Introductory Macroeconomics

This page shows a listing of topics covered for your introductory macroeconomics class, currently I am in the process of completing this series, please click the "ask a question" tab and submit a question if you want me to cover a topic quickly.

Each link will have a short description of the topic, or sample questions asked on homework and exams, and some with a short video discussing the topic.

First view this:How to think when solving economics problems.



1.0 Introduction to Macroeconomics (summary)
1.1 What is economics?
1.2 What is the difference between micro and macro economics?
1.2a Intro to macroeconomics 
1.3 The core idea of economics, scarcity.
1.4 What is opportunity cost? 
1.5 An example of opportunity cost for students.
1.6 The three fundamental questions every economy has to answer. What, how, and for whom.
1.7 Self-Interest vs Social Interest, the invisible hand and resource allocation.
1.7a An example of microeconomics and social interest, a study of Facebook.
1.8 The five fundamental principles of economics: rationality, costs, benefits, incentives, marginal analysis.
1. The difference between positive and normative analysis with examples.
1.9  What is the difference between endogenous and exogenous variables. 
1.10 Types of economies and circular flow

1.A  Why marginal benefit MB equals marginal cost MC in economics... ALWAYS
1.A  How to calculate MARGINAL benefits/costs from a graph and use them to calculate equilibrium
1.A   All you really need to know about graphs for economics

2.0  The basics of Macroeconomics
2.1 How to draw a PPF (production possibilities frontier)
2.2 What to know about PPFs
2.3 Drawing PPFs and calculating opportunity costs
2.4 What causes a PPF to shift
2.5 The difference between comparative and absolute advantage. 
2 An example of constructing a PPF and calculating opportunity costs.
2. A discussion of production efficiency. 
How to solve comparative advantage and gains from trade problems (4 steps):

2.6  Determine the opportunity costs of production.

2.7  Figure out who has the comparative advantage.

2.8  Have each country specialize in their comparative advantage.

2.9  Figure out an allocation that makes each country better off.
2.9a Gains from trade example 
2.9b Calculating marginal and total opportunity costs example
2.10 SUMMARY: PPFs, opportunity costs, and gains from trade 

3.0 Supply and Demand (cheat sheet for supply/demand shifts)
3.1 Defining the law of demand.
3.2 The difference between demand and quantity demanded.
3. How to aggregate demand functions 
3.3 What shifts a demand curve? Determinants of demand. 
3. How a change in income affects demand 
3.4 Defining the law of supply.
3.5 What shifts a supply curve? Determinants of supply.
3.  An increase in supply shifts the supply curve down. 
3. How the price mechanism can eliminate a shortage or a surplus 
3.6 How to find equilibrium price and quantity mathematically
3.6a Example, solving for equilibrium price and quantity with income and substitute prices
3.6 Example, solving for equilibrium given individual consumers and firms 
3.6a Example, why are gas prices so high?
3.7a Example, multiple supply and demand shifters in the coffee market.
3.8b What happens if both supply and demand increase at the same time?
3.8c Example: how advertising affects supply and demand
3.9 The economics of advertising using Groupon or other coupon selling agencies as examples.
3.0 How taxes can effect supply and demand, an example using legalized marijuana 
3.10 Consumer surplus and how to calculate it.
3.11 Producer surplus and how to calculate it.
3. What is deadweight loss?  Some examples using monopolies, taxes and quotas
3. How to calculate deadweight loss in 4 steps
3. How to find consumer surplus without a graph
3. Considering transaction or transportation costs
3. Calculating the change in surplus given a shift in the supply curve
3. Calculating equilibrium and surplus before an after a tax (an example with math)
3. What is a binding price ceiling?


4.0 GDP, Inflation, and Unemployment
4.1  What is GDP?  How to measure GDP?  Definitions and examples.
4.2 Problems with GDP as a measure of well being. 
4. GDP, Inventories, and intermediate goods (a discussion of their relationships).

4. What is the CPI (Consumer Price Index) and how is it used to measure inflation?
4. Different types of unemployment and how they are measured
4. An example calculating real GDP, net income, and net taxes plus savings.
4. Demand pull and cost push inflation with examples.

5.0 Aggregate Supply and Aggregate Demand
5.1 The classical model, Say's law, and the credit and labor market 
5. What causes the aggregate demand AD curve to shift?
5.2 How a change in the AD curve affects the classical model and the LRAS curve
5. An introduction to the Keynesian model and the SRAS curve
5. Aggregate expenditure and the 45 degree line (Keynesian Cross)
5. Solving for equilibrium with the Keynesian Cross 
5. What causes the aggregate supply (AS) curve to shift?
5. How a tax increase affects the AS AD model
5. Fiscal policy and the crowding out effect
5. How crowding out works in the loanable funds market
5. Ricardian equivalence, the multiplier effect, and automatic stabilizers
5. S=I, why savings equals investment in the financial sector
5. How the American Recovery act affected Aggregate Demand, an example of fiscal policy
5. The capacity of an economy, Classical vs Keynesian models

6.0 Economic Growth
6. Brief history of world economic growth, and new growth theory summarized
6. The rule of 70 and long run economic growth
6. What determines economic growth?
6. Labor productivity and the per capita production function
6. The catch up curve explained
6. Examples of different per capita production functions with graphs
6. Does income inequality slow economic?  It depends... 

7.0 Monetary Policy
7. How monetary policy works, a look at open market policies and the money market
7. A discussion comparing commodity and fiat money
7. What are the properties of money?
7. What does purchasing power parity mean?

US and Canada’s trade agreements, and the effect of NAFTA on softwood timber
Solving the GDP equation: Macroeconomics and the GDP equation, Y=C+I+G+NX
MPC, the marginal propensity to consume, what it means how it works
Nominal vs. Real GDP or Prices, the use of the GDP deflator

The money multiplier and taxes

IS/LM Model
An introduction to the IS/LM model with graphs and equations
Finding equilibrium Y and i in the IS/LM model
What can shift the IS or LM curves?
Solving for Y and i after a shift in the IS/LM model
What causes the IS/LM curves to be horizontal or vertical?