Department of Economics, Unit Catalogue 2009/10 |
ES10005: Core skills for economists: mathematics 1 (formerly EC10130) |
 Credits:
| 6 |
| Level:
| Certificate |
| Period: | Semester 1 |
| Assessment:
| EX 100% |
| Supplementary Assessment: | Like-for-like reassessment (where allowed by programme regulations) |
| Requisites:
| |
| Description: | In order to take this unit you must have A level Mathematics (or equivalent). Single honours students must take ES10006 whilst taking this unit.
Aims: To provide students with knowledge of areas of mathematics that are relevant to undergraduate economics and to prepare them for more advanced units in economics and econometrics. Learning Outcomes: By the end of the course unit, students should be able to understand key mathematical concepts, solve mathematical problems, and apply mathematics to economic problems. Skills: Students will develop mathematical skills, specifically as listed below. Content: * Differentiation: differentiation of functions of one variable: rules of differentiation, stationary points, higher order derivatives, concavity and convexity, point of inflection, differentiation of exponential and logarithmic functions, concepts of marginals and elasticities, single variable optimization problems. * Partial Differentiation: differentiation of functions of more than one variable; higher order partial derivatives, total differentials, implicit differentiation, homogeneous functions and Euler's theorem, concepts of marginals and elasticities. * Integration: indefinite integration as the reverse of differentiation. Definite integration and the area under a curve. * Matrices: matrix operations; determinants; matrix inversion; solution of system of linear equations by matrix inversion; Cramer's rule; quadratic forms: definiteness, characteristic root and characteristic vector. * Concavity and convexity of functions of more than one variable; unconstrained and constrained optimization problems involving more than one variable. Key texts: A.C. Chiang Fundamental Methods of Mathematical Economics I. Jacques Mathematics for Economics and Business. |