Econ 0480
Intermediate Microeconomics
Fall 2005
Instructor
Guan Gong
Office hours: M 7:00-9:00pm
Office: Teaching and Administration Building 721
Email: ggong@mail.shufe.edu.cn
TA
Damu Tong
Phone: 55038842
Email: damu_tong@yahoo.com.cn
Course Meet
09/08/2005 – 12/30/2005; Room: 5302
Th: 10:05– 10:50 am, Fri: 8:00-9:40 am
No Class: Oct 5-6 (National Day)
Added Class: Oct 9, Sat (moved from Oct 7)
Midterm exams date: Oct 28, Dec 14
Course Website
TBA
Textbook
Required: Hal Varian, Intermediate Microeconomics: A Modern Approach, fifth
edition, W.W.Norton & Co., 1999.
Optional: Hal Varian, Microeconomics Analysis, W.W.Norton & Co.
Prerequisites
This course is an upper stream economics class in microeconomics. I will assume that
you fully understand the fundamentals learned in introduction to microeconomics.
This course is analytic in nature. Calculus is required for you to follow the lectures
and do the homework.
Course Objectives
This course is designed to provide you a more rigorous understanding of tools to
examine and analyze the behavior of consumers and firms and their interactions in
the marketplace. The course will start with consumer theory, followed by firm theory.
Having gained an understanding of both the demand side and the supply side of
economies, we proceed to study how the demand and supply come together and lead
to equilibrium in a market. We will learn the interactions of individual economic
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agent in different types of markets, in some cases incurring inefficient allocation of
goods and services.
Preparing for Class
It’s better for you to read the relevant chapter(s) in ahead of the time. During class, I
will focus on problem solving. If you read through the chapters ahead of time, this
should be great helpful for you understanding the content of lectures.
Grading
There will have two midterm exams, one final exam, a number of homework
assignments and randomly in-class quizzes. Grades will be determined as follows:
Quizzes
Homework
Midterm Exams (15% each)
Final Exam
15%
15%
30%
40%
At random points during the semester I will give quizzes (10 minutes each) in the
beginning of the class. Therefore, it will not pay for you to come late to class or miss
class.
The homework assignments include all the review questions corresponding to the
chapters that we cover in the lectures. The answers that just simply copy those at the
back of the book will be scored zero. They are due at the beginning of class on the
listed dates.
Policies
I don’t accept any excuse for the missing of exams and quizzes unless you can
provide proof of emergency such as serious illness. If you miss the exam or quiz for
any reason that does not qualify as a proven emergency, you get zero. You can work
with your classmates on the homework assignments, but you are not allowed to copy
someone else’s work. TA has the right to do not grade the late homework assignment
turned in.
Academic Dishonesty
Academic dishonesty by the student code of conduct includes cheating on the
assignments or exams; plagiarizing; altering; forging, or misusing a University
academic record; taking, acquiring, or using test materials without faculty permission;
and acting alone or in cooperation with another to enhance a grade, etc. A minimum
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penalty for academic dishonesty is a grade of zero. Other penalties may include a F in
course and a complaint to university authorities so that they act consequently with the
corresponding university policy.
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Course Schedule (subject to change)
Consumer Theory
Sep 8-9


Sep 15-16
Budget constraint (Varian Ch. 2)
Preference (Varian Ch. 3)
Utility (Varian Ch. 4)
Choice (Varian Ch. 5)
 Individual and aggregated demand (Varian Ch. 6 &15)
 Consumer surplus (Varian Ch. 14)
 Slutsky equation (Varian Ch. 8-9)
 Uncertainty (Varian Ch. 12)
 Asset markets and risky assets (Varian Ch. 11 & 13)
Firm Theory
plus introduction to
course topics, policies
and requirements.


Sep 22-23
Sep 29-30
Oct 9
Oct 13-14
Oct 20-21
Technology (Varian Ch. 18)
Profit maximization (Varian Ch. 19)
 Cost minimization (Varian Ch. 20)
 Cost curves (Varian Ch. 21)
 Firm and industry supply (Varian Ch. 22-23)
Homework due on
22nd


Oct 27
Oct 28
Review session
Midterm exam 1
Homework due on
13th
Homework due
8:00-9:30am
Markets
Nov 3-4
Nov 10-11
Nov 17-18
Nov 24-25
Equilibrium (Varian Ch. 16)
Auctions (Varian Ch. 17)
 Exchange and production (Varian Ch. 29-30)
 Welfare (Varian Ch. 31)
Imperfect Competition


Homework due on
11th
Monopoly behavior (Varian Ch. 25)
Monopoly (Varian Ch. 24)
 Oligopoly (Varian Ch. 27)
 Factor markets (Varian Ch. 26)
 Game theory (Varian Ch. 27)
Homework due on
25th


Dec 1-2
Dec 8-9
Dec 14
Homework due on
9th
Midterm exam 2
Market Imperfection
Dec 16
Externalities (Varian Ch. 32)
Networks (Varian Ch. 34)
 Public goods (Varian Ch. 35)
 Asymmetric Information (Varian Ch. 36)

Homework due

Dec 22-23
Dec 29-30
Final exam
between Jan 2 and
Jan13. Last
homework due
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