOMIC THEORY Subhash Ray Summer I 2018 "A cynic is one who knows the price of everything but the value of nothing." Fortunately, one can know both. CONTACT INFORMATION: Email: subhash.ray@uconn.edu - Oscar Wilde NOTE: The best way to contact me is through my university email (subhash.ray@uconn.edu). Telephone: 860-486-3967 (o) Office Hours: By appointment in person (OAK324) or via Skype. Office: 324 OAK HALL RESPONSE TIME: Because I will not be in my office every day during the Summer, you may end up leaving a voicemail on my answering machine when you call me at my office phone number. It is best to send me an e-mail. I respond to your inquiries within 24 hours. If you do not receive a reply within that period, send your email again. CATALOG COURSE DESCRIPTION: Intermediate microeconomic theory, covering demand and supply, exchange and production, pricing, and welfare economics. COURSE GOALS: Upon completion of this course, students will be able to: 1 Review supply and demand. Review utility theory Explain the principles underlying consumer behavior. Recognize revealed preference. Identify income and substitution. Construct market demand curves. Examine the behavior of producers.
Determine production costs. Analyze individual and market demand. Explain perfectly competitive markets. Examine a firm s supply curve and the industry supply curve. Define the characteristics of a monopoly and monopsony. Determine the most effective use of a firm s market power. Examine monopolistic competition and oligopoly. Analyze strategic decision making through game theory. Examine factor market structures. TEXTBOOK AND OTHER REQUIRED MATERIALS: 1.Textbook: The principal textbook for this course is Robert S. Pindyck and Daniel L. Rubinfeld, Microeconomics, 9 th edition. 2. MyEconLab: We will also be using the internet resource MyEconLab this semester: How to access your MyEconLab course can be found under the MyEconLab link on the home page of the course. 3. Other Required Materials: 2 QuickTime to view movies. Adobe Reader to view PDFs. A text editing program, such as Word, to write and submit assignments. A spreadsheet program for manipulating problems, such as Excel. A fast, reliable internet connection. A University of Connecticut Supported Web Browser such as C h r o m e, IE9, FireFox or Safari. A working webcam and microphone (required for online Proctoring of Final Exam). TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE: It is your responsibility to be familiar with and able to use all the tools within HuskyCT including the Discussion, Assignment, and Assessment tools. You must be able to attach documents to Assignments for submission. If you need technical assistance, contact HuskyCT 24/7 Course Support. NOTE: Activities for each week are usually due by 11:59 PM ET on varying days (anything available can be submitted early). Be sure your computer is
operational and all tools are functional prior to the deadlines. Technological problems will not be accepted as valid excuses for missed work. The Course Orientation module contains practice activities to test your computer settings and familiarize you with HuskyCT. You should complete it the first day of class. COURSE SCHEDULE: As an online class this class has a rigorous schedule you can work ahead but cannot fall behind and receive credit without documented exceptions. Summer Session 1 is officially open on Tuesday, May 29, 2018 and closes June 29, 2018 at 11:59 pm EDT. [Please Note: additional quizzes, assignments, readings and so forth may be added as the semester progresses. You are responsible for being aware of these assignments and how they will be assessed.] You will have several items due each week. You are not required to be online at any specific time, but you should plan on logging into the course at least once a day to participate in discussions adequately, check announcements and assignments, read online material, etc. You should plan to spend a MINIMUM of 25 hours per week according to University policy (and get your money s worth). GRADING: Your grade will consist of the following totals: Quizzes 15% MyEconLab 15 % (see description below) Online Discussions 15% Weekly Exams - 25% Final Exam 30% NOTE: If the class average is below 75, grades will be curved up to a mean of 75. Quizzes There will be 13 quizzes. There are 25 questions each. They are generally based on material from your textbook. You will have 45 minutes to complete each quiz. You will have unlimited attempts to improve your score. Be sure to save each answer as you go. If you go beyond 45 minutes, only those questions that were saved prior to the time limited will be graded. 3
MyEconLab Finally, you are required to use MyEconLab this semester. It is linked to the class HuskyCT website. I encourage you to work these problems until you get them correct (unlimited tries actually 99). There are due dates for each week s MyEconLab homework to help you keep up with the material, however, all MyEconLab work will be accepted up until the last day of class with no penalty.the MyEconLab portion of your grade will depend on the Homework assignments for Modules 1 through 4. Note that the MyEconLab assignments from the individual chapters include both Homework and Tests and quizzes. The Tests and quizzes in MyEconLab are in addition to the HuskyCT quizzes for the different modules. Although MyEconLab quizzes will not count towards your grade, they will help you to better understand the material. Group Discussions The class is divided into five groups. You will be assigned to one of these groups for the Group Discussions. When it is your group s turn to post, you should work with your other group members on writing a thoughtful summary. This will require you to contact your group members (via discussion board, chat, email, GoogleDocs or phone) early in the week to have enough time to complete the post within the time allowed. Once a group posts a summary, discussion about the post begins and continues for a week. Group members will act as moderators and respond to their classmates posts. All non-group members will respond to the summary ask questions, add information, make comments, etc. Each group member is expected to individually participate in all activities. NOTE: The moderating group for each group must post their summary post to the Discussion Board by the due date to allow other students to post comments and rejoinders. All members of the moderating group will be penalized if this deadline is not met. Of the 15% for your Discussion grade, 5% will be for your summary post, and 10% (2.5% for each of the 4 responses) will be for your responses (when not part of the posting group) and moderating (when part of the moderating group). ATTENTION: If you do not see anything on the Groups page, contact your professor immediately to be assigned to a group. 4
Final Exam Final Exam will be due the last week of class. The final exam is comprehensive covers everything in the class! It will be an online proctored exam using a service called ProctorU. ProctorU requires you to have a webcam and microphone. There is no additional fee for this service (unless you sign up late, in which case there is a $5 fee). The final exam must be completed between June 27-29, 2018. Review ProctorU s Getting Started Instructions. GRADE BREAKDOWN Percent Grade 93 or more A 90-92.9 A- 87-89.9 B+ 83-86.9 B 80-82.9 B- 77-79.9 C+ 73-76.9 C 70-72.9 C- 67-69.9 D+ 63-66.9 D 60-62.9 D- 0-59.9 F LATE WORK: Missed quizzes and problems set may be made up on a case by case for partial credit. Late work can be at the instructor s discretion accepted for a grade of "F. If work is not turned in at all it will receive a grade of zero in your average. PLEASE RETAIN COPIES OF ALL OF YOUR WORK! While the formation of study groups is encouraged (but not as a substitute for individual study,) any form of collaboration between or among students before or during anyone s completion of any class assignment is strictly prohibited EXCEPT FOR EXPLICITLY GROUP ASSIGNMENTS. Such conduct will result in formal academic misconduct charges being brought against the student(s) involved. UNIVERSITY POLICY TOWARD ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT: All faculty members have been asked by the Dean to include the following statement on their syllabi: What is considered academic misconduct for undergraduate students? 5
Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to: 6 Providing or receiving assistance on academic work (papers, projects, examinations) in a way that was not authorized by the instructor Any attempt to improperly influence (bribery, threats) any member of the faculty, staff, or administration of the University in any matter relating to academics or research Plagiarism Doing academic work for another student Presenting the same or substantially the same papers or projects in two or more courses without the explicit permission of the instructors Situations where one student knowingly assists another student in committing an act of academic misconduct, and any student doing so will be held equally accountable for the violation How is academic misconduct reported? In most cases, an instructor will report a student for academic misconduct when he/she believes there is enough information to demonstrate a clear case. When an instructor believes there is sufficient evidence to demonstrate a clear case of academic misconduct, he/she shall generally notify the accused student in writing and orally within 30 days of the discovery of the alleged misconduct. Evidence of academic misconduct can include continuing suspicious behavior during an exam when warned by the instructor to stop and academic works being submitted by two students that are remarkably similar. The instructor is responsible for saving all information on academic misconduct in its original form and does not need to return any of the material to the student. Copies of the student's work and information about other evidence can be provided to the student upon request. In certain cases, the dean of a school or college may become aware of academic misconduct and may bring a complaint forward to the school or college's hearing body. What is the instructor's role in preventing academic misconduct? Instructors should take all reasonable steps to prevent academic misconduct. If an instructor observes suspicious behavior during an examination, he/she should warn the students involved and request them to stop the suspicious behavior. For further information on this rather unpleasant topic with which we WILL AVOID see The Dean of Students office, or more specifically the Student Code
and the University of Connecticut s academic integrity policy. Neither the University of Connecticut, nor will I tolerate any violation of its policies concerning discrimination and/or discriminatory harassment (including sexual harassment).for a statement of those policies and the procedures related to them please see the University s Office of Diversity and Equity s website. Students with Disabilities Students needing special accommodations should work with the University's Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD). You may contact CSD by calling (860) 486-2020 or by emailing csd@uconn.edu. If your request for accommodation is approved, CSD will send an accommodation letter directly to your instructor(s) so that special arrangements can be made. (Note: Student requests for accommodation must be filed each semester.) Blackboard measures and evaluates accessibility using two sets of standards: the WCAG 2.0 standards issued by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act issued in the United States federal government. (Retrieved March 24, 2013 from Blackboard) INSTRUCTOR BACKGROUND: Degrees: BA (Honors), MA (University of Calcutta, INDIA); Fellow (PhD) in Management (Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta) PhD in Economics (University of California, Santa Barbara) Previous teaching positions: University of Kalyani, India University of California, Santa Barbara Research Interests: Productivity and Efficiency Measurement; Operations Research; Applied Econometrics 7
ECON 2201 SUMMER SESSION I 2018 Schedule: Note that all of the weekly modules are NOT of the same duration. You should carefully plan your weekly activities to meet the posted deadline for any particular module. Misunderstanding the deadline will not be accepted as a valid excuse for late submission of a post in the Discussion Board or for extending the deadline on a weekly Exam or (HuskyCT) Quiz. Module Start Date End Date No of Days Module 1 May 29, 2018 June 3, 2018 6 Module 2 June 4, 2018 June 10, 2018 7 Module 3 June 11, 2018 June 16 2018 6 Module 4 June 17, 2018 June 22, 2018 6 Module 5 June 23, 2018 June 29, 2018 6 8
Module 1 [May 29 June 3, 2018] All Activities due no later than 11:59 PM EDT SUNDAY, June 3, 2018 Module Activities Due Date 1 - Introduction Read Module 1 Lecture Notes Read Chapters 1, 2 Module 1 Discussion Chapter 1 Quiz Sunday, June 3, AT 11:59 PM EDT Chapter 2 Quiz MyEconLab Complete all assignments (homework and tests/quizzes) under Module 1 in MyEconLab, which covers chapters 1 and 2. Exam 1 Must be submitted by 11:59 PM EDT June 3. You will have 90 minutes to complete this 50 question exam. The questions are drawn from the same pool of questions as the quizzes. Sunday, June 3, AT 11:59 PM EDT 9
Module 2 [June 4-June 10, 2018] All Activities due no later than 11:59 PM EDT SUNDAY June 10, 2018 Module Activities Due Date 2 Consumer Behavior Read Module 2 Lecture Notes Read Chapters 3 and 4 Module 2 Discussion 1 Module 2 Discussion 2 Sunday, June 10 by 11:59 PM Chapter 3 Quiz Chapter 4 Quiz MyEconLab Complete all assignments (homework and tests/quizzes) in MyEconLab under Module 2, which covers chapters 3 and 4. EXAM 2 Must be submitted by 11:59 PM EDT June 10. You will have 90 minutes to complete this 50 question exam. The questions are drawn from the same pool of questions as the quizzes. NOTE: There are two group discussions during this module. 10
Module 3 [June 11-June 16, 2018] All Activities due no later than 11:59 PM EDT SATURDAY, June 16, 2018 3 Technology, Production, and Cost Read Module 3 Lecture Notes Read Chapters 6 and 7 Chapter 6 Quiz Chapter 7 Quiz Module 3 Discussion MyEconLab Complete all assignments (homework and tests/quizzes) in MyEconLab under Module 3, which covers chapters 6 and 7 Saturday, June 16 by 11:59 PM EDT EXAM 3 - Must be submitted by 11:59 PM EDT June 16. You will have 90 minutes to complete this 50 question exam. The questions are drawn from the same pool of questions as the quizzes. 11
Module 4 [June 17- June 22, 2018] All Activities due no later than 11:59 PM EDT Friday, June 22, 2018 Module Activities Due Date 4 Perfect Competition, Applications and Monopoly Read Module 4 Lecture Notes Read Chapters 8, 9 and 10 Chapter 8 Quiz Chapter 9 Quiz Chapter 10 Quiz Module 4 Discussion All Activities due no later than Friday, June 22, by 11:59 PM EDT MyEconLab Complete all assignments (homework and tests/quizzes) in MyEconLab under Module 4 which cover chapters 8, 9 and 10. EXAM 4 - Must be submitted by 11:59 PM EDT June 22 You will have 90 minutes to complete this 50 question exam. The questions are drawn from the same pool of questions as the quizzes. 12
Module 5 [June 23 June 30, 2018] All Activities due no later than FRIDAY June 29 at 11:59 PM EDT Module Activities Due Date 5 Monopolies, Monopolistic Competition and Oligopoly Read Module 5 Lecture Notes Read Chapters 11-14 Chapter 11 Quiz Chapter 12 Quiz SATURDAY, June 30 by 11:59 PM Chapter 13 Quiz Chapter 14 Quiz MyEconLab - Complete all assignments (homework and tests/quizzes) in MyEconLab under Module 5 which covers chapters 11-14 FINAL EXAM Cumulative. You will have 120 minutes to complete this 80 question exam. Must be completed via ProctorU between June 27 and June 29. 13
MAKEUP WORK All graded items are due no later than FRIDAY June 29 at 11:59 PM EDT. FINAL EXAMINATION INFORMATION Final Exam The Final Exam will be due the last week of class. THE FINAL EXAMINATION COVERS ALL OF THE MATERIAL IN THE CLASS AND WILL BE AVAILABLE FROM June 27, 2018 June 29, 2018. It is an online proctored exam, administered through ProctorU. You must schedule your exam with ProctorU prior to the exam dates. More information about proctoring will be provided within HuskyCT. 14