Because modern macroeconomics is by nature dynamic, the mathematics involved are often difficult for undergraduate students to grasp. Unfortunately, numerical examples that are helpful in clarifying other technical areas of economics are very time consuming and even intractable when using pen,...

It is shown that the component statistics of the HDI are highly correlated with one another. An implication of this correlation is that a wide range of index weights produce indexes that are statistically identical to the HDI. Indexes with only two of the three HDI components are very highly...

Empirical evidence contradicts the view that savings rates are independent of permanent income levels. Instead, a distinctive nonlinear relationship between savings and permanent income has been found. What explains this result? Using Robert Frank's model of the demand for nonpositional goods,...

This paper presents a way to incorporate the neoclassical assumptions of the permanent income hypothesis and rational expectations into a spreadsheet version of a textbook new Keynesian model. This approach allows students to compare these schools of thought through many different types of...

The authors show how microeconomic concepts and principles are applicable to the study of terrorism. The utility maximization model provides insights into both terrorist resource allocation choices and government counterterrorism efforts, while basic game theory helps characterize the strategic...

The "Halo Effect" occurs when lotto ticket sales are unexpectedly high following a large jackpot. An examination of the Powerball lottery finds evidence that the halo effect exists and that it is the result of bettors exchanging prize winnings for new tickets.

It seems an established empirical fact that Superfund sites lower local property values. Two recent literature reviews (Farber, 1998, Boyle and Kiel, 2001) report that published academic papers on the topic verify that point. The EPA’s approach assumes that all sites negatively impact property...

A house is a bundle of many goods: The number of bedrooms, bathrooms, the quality of local public services, the tidiness of a neighbor’s yard, and the quality of the local environment. If transactions in the housing market reflect the interaction of informed buyers and sellers, then the price...

This paper presents some Excel-based exercises that allow students to estimate some key macroeconomic relationships: Okun's Law and the Taylor rule. The Okun's law exercise has the additional benefit of providing estimates for long-run GDP growth. The Taylor rule exercises give students the...

From 1906 until 1931, Manchuria – Northeast China - was a complex patchwork of Chinese, Japanese, and Russian spheres of control. Since political authority was fragmented, none of the governments was capable of establishing a central bank with a monopoly over the money supply. Multiple...