Interactive Syllabus

[you must read the syllabus]

Introduction

Course objectives. The goal of the course is to teach students intermediate microeconomic theory. The course provides students with the knowledge necessary for further studies of microeconomics at the doctoral level.

Syllabus. 1/ Budget Constraint, Preferences and Utility • 2/ Choice and Revealed Preferences • 3/ Demand and Slutsky Equation • 4/ Consumer's Surplus and Market Demand • 5/ Uncertainty and Equilibrium • 6/ Technology and Profit Maximization • 7/ Cost Minimization and Cost Curves • 8/ Firm Supply and Industry Supply • 9/ Monopoly and Monopoly Behaviour • 10/ Oligopoly • 11/ Game Theory and Asymmetric Information. 

I will not add material, but--depending on several factors that I will evaluate--the program could be shortened and chapters could be dropped.

Learning outcomes. After completing the course the students will be able to: - apply the consumer theory, in particular, they will be able to find optimum choices of consumers and derive demand functions for different preferences; - understand the basic properties of demand; - determine the effects of a price change on consumers’ welfare; - apply the model of a firm; - explain the interaction between consumers and firms in competitive and imperfectly competitive markets, in particular in monopolistically competitive market, in a monopoly and an oligopoly; - apply the basic concepts of consumer theory to situations under uncertainty and explain the main problems related to asymmetric information.

Contacts and meetings with students

My email is luca.fumarco@econ.muni.cz

My room is on the fifth floor, room 523, on the left corridor when you exit either of the two central lifts.

I do receive students in my office. However, the most suitable moment when to talk about course-related issues is during the seminars (i.e., MPE_ACMI). If you want to talk with me at a different moment, please contact me via email, and let's set up a meeting.

You can send me a message anytime and I usually answer within a couple of days. However, sometimes it takes longer or I simply miss your message (also, if you write to me with your private email, the email provider might automagically dump it in the spam/junk email; so, I recommend you use your muni email). If my answer takes too long to reach you, please send me a soft reminder via email or approach me during the lectures or seminars; never take my lack of a response as a deliberate act.

Topics schedule

1. Budget constraint, preferences, and utility, September 27th
   
2. Choice and revealed preference, October 4th
   
3. Demand and Slutsky equation, October 11th / Deadline bonus activity
4. Consumer's surplus, market demand, and equilibrium, October 18th
5. Uncertainty, October 25th 
6. Technology and profit maximization, November 1st  / In-class activity 1
7. Study week, November 8th
   
8. Mid-term, November 15th (on this day, there will be a different instructor to supervise you during the mid-term)
   
9. Cost minimization and cost functions, November 22nd
   
10. Firm supply and industry supply, November 29th
11. Monopoly and monopoly behavior, December 6th
12. Game theory and oligopoly, December 13th / In-class activity 2
13. Final cumulative exam, December 20th
    

This topic's schedule is suggestive of the course progress through Varian's book (see the literature below).

Literature

VARIAN, Hal R. Intermediate microeconomics: a modern approach. 8. ed. New York: Norton, 2010. xxiv, 739. ISBN 9780393934243. info (TEXTBOOK)

BERGSTROM, Theodore C. and Hal R. VARIAN. Workouts in intermediate microeconomics. 8th ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 2009. 562, 38. ISBN 9780393935158. info (EXERCISES BOOK)

Evaluation scale

Students will be evaluated based on three extra activities, one mid-term exam, and the final cumulative exam.

Extra activities, the mid-term exam, and the final cumulative exam will be weighted based on the following percentages:

In determining your final letter grade, I will cumulate your points through in-class activities, and exams. I will then convert this final percentage grade to a final letter grade as follows:

• A: (88; 100]
• B: (81; 88]
• C: (74; 81]
• D: (67; 74]
• E: [60; 67]
• F: [0, 60)

To avoid a subjective evaluation, I do not round grades up if you are close to a cut-off or otherwise tweak grades. Please do not ask me to do this. Please note that I do not use a curve to grade your assignments or exams: your grade is in your hands only.

Attendance - not graded

Attendance is not mandatory; however, it is warmly recommended. To make the 1h50' more bearable, we will have a 10' break in the middle of the lesson.

Studies have shown that students learn better when they attend in-person classes. Direct personalized learning experiences motivate students and allow them to stay focused and avoid lagging. In other words, it is in your interest to attend: it increases the learning experience and satisfaction with the course. Moreover, lessons are the best moment when to ask questions about material that you have not understood.

Although the slides are available now, and you have the book, I encourage you to take notes during the lessons. Studies have shown this is a very effective way to learn.

Since the material is already available, I expect that, before coming to the lesson, you will have already read the slides for that lesson (e.g. on October 3rd, you read the slides to be discussed in class on October 4th).

There is no option to attend online. However, if you missed a lecture for important reasons (e.g. for medical reasons), you could watch the video from 2020 hybrid lectures. These lectures are not accessible to everyone, they will be made accessible only to those students who need them (e.g., they could not attend a lesson due to sickness).

Bonus, graded and non-graded in-class activities

Bonus activity is an online quiz that inquires you about this syllabus. It will be composed of a few multiple-choice questions. To receive 1 bonus point on your final grade, you have to pass at least 70% of the quiz.

In-class activity 1 will be planned in due course. For example, it could be a (online and in-class) quiz. This quiz will have theoretical questions (math-intensive exercises are not included) on the material from lessons 1 to 5.

In-class activity 2 will be planned in due course. For example, it could be a (online and in-class) quiz. This quiz will have theoretical questions (math-intensive exercises are not included) on the material from lessons 6 to 11.

In-class activities 1 and 2 do not give you a pass/fail, but an actual score that adds to your final grade (e.g. 30% of In-class activity 1, translates into 2.25 additional points on your final grade--[7.5/100]*30).

There is no resit of extra activities and, if you miss them, you will not be able to get those points (e.g. if you miss In-class activity 1, it is 0% of said activity, and you can get at most 92.5 as your final grade, which is an A; and, if you miss both activities, you can get at most 85 as your final grade, which is a B).

If a student cannot take an in-class activity because of documented force majeure (i.e., a sickness, which would have to be documented online through standard evidence being provided to instructors), they could contact me to agree on a postponement of the assignment.

If a student cannot take an in-class activity because of work or study abroad, they would have to contact me by the end of October.

There might be additional Non-graded in-class activities that will be planned in due course and depend on time availability. These activities are not graded and they are meant to help you learn and make me understand whether something is unclear to you. Typically, these activities are in-class oral questions from me to you on what is discussed on that same day; additionally, at the end of each lesson, we will use either Socrative (room name: FUMARCO) or Mentimeter  (the lecture-specific code will be given in class). Please sign up on both websites, it is free, and download the app, which is available on the cellphone, iPad, laptop.

There is a positive correlation between the questions that I ask in class and the likelihood that similar questions will appear in the exams.

Exams - graded

There are two exams, each of which has multiple-choice questions with exactly one correct answer.

• Mid-term exam: 0-40 points

• Final cumulative exam A, with pass Mid-term: 0-45 points

• Final cumulative exam B, without Mid-term: 0-85 points

The exact assessment dates and their content will be announced in due course, although the Mid-term will be (ideally) on November 15th (see the topics schedule), while the first date for the Final cumulative exam (either A or B, depending on what you did with the mid-term) will be (ideally) on the last lesson, on December 20th.

For some of you, December 20th looks too early; however, you are not obligated to take this exam on December 20th. You can take it later (there will be 4 dates between January and February). We have introduced this earlier exam to meet the needs of those people who leave Czechia before Christmas vacations.

By university rules, you have the right to sit an exam 3 times. The exam on December 20th counts against this limit (i.e. you take the Final cumulative exam--either A or B--on December 20th and you fail it, then you can take it only two more times in January / February).

Exams rules. Both Mid-term and Final cumulative exams will be closed book, closed notes exams. NO CELLPHONE IS ALLOWED; YOU HAVE TO BRING YOUR CALCULATOR. 

ADDITIONAL RULES: NO TALKING, NO LOOKING IN THE DIRECTION OF OTHER PEOPLE'S EXAM. THE FIRST TIME YOU BREAK ANY OF THESE RULES, I GIVE YOU A WARNING, BUT ON THE SECOND TIME I WILL TAKE YOUR EXAM AND YOU WILL GET AN F. If you have to ask something from a classmate (e.g., some water, a tissue), you first rise your hand and tell me that you have to do so.

The above rules apply to any unauthorized tool, aid, and communication device, or other disruptions of objectivity of credit tests will be considered non-compliance with the conditions for course completion as well as a severe violation of the study rule (see the link at the bottom of the page.

Your wrong answers do not reduce your grade, they simply count as a 0; thus, if you are not sure about what to answer, just pick one of the answers: do not be tempted to break any of the above rules.

Exams content. The Mid-term will include questions on material covered in lessons 1 to 5. Those students who pass the Mid-term exam will have the right to benefit from the slightly shorter Final cumulative exam A (0-45 points). There is no resit of the Mid-term exam: those people who fail it will have to take the Final cumulative exam B that covers chapters 1 to 12 (0-85 points). You may pass the Mid-term exam and be unsatisfied with your grade; in that case, you may choose to renounce the Mid-term grade and take the Final cumulative exam B (0-85 points).

Both Final cumulative exams A and B will include mostly questions on material covered in lessons 6 to 12 and some questions on material covered in lessons 1 to 5. However, the Final cumulative exam A will be shorter than the B version and will include fewer questions on material covered in lessons 1 to 5.

Answer sheets for the mid-term and the exams. For many of you, this is the first time you will use answer sheets. Here is a sample answer sheet that shows how to answer and how to correct your answers. We will discuss how to fill in the answer sheets in class as well.

This is a sample test that you could exercise with in preparation for the exam.

What if you need to revise math? When you signed up for this university and course, you provided documented evidence that your level of math is good enough. So, I will proceed through the lectures assuming that your level of calculus is really good enough, e.g., you know how to solve equations and inequalities, and how to compute derivatives and areas of basic geometric shapes (you will not need to compute integrals though).

Nonetheless, you might feel the need to revise your basics. Unfortunately, there are many students and I cannot help you with calculus. However, fray not: there is a math and stat support center that you can visit to receive support; they speak in English. Students from past years who benefitted from the services of this center were happy about the received support.

Exams dates

• Sat 6/1/2024 13,10 P101; open for reservations from Tue 10/10/2023 17,00 to Fri 5/1/2024, cancellation possible to Fri 5/1/2024
• Fri 12/1/2024 16,10 P101; open for reservations from Tue 10/10/2023 17,00 to Thu 11/1/2024, cancellation possible to Thu 11/1/2024
• Sat 20/1/2024 10,10 P101; open for reservations from Tue 10/10/2023 17,00 to Fri 19/1/2024, cancellation possible to Fri 19/1/2024
• Fri 26/1/2024 15,10 P101; open for reservations from Tue 10/10/2023 17,00 to Thu 25/1/2024, cancellation possible to Thu 25/1/2024
• Mon 5/2/2024 16,10 P101; open for reservations from Tue 10/10/2023 17,00 to Sun 4/2/2024, cancellation possible to Sun 4/2/2024
• Sat 10/2/2024 13,10 P101; open for reservations from Tue 10/10/2023 17,00 to Fri 9/2/2024, cancellation possible to Fri 9/2/2024

On each exam day, enter the classroom 10 minutes earlier (e.g., on January 6th, you enter at 13,00), the exam starts 10 minutes after that. Bring the student card!
Please only sit in places where the tables are in a horizontal position/open.

Grade computation

Your grade is computed with a simple weighted average. Below is a reminder on how I compute your grade.

If you take the Final cumulative exam A, I use the following formula:

Your grade = Bonus Activity + ((Grade In-class Activity1 / X)*0.075)*100 + ((Grade In-class Activity2 / Y)*0.075)*100 + ((Mid-term grade / K)*0.40)*100 + ((Final cumulative exam A grade / M)*0.45)*100

Where X, Y, K, and M correspond to the number of questions in the respective activity.

If you did not take In-class Activity 1 and/or 2, their corresponding value in the formula is 0, and there is no resit (see the details in the corresponding section of this syllabus).

In the above formula, Bonus Activity = 1 if you passed this activity with at least 70% of the quiz; if you got less than that, Bonus Activity = 0.

In the above formula, the Mid-term is 0 if you got less than 60% of the mid-term (i.e. you failed it) or if you did not take it or you renounced the grade. In this case, you will take the Final cumulative exam B which is worth 85% of the final grade, so to compute your grade I will use the following formula:

Your grade = Bonus Activity + ((Grade In-class Activity / X)*0.075)*100 + ((Grade In-class Activity / Y)*0.075)*100 + ((Final cumulative exam B grade / M)*0.85)*100

Where X, Y, K, and M correspond to the number of questions in the respective activity.

Exams viewing dates

You can view your test on paper in room VT105, on the following dates. Please come first at 4:30 p.m. There are enough computers in the room, viewing will take place in parallel.

• Tue 9/1/2024 at 16,30
  
• Mon 15/01/2024 at 16,30
  
• Tue 23/01/2024 at 16,30
  
• Mon 29/01/ 2024 at 16,30
• Wed 7/2/2024 at 16,30
• Tue 13/02/2024 at 16,30

What is the relationship between MPE_AMI2 and MPE_ACMI?

During the lessons for MPE_AMI2, we will focus on the theory, while during the seminars for MPE_ACMI, we will focus on the exercises. However, as you see from the sample test, the exam for MPE_AMI2 will include both theoretical questions and exercises. Thus, although MPE_AMI2 is separate from the seminars (i.e., MPE_ACMI), the seminars will help you learn the tools to pass MPE_ACMI.

Could exercise banks (those used for exams and assignments) contain errors?

Please note that your exams and assignments in this course are usually multiple-choice quizzes that come from standardized test banks from one of the most famous intermediate microeconomics books in the world. Mistakes are very rare and there is no space for arbitrary decisions on whether an answer is correct or not.

The policy of zero tolerance for academic dishonesty will be strictly applied.