Assignment 1 E&IA
Part A
[evaluation: 0.5 point for each letter question. Total: 7.5 points]
Please limit your answers to four (4) lines. Shorter answers are welcome. Answers longer than four lines will not be read.
1. This question is for discussion in teams. DO NOT ANSWER IT IN WRITING! As the semester progresses, we will discuss these issues in class.
Visit The World Factbook at https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/. In “Please select a country to view” first select “World” and read the Introduction. Think about and discuss with your team the relationship between macroeconomics and the events that marked the 20th century. Would it be fair to say that the history of the 20th century is the history of the macroeconomics of the 20th century?
Next, what is the world population? What is the world output? What fraction of the world population lives in the U.S. (go to “People and Society”)? What fraction of the world output is produced in the U.S. (go to “Economy”)?
Next, look at “Labor force – by occupation.” What fraction of the global labor force works in agriculture? Compare it with the fraction of world GDP that is due to agriculture (in “GDP – composition, by sector of origin”).
Next, pick a country of your liking and examine its population, output, budget deficit, trade balance (the difference between exports and imports), labor force composition, unemployment rate, etc. You can compare countries by clicking on the “Field Listing” icon or, when it is displayed, on the “country comparison to the world” figure. Why are macroeconomists interested in a country’s “Age structure” (in “People and Society”)?
2. Nominal and real wages: take a look at Figure 6.1 (Canadian ed.) or 5.2 (U.S. ed.) in the textbook.
a. Define nominal wage.
b. Define real wage.
c. Based on the trends in the figure, did the living standards of the relevant workers improve in the last three decades?
d. Would the discussion in Paul
[evaluation: 0.5 point for each letter question. Total: 7.5 points]
Please limit your answers to four (4) lines. Shorter answers are welcome. Answers longer than four lines will not be read.
1. This question is for discussion in teams. DO NOT ANSWER IT IN WRITING! As the semester progresses, we will discuss these issues in class.
Visit The World Factbook at https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/. In “Please select a country to view” first select “World” and read the Introduction. Think about and discuss with your team the relationship between macroeconomics and the events that marked the 20th century. Would it be fair to say that the history of the 20th century is the history of the macroeconomics of the 20th century?
Next, what is the world population? What is the world output? What fraction of the world population lives in the U.S. (go to “People and Society”)? What fraction of the world output is produced in the U.S. (go to “Economy”)?
Next, look at “Labor force – by occupation.” What fraction of the global labor force works in agriculture? Compare it with the fraction of world GDP that is due to agriculture (in “GDP – composition, by sector of origin”).
Next, pick a country of your liking and examine its population, output, budget deficit, trade balance (the difference between exports and imports), labor force composition, unemployment rate, etc. You can compare countries by clicking on the “Field Listing” icon or, when it is displayed, on the “country comparison to the world” figure. Why are macroeconomists interested in a country’s “Age structure” (in “People and Society”)?
2. Nominal and real wages: take a look at Figure 6.1 (Canadian ed.) or 5.2 (U.S. ed.) in the textbook.
a. Define nominal wage.
b. Define real wage.
c. Based on the trends in the figure, did the living standards of the relevant workers improve in the last three decades?
d. Would the discussion in Paul