Kurt G. Lunsford
TA Page for Econ 102 - Spring 2013
Principles of Macroeconomics
Course Information
Instructor:
Steven Rick
Time and Place:
Tuesday and Thursday 9:55am to 10:45am
272 Bascom Hall
Textbook:
Paul Krugman & Robin Wells. Macroeconomics. Third Edition. Worth Publishers.
Here is a .pdf version of the syllabus and here is a .pdf version of the EconPortal handout.
Course Materials
Week 1: January 21 to January 25
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They cover the current macroeconomic situation in the United States. The economic indicator for this week is Unemployment Insurance Claims. There were no discussion sections this week.
Week 2: January 28 to February 1
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They provide and introduction to economic and macroeconomic thinking. The economic indicators for this week are Existing Home Sales and Personal Income, Spending and Saving. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 3: February 4 to February 8
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They discuss GDP and CPI. The economic indicators for this week are Gross Domestic Product and Inflation. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 4: February 11 to February 15
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They discuss employment, unemployment and inflation. The economic indicators for this week are Employment (from the establishment survey) and unemployment (from the household survey). Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 5: February 18 to February 22
Exam this week! The exam is Thursday, February 21, during the normal class time. Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They cover aggregate output and production. The economic indicator for this week is New Home Sales.
Past exams for practice are as follows:
The Fall 2012 exam and the answers.
The Spring 2012 exam and the answers.
The Fall 2011 exam and the answers.
The Spring 2011 exam and the answers.
Here is Exam 1 for this semester and its answers.
Week 6: February 25 to March 1
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They discuss labor productivity, compensation and costs. The economic indicator for this week is Productivity. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 7: March 4 to March 8
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They cover the aggregate expenditure model. The economic indicators for this week are the Institute for Supply Managers (ISM) manufacturing index and the Business Barometer Index from ISM-Chicago. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 8: March 11 to March 15
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They cover the aggregate supply and aggregate demand model. The economic indicators for this week are Consumer Credit and the Factory Orders. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 9: March 18 to March 22
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They cover government debt, deficits and fiscal austerity. The economic indicators this week are Federal Government Debt and the Current Account Balance. Here are slides for the current account balance. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 10: March 25 to March 29
Spring Break!
Week 11: April 1 to April 5
Exam this week! The exam is Thursday, April 4, during the normal class time. The economic indicator is the employment cost index.
Past exams for practice are as follows:
The Fall 2012 exam and the answers.
The Fall 2011 exam and the answers.
The Spring 2011 exam and the answers.
Here is Exam 2 for this semester and its answers.
Week 12: April 8 to April 12
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides and supplemental slides. They cover banks and the money supply. The economic indicators this week are Treasury Yield Curves and the Producer Price Index. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 13: April 15 to April 19
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They cover liquidity preference, the money market, and the velocity of money. The economic indicators this week are Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization, and Consumer Confidence and Sentiment. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 14: April 22 to April 26
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They the cover Phillips curve. The economic indicators this week are Import and Export Price Indexes, and the Index of Leading Indicators. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 15: April 29 to May 3
Here are Prof Rick's first set of lecture slides and the second set of lecture slides. They the cover investment banking, credit crunches and TALF. The economic indicators this week are the Empire State Manufacturing Survey and Durable Goods Orders. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 16: May 6 to May 10
Here are Prof Rick's lecture slides. They cover trade, exchange rates and purchasing power parity. The economic indicators this week are International Trade (Imports and Exports) and the U.S. Exchange Rate vs. Gold Prices. Here is the discussion section handout and the answers.
Week 17: May 13 to May 16
Final Exam this week! The exam is Thursday, May 16, from 5:05pm to 7:05pm.
Past exams for practice are as follows:
The Fall 2012 exam and the answers.
The Spring 2012 exam and the answers.
The Fall 2011 exam and the answers.
The Spring 2011 exam and the answers.
Here is the Final Exam for this semester and its answers.