ECONOMICS 101A

Microeconomic Theory

Instructor: David Card

GSI’s: Michel Serrafinelli and Mark Borgschulte

Course Description and Reading List

This is a course in intermediate microeconomics, emphasizing the applications of calculus and linear
algebra to the problems of consumer decision making, firm behavior, and market interactions.
Students are expected to be familiar with multivariate calculus (including e.g., limits, derivatives,
integration) and with basic statistics (random variables, moments, etc.).

The course material will be presented in a fairly mathematical way and the problem sets and
examinations will require you to solve models and derive results. Students who are concerned about
their mathematical ability should seriously consider Economics 100A.

The basic text is Walter Nicholson and Christopher Snyder Microeconomic Theory: Basic
Principles and Extensions (10th Edition). An alternative (slightly more theoretical) treatment of the
same material is in Hal Varian’s textbook, Intermediate Microeconomics: A Modern Approach (8th
Edition), published by Norton. Another slightly more “application-oriented” alternative is Jeff
Perloff’s textbook Microeconomics: Theory and Applications with Calculus. (See the cross listing
of the three texts with the lectures, on the next page). Any of the three is a good supplement to the
lectures, but the lectures will be at a somewhat higher level, and will not follow the textbook(s)
closely.

Lecture notes will be available on the course web site, as will problem sets, practice exams, and other
course materials.

The class will consist of two lectures (Tuesday and Thursday, 12:30-2, Room 106 of Stanley Hall) and
one discussion section per week (led by Michel and Mark). The section times/locations are as follows:

Section 101 (Michel) Monday/Wednesday 5-6 pm, #2 Evans

Section 102 (Mark) Monday/Wednesday 11-12 pm, #3113 Etcheverry
Section 103 (Michel) Monday/Wednesday 6-7 pm, #101 Wheeler

The discussion sections will present some additional material (for which all students will be
responsible) and will also review the answers from problem sets, old exams, problems from the
lectures, etc.

Weekly problem sets will be assigned in most weeks of the term. Completed problem sets are due at
the end of the Thursday lecture. We will not accept late problem sets. Instead, we will drop your
two worst scores in calculating the problem set average score. Thus, you can miss up to 2 problem
sets without any penalty. You are encouraged to work in groups but every student must hand in
their own version of the answers.

Course grades will be determined by a combination of grades on the weekly problem sets (20 percent),
two midterm exam (15 percent each), and the final exam (50 percent). The midterm exams will be
held in class, Tuesday October 5 (week 6) and Tuesday November 9 (week 11). The final date is
Friday December 17, 8-11 am.
Economics 101A Textbook Cross-Listing
Nicolson+
Lecture Content Lecture Snyder Varian Perloff

1 Optimization Methods 1 Chapter 2 Math Appendix Calculus App

2 Consumer Preferences 2 Chapter 3 Ch. 3-4-5 Ch. 3

and Consumer Choice Ch 4, 1st part

3 Applications of Indifference 3 Ch 4, 2nd part Ch 5.6 Ch 4, pp. 117+

Curve Analysis
Expenditure Functions

4-5 Comparative Statics 4 Chapter 5 Ch. 8 Ch. 4

and the Slutsky Eq.

6 Market Level Demand 5 Chapter 12 Ch. 15, 16 Ch. 2

and Supply pp. 419+

7 Labor Supply 6 Chapter 16 Ch 9.8 Ch 5, Section 5

(and appendix)
8 Intertemporal Consumption 7 Chapter 17 Ch. 10 Ch 15, Section 4
and Saving

9-11 Production and Cost 8, 9 Ch. 9-10 Ch. 18, 20, 21 Ch. 6, 7
Sheppard's Lemma

12-13 Supply Determination 10-11 Ch. 9-11 Ch. 22, 23 Ch. 8

14 Monopoly 12 Chapter 14 Ch. 24, 25 Ch. 11, 12

15 Consumer/Producer Surplus 13 Chapter 5 Ch. 14 Ch. 9

and Applications pp. 165-170

16-17 Duopoly 14,15 Chapter 15 Ch. 27 Ch. 13

18-20 Game Theory 16-17 Chapter 8 Ch. 28-29 Ch. 14

21-24 Uncertainty 18-21 Ch. 7, 18 Ch. 12, 37 Ch. 16, 18, 19

25-26 Auctions 22-23 Ch. 18 Ch 17 Ch. 14, p 115+

pp. 659+
27-28 Finance: CAPM and 24-25 Ch. 13
Efficient Markets

27-28 Public Goods and 26-27 Ch 19. Ch. 34, 36 Ch. 17

Externalities

28 Empirical Methods 28