Computing Skills For Economists

Description:
Today's students are expected to use computers and familiarise themselves with word-processing and spreadsheet packages in their work. They are also expected to be able to use the Internet for e-mail and accessing information on the Web. In fact, some lecturers use the Web to provide course notes or even deliver parts of the course interactively. Most available computer books are too general and often miss out features that would be particularly helpful to economists. In fact, they don't show how such tools can be used in economics. This textbook fills a need for a computing and IT book aimed specifically at undergraduate economics students. It bridges the gap between IT literacy and the use of hardware, software and other resources in learning and doing economics. The main focus is on the tools and the resources that are particularly relevant to economists with examples of their use and suggestions of how to apply and exploit them in applications in economics. FEATURES Assumes no previous computing background - the book will adopt a practical and applied approach with emphasis on the software used by economists and how they use it. Use of examples and applications will allow readers to learn by doing and develop their computing skills. The book will be written in a concise and informal style with the use of screen grabs and text boxes. www wiley.co.uk/judge - a Website containing solutions to exercises, PowerPoint slides and other supplementary material for instructors. The site will also have an archive for data used in the book and be a means of updating information. CONTENTS: Introduction: Tools, Tasks, Resources and Skills; Beginning to Work with Computers in Economics; Building on the Basics: Skills Development; Spreadsheets for Economists; The Internet for Economists; Statistics and Econometrics Software for Economists; More Advanced Computing Skills for Economists.

Review:
'Guy Judge's new book is a welcome addition to the student text market. The scope of the text is impressive.' (CHEER, Vol.14 No.2 2001)

Table of Contents:
INTRODUCTION: TOOLS, TASKS, RESOURCES and SKILLS. Economists, computers and IT in today's world The contents, structure and approach of this book Preliminary information and key concepts Tools, tasks, skills and resources Summary Appendix. Skills for file and disk management tasks BEGINNING TO WORK WITH COMPUTERS IN ECONOMICS Beginning to work with a word processor Your first word processed document Beginning to work with a spreadsheet Your first spreadsheet application Beginning to work with e-mail software Your first e-mail message Beginning to work with a web browser Your first time browsing the web Beginning to work with presentation software Preparing your first presentation Beginning to work with database software Creating your first database Summary Exercises and mini-projects BUILDING ON THE BASICS. SKILLS DEVELOPMENT Incorporating graphics, symbols and equations Including a graphics image in a word processed document Working with longer word processed documents A word processed essay Simple economic modeling using a spreadsheet Cost-volume-profit analysis on a spreadsheet Developing your e-mail skills Sending and receiving a file attachment Summary Exercises and mini-projects SPREADSHEETS FOR ECONOMISTS. Analyzing and summarizing economic data GDP per capita in OECD countries Cross-tabulation The position of women in economics departments Regression on a spreadsheet Carbon monoxide emissions in the European Union A simple model of the UK consumption function A simple Cobb-Douglas production function Financial analysis on a spreadsheet Investment appraisal and the net present value of an investment project Optimization in a spreadsheet Least squares regression again A linear programming problem Portfolio selection Working with matrices in a spreadsheet A simple macroeconomic model Dynamic economic models in a spreadsheet A simple multiplier-accelerator model Summary Exercises and mini-projects STATISTICS AND ECONOMETRICS SOFTWARE. Introduction. Dedicated statistics and econometrics packages Preparing to use statistics and econometrics software: some preliminary considerations Becoming familiar with statistics and econometrics software Cigarette consumption in Turkey More advanced time series analysis with econometrics packages Unit-root tests of Tansel's cigarette consumption data Cointegration analysis of the advertising-sales relationship Summary Exercises and mini-projects THE INTERNET FOR ECONOMISTS. Introduction: the ever changing Internet - expansion, evolution, and revolution Finding information on the web Using search engines Using SOSIG Finding specific types of economic information on the web Downloading and using data from the web Conducting a bibliographical search Economic journals available on-line Working papers and pre-prints Tracking down working papers by Hal Varian Current awareness services On-line learning and interactive tools on the web Building your own web page Creating a simple web page Summary Exercises and mini-projects MORE ADVANCED COMPUTING SKILLS FOR ECONOMISTS. Introduction More advanced use of spreadsheets and econometrics software: controlling your software with macros and procedures Other computing tools for programming in econometrics More advanced word processing for mathematical documents Symbolic algebra software Getting ready for the future Summary Exercises and mini-projects REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING. INDEX.

Author Biography:
GUY JUDGE is deputy Head of the Department of Economics at the University of Portsmouth and co-ordinator of the CALECO Research Group. He is also editor of CHEER (Computers in Higher Education Economics Review) and Software Reviews Editor for The Economic Journal.