\documentclass[12pt]{article} \usepackage[left=1.25in,top=.75in,right=1.25in,bottom=1in]{geometry} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsthm} \usepackage{url} \usepackage{natbib} \usepackage{bibentry} \usepackage{hyperref} \usepackage{cleveref} \usepackage{placeins} \usepackage{color} \usepackage{colortbl} \usepackage[table,usenames,dvipsnames]{xcolor} \usepackage[colorlinks=true, urlcolor=blue]{hyperref} \usepackage{booktabs} \usepackage{multirow} \usepackage{array} \usepackage{tabularx} \usepackage{tabulary} \usepackage{longtable} \usepackage{ltxtable} \usepackage[labelformat=empty]{caption} \usepackage{array} \usepackage{marvosym} \definecolor{orange}{cmyk}{0,0.76,1,0} \usepackage{fancyhdr, graphicx} \renewcommand{\headrulewidth}{0pt} \newenvironment{compactlist}{ % List with minimal white space to fit in small areas, e.g. table cell \begin{minipage}[t]{\linewidth}\begin{list}{$\bullet$}{\leftmargin=0.5em \rightmargin=0em \topsep=0em \parskip=0em \parsep=0em \listparindent=0em \partopsep=0em \itemsep=0pt \itemindent=0em \labelwidth=\leftmargin\labelsep+0.25em} }{ \end{list}\end{minipage} } \newcommand{\R}[2]{\begin{compactlist}\setlength{\itemindent}{1.5em}#1\end{compactlist}&\begin{compactlist}#2\end{compactlist}\vspace{0.5mm}\\} % \def\R #1|#2{#1} \fancyhead[L]{} \fancyhead[R]{ %\includegraphics[width=2cm]{ucsbseal_cmyk.pdf} } \begin{document} \title{\flushleft{AECO 701 \hfill Spring 2026 \\ TTh: 10:30 - 11:50am \\ Social Science 117}\\\vspace{7mm} \centering Ph.D. Macro II\\\vspace{2mm} Professor Benjamin S. Griffy\\ University at Albany, SUNY} \date{} % \author{Benjamin S. Griffy} \maketitle \nobibliography*{} \bibliographystyle{plainnat} \section{Overview and Objectives} This course is focused on building foundational tools to approach macroeconomic modeling. The goal of this course is to extend the analytical approach to modeling the macroeconomy that was begun in the fall semester course (Economics 601, taught by Professor Masters). \section{Contact Information} \begin{itemize} \item Name: Ben Griffy \item I can be reached via email: \href{mailto:bgriffy@albany.edu}{\textrm{bgriffy@albany.edu}} \item I will be holding office hours on Thursday from 1:30-2:30pm. I don't anticipate a need to change to virtual, but I will let you know if that happens. \item More generally, feel free to stop by my office if I am in. I may not be able to meet at that moment, but if I'm not busy I will try to help. \end{itemize} \begin{itemize} \item Teaching Assistant: Wonjin Yoo \item He can be reached via email: \href{mailto:wyoo2@albany.edu}{\textrm{wyoo2@albany.edu}} \item He will be holding office hours Monday from 2:40-3:40pm. \end{itemize} \subsection{Online Viewing} In the event of moving the course online, I will post a Zoom link on Brightspace. I will rarely use Brightspace, but feel more comfortable distributing the Zoom link there than on my website. \section{Course Requirements} \subsection{Course Materials} \begin{itemize} \item There are two textbooks that we will use in this class: \begin{itemize} \item \bibentry{StokeyLucasPrescott1989} \item \bibentry{LjungqvistSargent2000} \end{itemize} {\color{red} Note: These texts are NOT required, but may occasionally provide useful references:} \begin{itemize} \item \bibentry{Cooley1995} \item \bibentry{SimonBlume1994} \item \textcolor{Blue}{\href{http://quant-econ.net/py/index.html}{Sargent and Stachurski Quant-Econ}} \item I will update this list as needed in the class. \end{itemize} \end{itemize} For programming languages, you may choose whatever works best for you. I would suggest Matlab, Julia, or Python, because I have experience with dynamic programming in these languages and may be able to help. For programming languages, it {\bf DOES} matter what version you install, and what repository you install from. I suggest the following (in rough order of usefulness for macro): \begin{itemize} \item Matlab: Whatever is current. \item Julia: Current version. \item Python: Anaconda. \item R: RStudio. \item Stata: MP (this is more expensive, so trade-offs) \end{itemize} You will be required to turn in all (non-\LaTeX) code used to produce assignments, and required to turn in all assignments in \LaTeX. To assist with learning \LaTeX, I will publish all documents I produce in the course both as PDFs and in \LaTeX. My intent is for all homework to be turned in on shared storage on the campus cluster. I'm working on getting everyone access to the class directory, but look at the handout on how to use ssh and access the campus cluster. \subsection{Course Prerequisites} \begin{itemize} \item Have finished AECO 601. \end{itemize} \section{Grading} \begin{itemize} \item Homework and Discussion: 30\%. Homework must be turned in using \LaTeX \item Midterm: 30\% \item Final: 40\% \end{itemize} % \newpage \section{Tentative Course Outline} % Note: I probably won't follow this all that closely. \begin{table}[t]\caption{\bf Preliminaries}\centering \small\begin{tabularx}{\textwidth}[t]{XX} \arrayrulecolor{black}\hline \textbf{Date} & \textbf{Description} \\ \hline\vspace{-3mm}\\ Week 1 (Jan. 19th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Intro to Macro Data\\ \item Old Keynesian Model\\ \item Graphical intuition}\\ \R{\item Readings:}{\item None.} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item Install programming languages and \LaTeX\\ \item HW1.} Week 2 (Jan. 26th - Jan. 30th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Two-period consumption-savings model\\ % \item Macro models as difference equations\\ \item Graphical intuition}\\ \R{\item Readings:}{\item None.} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item Install programming languages and \LaTeX\\ \item HW1.} Week 3 (Feb. 2nd - Feb. 6th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Stochastic processes}\\ \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Ch. 2} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item HW2.} Week 4 (Feb. 9th - Feb. 13th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Linear difference equations\\ % \item Old Keynesian Model again\\ % \item Policy ineffectiveness\\ \item Lucas critique}\\ \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Ch. 5\\ \item \citet{StokeyLucasPrescott1989}, Ch. 7} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \end{tabularx} \bottomrule \end{table} \begin{table}[h]\caption{\bf Dynamic Programming}\centering \small\begin{tabularx}{\textwidth}[t]{XX} \arrayrulecolor{black}\hline \textbf{Date} & \textbf{Description} \\ \hline\vspace{-3mm}\\ Week 5 (Feb. 16th - Feb 20th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Dynamic programming\\ \item Permanent income hypothesis\\ \item Consumption smoothing} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Chs. 3, 4, 5} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} Week 6 (Feb. 23rd - Feb. 27th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Asset pricing\\ \item Lucas Tree Model} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Ch. 8} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} % \R{\item Notes:}{\item I am out of town this week. Will discuss make-up lectures in class.} Week 7 (Mar. 2nd - Mar. 6th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Complete markets\\ \item Stochastic neoclassical growth model} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Ch. 8} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} Week 8 (Mar. 9th - Mar. 13th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Solution method: guess and verify} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Ch. 4} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \R{\item Notes:}{\item Midterm on Thursday!} % \vspace{-3mm}\\ \end{tabularx} \bottomrule \end{table} \begin{table}[h]\caption{\bf Real Business Cycle Model}\centering \small\begin{tabularx}{\textwidth}[t]{XX} \arrayrulecolor{black}\hline \textbf{Date} & \textbf{Description} \\ \hline\vspace{-3mm}\\ Week 9 (Mar. 16th - Mar. 20th):\\ \R{\item Note:}{\item Spring Break, no classes.} Week 10 (Mar. 23rd - Mar. 27th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item The Real Business Cycle Model\\ \item Solution method: log-linearization} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Ch. 12} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} Week 11 (Mar. 30th - Apr. 3rd):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Solution method: value function iteration\\ \item Calibration\\ \item RBC Extensions} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Ch. 4\\ \item \citet{kydland1996computational}} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \end{tabularx} \bottomrule \end{table} \begin{table}[h]\caption{\bf Extensions}\centering \small\begin{tabularx}{\textwidth}[t]{XX} \arrayrulecolor{black}\hline \textbf{Date} & \textbf{Description} \\ \hline\vspace{-3mm}\\ Week 12 (Apr. 6th - Apr. 10th):\\ % \R{\item Topics:}{\item New Keynesian Model} % \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{golosov2007menu}} % \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \R{\item Topics:}{\item Incomplete markets\\ \item Permanent and transitory income shocks\\ \item Huggett-Aiyagari-Bewley-Imrohoroglu Model\\ \item Solving (stationary) heterogeneous agent models} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Chs. 16, 17\\ \item \citet{wang2003caballero}\\ \item \citet{bewley1977permanent}\\ \item \citet{Aiyagari1994}} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} % \R{\item Notes:}{\item I may be out of town on Thursday.} Week 13 (Apr. 13th - Apr. 17th):\\ % \R{\item Topics:}{\item Financial frictions\\ % \item Moral hazard and asymmetric information\\ % \item Financial accelerator model} % \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{bernanke1999financial}} % \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \R{\item Topics:}{\item Incomplete markets\\ \item Permanent and transitory income shocks\\ \item Huggett-Aiyagari-Bewley-Imrohoroglu Model\\ \item Solving (stationary) heterogeneous agent models} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{LjungqvistSargent2000}, Chs. 16, 17\\ \item \citet{wang2003caballero}\\ \item \citet{bewley1977permanent}\\ \item \citet{Aiyagari1994}} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \end{tabularx} \bottomrule \end{table} \begin{table}[h]\caption{\bf Extensions}\centering \small\begin{tabularx}{\textwidth}[t]{XX} \arrayrulecolor{black}\hline \textbf{Date} & \textbf{Description} \\ \hline\vspace{-3mm}\\ Week 14 (Apr. 20th - Apr. 24th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Aggregate shocks in heterogeneous agent economies: Krussell-Smith\\ \item Equilibrium unemployment: the Diamond-Mortensen-Pissarides model} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{RogersonShimerWright2005}} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \R{\item Notes:}{\item Please attend our macro conference (AI and the Macroeconomy) Friday and Saturday!} Week 15 (Apr. 27th - May 1st):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Efficiency and Directed Search\\ \item Labor market fluctuations} \R{\item Readings:}{\item \citet{MortensenPissarides1994}} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \R{\item Notes:}{\item I will be out of town on Thursday. Class is canceled.} % \R{\item Notes:}{\item I am likely to be out of town this week, so I'll try to make it up with recorded material or online class.} \end{tabularx} \bottomrule \end{table} \begin{table}[h]\caption{\bf Conclusion}\centering \small\begin{tabularx}{\textwidth}[t]{XX} \arrayrulecolor{black}\hline \textbf{Date} & \textbf{Description} \\ \hline\vspace{-3mm}\\ Week 16 (May 4th - May 8th):\\ \R{\item Topics:}{\item Review for Final} \R{\item Readings:}{\item TBD.} \R{\item Assignments:}{\item TBD.} \R{\item Notes:}{\item No class on Thursday.} {\color{red}\textbf{Final Exam} (5/13)}:\\ {\color{red} Weds., May 13th 10:30am to 12:30pm in the same room as the lecture.} \end{tabularx} \bottomrule \end{table} \FloatBarrier \bibliographystyle{plainnat} \bibliography{bibliography} \end{document}