Econ 201:  Intro to Macroeconomics

Link to slides

Link to slides

Lecture Notes

• • Malthus, Ricardo, and Macroeconomic Equilibrium - Does the macroeconomy tend toward "General Gluts", or does Say's Law hold?

  • Macroeconomic Components - Beginning Macro (Aggregation, RGDP, Price Level, AD, AS)

• Does higher real GDP per capita make us happier?  Sort of.  (The Atlantic, May 31, 2012)

  • More on this from Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers (Brookings, April 29, 2013)

Macroeconomic data

• Real Gross Domestic Product (RGDP)

  • Levels:  A long, fairly smooth growth path, with some small fluctuations due to recessions and booms.

  • Growth:  % change from the previous year

  • An average year has about a bit under 3% growth from the previous year, but there clearly are some bit ups and downs!

  • Potential GDP

• Consumer Price Index

  • Levels:  The average price of stuff just keeps going up...but who really cares?

  • Rate of Inflation:  % change in the Consumer Price Index, more stable in recent years

• Labor markets

  • Unemployment rate:  These aren't happy times

  • Labor Force Participation Rate:  Thank you ladies for that amazing economic growth from 1960 to 1990

    • LFPR = (Working or looking for work)/(Working age population)

For interest:

• Who was the richest economist ever?  The second richest?  

• How much is a billion dollars, really?  How much is a trillion?  

  • GDP of US states in terms of GDP of other nations (The Economist)

  • Krugman says Malthus was right!  And the tragically under-rated movie Idiocracy.

  • Some discussion of "General Gluts" and a fun way to think about the circle flow of income

    • General Gluts in China (Matthew Yglesias, Slate, August 24, 2012) 

  • A fascinating way to look at macroeconomic fluctuations (New York Times, July 2, 2010)

  • How big is war as a share of US GDP?  Some history.  (New York Times, July 25, 2010)

  • Why don't more people starve today?  Norman Borlaug! (1914-2009)  (New York Times, Sept. 13, 2009)