ECON2125/6012#

Course title: Optimisation for Economics and Financial Economics

Lectures and assessments#

Week

Date

Topic

Notes

1

Feb 20

šŸ“– Introduction: optimization in economics
šŸ“– Logic and proofs

2

šŸ”¬ Problem set alpha

Feb 27

šŸ“– Univariate and bivariate optimization

3

šŸ”¬ Problem set beta

March 5

šŸ“– Revision of set theory
šŸ“– Mappings and cardinality

4

šŸ”¬ Problem set gamma

March 11

Quiz 1 (3%) link

20min, computerized

March 12

šŸ“– Sequences, limits and continuity
šŸ“– Fundamentals of optimization

5

šŸ”¬ Problem set delta

March 19

šŸ“– Matrices and matrix arithmetic
šŸ“– Multivariate calculus

6

šŸ”¬ Problem set epsilon

March 25

Quiz 2 (3%) link

20min, computerized

March 26

šŸ“– Vector spaces and linear operators

Teaching break

2 weeks

7

šŸ”¬ Problem set zeta

April 15

Midterm exam (35%)
šŸ›Ÿ Practice problems

1h, invigilated

April 16

šŸ“– Eigenpairs and diagonalization
šŸ“– Quadratic forms

8

šŸ”¬ Problem set eta

April 22

Quiz 3 (3%) link

20min, computerized

April 23

šŸ“– Unconstrained optimization

9

šŸ”¬ Problem set theta

April 30

šŸ“– Convexity and uniqueness

10

šŸ”¬ Problem set iota

May 6

Quiz 4 (3%) link

20min, computerized

May 7

šŸ“– Constrained optimization

11

šŸ”¬ Problem set kappa

May 14

šŸ“– Kuhn-Tucker conditions
šŸ“– Envelope theorem

12

šŸ”¬ Problem set lambda
šŸ›Ÿ Consultations

May 20

Quiz 5 (3%) link

20min, computerized

May 21

šŸ“– Revision

Final exam (55%)

3h, invigilated

Course web pages#

Class summary ECON2125 ECON6012

  • Official course description

Course Wattle page

  • Announcements

  • Recordings

  • Assessments

  • Grades

optim.iskh.me

  • sufficient lecture notes

  • downloadable as markdown or pdf

  • GitHub based

  • submit issues and typos through the provided button

  • Latest version of the notes a day before the lecture

  • check for the updates in the morning

Course convener and lecturer#

Professor Fedor Iskhakov

_images/f2.jpg

Iā€™m an applied micro-econometrician and a computational economist working in the field of structural estimation of dynamic models of individual and strategic choice, with applications to labor economics, public economics, durable goods markets, household finance, applied industrial organization and dynamic games.

Tutoring team#

Wending Liu

_images/Wending-Liu.jpg
  • Email: Wending.Liu@.anu.edu.au

  • Web: Personal page

  • Room: Room 2084, Copland Bld (24)

  • Office hours: Wednesday 4pm to 6pm

Fajar Oktiyanto

_images/Fajar-Oktiyanto.jpg

Lecture times#

  • Lectures: Tuesday 15:00 ā€” 17:00

  • Location: Roomm G31, Copland Bldg 24

  • Room has \(\approx\) 100 seats

  • Echo-360 recordings on Wattle

  • Face-to-face is strictly preferred

Tutorial times#

Day

From

To

Room

Tutor

Monday

16:00

17:00

Tutorial Room 1, HW Arndt Bldg 25A

Fajar

Monday

17:00

18:00

Tutorial Room 1, HW Arndt Bldg 25A

Fajar

Wednesday

9:00

10:00

Lecture Theatre 1, HW Arndt Bldg 25A

Wending

Wednesday

13:00

14:00

Lecture Theatre 3, CBE Bldg 26C

Wending

Wednesday

14:00

15:00

Tutorial Room 5, CBE Bldg 26C

Wending

Wednesday

15:00

16:00

Tutorial Room 3, HW Arndt Bldg 25A

Wending

Wednesday

16:00

17:00

Tutorial Room 2, HW Arndt Bldg 25A

Fajar

Thursday

16:00

17:00

Tutorial Room 2, HW Arndt Bldg 25A

Fajar

Assessment#

Quizzes, 3% each#

  • Quick 20 minutes computerized test

  • Has to be competed during a given date

  • Each student has one attempt at each quiz

  • Each student will have their own questions

  • Access each quiz on the course Wattle page

  • Multiple choice, true/false and short answer questions

  • Automatic grading, immediate feedback

  • Each quiz will cover the topics of the two preceding lectures

  • Every student must attempt each quiz in order to pass the course

Computerized quizzes are located at the course Wattle page

Midterm exam, 35%#

Note

The midterm is scheduled at 18:30 to 19:45 (1 hour + 15 min reading time) on Monday, April 15 in Melville Hall

  • Classic close book on-campus

  • Invigilated

  • 1-hour exam

  • Covers the material from the first half of the semester

  • Exam questions will requires simple proofs and derivations

  • Small final exam

  • More information will be provided in Week 4, with practice examples discussed prior to the exam

  • Will be held during week 6 or 7

Final exam, 50%#

  • Classic close book on-campus

  • Invigilated

  • 3-hour exam

  • Covers the material from the whole semester!

  • Exam questions will requires simple proofs and derivations

  • Large midterm exam

  • More information will be provided in Week 10, with practice examples discussed prior to the exam

  • Will be held during the examination period May 30 to June 16

Reading materials#

  1. Primary reference: lecture slides

  2. A first course in Optimization Theory
    by Rangarajan K. Sundaram

[Sundaram, 1996]

Sundaram 1996
  1. Mathematics for Economists
    by Carl P. Simon and Lawrence Blume

[Simon and Blume, 1994]

Simon, CP, and L Blume (1994), Mathematics for economists
  1. Additional references will be provided in the lecture notes if needed.

Previous versions

This page contains the current lecture notes for the course.
An archive of lectures notes from previous years can be found at https://fedor.iskh.me/teaching