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Homework 1

This homework covers material from the first three units of an economics course. Students must complete two questions analyzing scenarios using Malthusian models and connecting data on hours worked and GDP per capita to models of worker preferences. Students are instructed to type their answers, draw diagrams themselves, create their own charts and tables from downloaded data, and properly cite sources using APA, Chicago or MLA style.

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17 views

Homework 1

This homework covers material from the first three units of an economics course. Students must complete two questions analyzing scenarios using Malthusian models and connecting data on hours worked and GDP per capita to models of worker preferences. Students are instructed to type their answers, draw diagrams themselves, create their own charts and tables from downloaded data, and properly cite sources using APA, Chicago or MLA style.

Uploaded by

gamegridgg
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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ECON0002- Homework 1

This homework covers the material covered in Units 1, 2 and 3. It is designed to help you
test your understanding of what was covered and to apply it to different types of questions
that are relevant to economics analysis and research.
Your homework will be marked using the BSc Economics grade descriptors (see Section 12.2
of the Student Handbook), as will your written assessments through the year. Now is the
best time to ensure you understand what is expected to get the grade you want.
Please make sure to follow the instructions below on all your submitted work (including
assessments) in this module:
1. Type your answer and upload it to the homework assignment link as a .doc or .pdf
document. Please aim to adhere to a word limit of 400 words per question.

2. You must hand draw any diagrams or equations or produce them yourself using
suitable software, and write your student ID number on the diagram. Paste them
into the typed document at the appropriate place in your discussion. Cutting and
pasting from the textbook or from any other source is not acceptable as it does not
show us that you can produce the diagrams or equations yourself.

3. If you are asked to find and use data, you are expected to download the data and
produce charts or tables yourself. This is a great opportunity to develop your skills
with Excel, R or any other software you want to become more familiar with. You are
likely to find the guidance in Doing Economics useful if this is new for you.

Cutting and pasting a data diagram from an external source is not acceptable. This
includes taking pre-prepared charts from Our World in Data and similar sources. You
won’t get credit if you don’t follow the instruction to download data and create
charts yourself.

4. All diagrams, equations, charts and tables should be clearly labelled to help the
reader. Make sure to define all your notation. Not doing this will cost you marks.

5. When you use an idea, data or other information from an external source make sure
to reference it. It is best to paraphrase rather than use direct quotes so that the idea
presented is your own, supported by this evidence. The UCL Library guide on how to
avoid plagiarism is useful for this purpose. For this module, please use APA, Chicago
or MLA styles of citation.
Q1 – Using models to explain changes in the economy
Consider a Malthusian economy. For each of the following scenarios, use the diagrams to
illustrate what happens to a country’s population size and living standards, ceteris paribus.
Clearly explain what happens to the equilibrium and describe the transition to the new
equilibrium if any.
a. Marrying late slows down population growth.
b. An earthquake kills half of the population and destroys half the land.
Q2 – Connecting data with model predictions
Go to Our World in Data and the area with various information on annual hours worked per
capita and GDP per capita. Choose one country, other than the UK or US, and the longest
time period possible, given the data, for that country. Make sure you can get data for both
variables for the same country and time-period.
a) Download the data and produce a line chart that shows hours worked and GDP per
capita over time (using primary and secondary axis). Explain how the relationship has
varied over time in your chosen country.
b) One way of interpreting the data is that is reveals information on choices that
workers made about hours worked considering what was feasible and what their
preferences were between free time (not working) and consumption (requiring
income from work).

Plotting free time per day on the X-axis and goods per day on the Y-axis, use
illustrative indifference curves and a feasible set to explain how a representative
worker, who was able to do so, makes their choice about the hours to work in a day.
c) Imagine the diagram you drew in part (b) represents a worker’s decision in the first
year of your data. Describe, using your diagrammatic model, what factors that affect
the feasible set and/or preferences of a worker might have changed to explain the
changes in hours worked in the last year of your data (eg, prices, wages, availability
of new leisure activities). If the data has not changed over time, explore whether this
may have arisen even in the presence of changes in underlying factors that affect
the feasible set and/or preferences.

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