ECON 101: PRINCIPLES OF MICROECONOMICS & PUBLIC POLICY
Fall 2013, TTh 8:10-9:30, Hayes (RBH) 109
Mr. Harrington
Office: Ascension Hall 309
Office phone: 5293 (no messages—use e-mail)
Cell phone: 740-504-9045 (no messages—use e-mail)
E-mail: harrington@kenyon.edu
Office hours:
Wed, & Sun. 1:00-3:00 pm
and by appointment
Required Text and Materials
The textbook for this course is available online as part of your subscription to Aplia, which you will used
to complete homework assignments for the course. Instructions for how to register and pay for Aplia are
at the end of the syllabus. The textbook for the Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok, Modern Principles:
Microeconomics, 2nd edition, 2013. If you want a hard copy of the textbook, you might think about
getting a used copy of the first edition that can be bought at Amazon for roughly $25. You will also be
asked to read newspaper articles that will be available on the teaching section of my website,
davideharrington.com, I will post copies of my PowerPoint lectures, within 24 hours of the completion of
the lecture.
Grading
Your final course grade will be based on the following weighting scheme:
Top 10 scores on 13 Homework assignments
Exam #1 (Tues., Sept. 24)
Exam #2 (Tues., Oct. 29)
Exam #3 (Tues., Dec. 10)
Optional Final Exam (Tuesday, December 17, 8:30 am - 11:30 am)
25%
25%
25%
25%
Note: All exams, including the final, will be given in our classroom, Hayes (RBH) 109.
Exam Policy
1. Each exam will focus primarily on the material covered since the previous exam with the exception
of the optional final exam which will be comprehensive. The score on the optional final exam will
replace the lowest exam score if you choose to take it. You cannot be harmed by taking the final
exam. Each exam will include questions taken (virtually) verbatim from Homework assignments
and practice problem sets.
2. There are no make-up exams (or early exams) for missed midterms. If you must miss a midterm
because of illness or other unavoidable circumstances, you must take the optional final exam.
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Students with Disabilities
If you have a specific physical, psychological, medical, or learning disability that may affect your
ability to carry out assigned coursework, you must contact the Office of Disability Services at ext.
5145. The Coordinator of Disability Services, Erin Salva (salvae@kenyon.edu), will review your
concerns and determine, with you, what accommodations are appropriate. No accommodations
will be made without notification from the Coordinator of Disability Services. All information and
documentation of disabilities is confidential.
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Outline and Schedule
(Readings and other materials for Econ 101 are posted on the Aplia website)
Thurs., Aug. 29
Introduction to Economics
Textbook,”The Big Ideas,” Chapter 1
Tues., Sept. 3
Scarcity and Choice
Textbook, “The Power of Trade and Comparative Advantage,” Chapter 2.
Alison Wayne, “Columbia Cross Country Responds to NYC Attacks,” Columbia
Daily Spectator, September 19, 2001
Wed., Sept.4
Homework 1 Diptheria, Olive Oil and the Polio Vaccine (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Sept.5
Gains from Trade
Benjamin Briscoe, “How the Automobile Has Been Brought Within the Reach of
the Man of Moderate Means,” New York Times, Oct 18, 1908
Tues., Sept. 10
Supply and Demand
Textbook, “Supply and Demand,” Chapter 3.
Martin Fackler, “Japan Adapts to Tuna Shortage: Waiter, There's Deer in My
Sushi,” The New York Times, June 25, 2007
Wed., Sept.11
Homework 2: Catching Giant Bluefin Tuna and Ski Academies (due by 11:00
p.m.)
Thurs., Sept. 12
Supply and Demand, continued
Textbook, “Equilibrium: How Supply and Demand Determine Prices,” Chapter 4.
Peg Niemiec, “How Scurvy Was Given the Heave-Ho; An 18th-Century Ship's
Physician Did a Simple Experiment, and the Result Was 'Limeys',” The
Washington Post, June 10, 1997, Z11.
Tues., Sept. 17
Elasticity
Textbook, “Elasticity and its Applications,” Chapter 5 & Appendices
Wikipedia, Coal Strike of 1902, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal_Strike_of_1902
Wed., Sept.18
Homework 3: Meth, Oxycontin, Teeth Whitening, Rental Housing and
Carriages (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Sept. 19
Elasticity, continued
Damon Darlin, “The Hard Drive As Eye Candy,”The New York Times, March 8,
2007
Tues., Sept.24
Exam 1
Wed., Sept. 25
Homework 4: Quinoa, Jet Fuel & Florida Motel Rooms (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Sept. 26
Market Efficiency
Textbook, “The Price System: Signals, Speculation and Prediction,” Chapter 7
Geetanjali Patole, “No Cure in Sight, As Aspirin Crisis Worsens,” The Times of
India, August 26, 2001 7
Tues., Oct. 1
Price Ceilings, Floors, and Bans
Textbook, “Price Ceilings and Price Floors,” Chapter 8
Ransom, Diana. “The Black Market in College-Graduation Tickets.” The Wall
Street Journal, May 8, 2007
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Wed., Oct. 2
Homework 5: Cameron Indoor Stadium (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Oct. 3
Taxes and Subsidies
Textbook, “Taxes and Subsidies,” Chapter 6
“Internal Protection,” New York Times, June 5, 1886
“Looking for Bogus Butter,” New York Times, April 24, 1888.
Tues., Oct. 8
International Trade
Textbook, “International Trade,” Chapter 9
David Barboza, “Sugar Rules Defy Free-Trade Logic,” The New York Times, May
6, 2001
Wed., Oct. 9
Homework 6: Ohio State Football Tickets & Nigerian Toothpaste (due by
11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Oct. 10
No Class—October Break
Tues., Oct. 15
Externalities
Textbook, “Externalities: When Prices Send the Wrong Signals,” Chapter 10
Christopher Snowbeck, “Spittsburgh: Can a Public Health Argument Fly In a City
Where Spitting Seems a Way of Life? Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, January 18,
2000
Wed., Oct. 16
Homework 7: Meth (again) & Clotheslines (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Oct. 17
Public Goods and Common Resources
Textbook, “Public Goods and the Tragedy of the Commons,” Chapter 18
Barbara Carmen, “Areas Beyond Earshot,” The Columbus Dispatch, March 30,
2008
Tues., Oct. 22
Theory of Consumer Choice
Textbook, “Consumer Choice,” Chapter 23
Kim Severson, “Calories Do Count,” The New York Times, Oct. 29, 2008.
Wed., Oct. 23
Homework 8: Lacrosse Helmets, Missile Crisis, & Other Stuff (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Oct. 24
Budget Constraints and Indifference Curves
Virginia Postrel, “A Nobel Winner Can Help You Keep Your Resolutions,” The
New York Times, December 29, 2005.
Tues., Oct. 29
Exam 2
Wed., Oct. 30
Homework 9: Health Insurance & Spending versus Saving (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Oct. 31
Non-Linear Budget Constraints
Rama Lakshmi, “A Welfare Experiment in India,” The Washington Post, March 1,
2011.
Tues., Nov. 5
Costs of Production
Textbook, “Costs and Profit Maximization under Competition,” Chapter 11.
Percy Taylor, “To Make Small Farm Pay: Expert Hints on Fertilizing,” Chicago
Daily Tribune, March 15, 1908.
Thurs., Nov. 7
Competitive Markets
Textbook, “Competition and the Invisible Hand” Chapter 12.
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Hal R. Varian, “The Usual Decorous Waltz between Prices and Sales Becomes a
Lively Tango in the World of Online Sales,” The New York Times, December
19, 2002.
Tues., Nov. 12
Competitive Markets, continued
Jeanne Bronner, “Smaller Gyms Show Muscle: Lower-cost chains may be
financially fitter for expansion,” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jan. 7,
2010
Wed., Nov. 13
Homework 10: Mother of Pearl Shells & Strawberries (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Nov. 14
Monopoly
Textbook, “Monopoly,” Chapter 13
Floyd Norris, “France Calls Google a Monopoly,” The New York Times, July 2,
2010.
Tues., Nov. 19
Price Discrimination
Textbook, “Price Discrimination,” Chapter 14 & Appendix
Donald G. McNeil, “Drug Companies and the Third World, A Case Study in
Neglect, The New York Times, May 21, 2000
Wed., Nov. 20
Homework 11: Light Bulbs & Sand Diego Abortions (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Nov.21
Oligopoly
Textbook, “Cartels, Oligopolies, and Monopolistic Competition,” Chapter 15
Kurt Eichenwald, “Former Archer Daniels Executives Are Found Guilty of Price
Fixing,” The New York Times, September 18, 1998
Tues., Nov. 26
Thanksgiving Vacation
Thurs., Nov. 28
Thanksgiving Vacation
Tues., Dec. 3
Monopolistic Competition
Donatella Lorch, “Immigrants from China Pay Dearly To Be Slaves,” The New
York Times, January 3, 1991
Wed., Dec. 4
Homework 12: Rails versus Water (due by 11:00 p.m.)
Thurs., Dec.5
Political Economy and Public Choice
Textbook, “Political Economy and Public Choice,” Chapter 19
Tues, Dec. 10
Exam 3
Thurs., Dec. 12
Review for Optional Final Exam
Tues., Dec. 17
Optional Final Examination (8:30 am - 11:30 am)
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How to access your Aplia course
Econ 101
Instructor: Jaret Treber / David Harrington / Kathy Krynski
Start Date: 08/26/2013
Course Key: 5YKT-DB3H-BSAY
Registration
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During the registration process, you will be prompted to sign up for a particular section. YOU
DH03, which is the section number for David Harrington, who is
teaching ECON 101.03.
SHOULD CHOOSE
Payment
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If you choose to pay later, you can use Aplia without paying until 11:59 PM on 09/15/2013.
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