SP.278 Real World Economics / spring 2003
Noemi Giszpenc < n o e m i @ a l u m >
Owen Ozier < o w e n o z i e r @ a l u m >
Wed, 7:00 - 9:00 PM, 24-619
This seminar is intended to introduce students who are curious about economics and politics to basic economic concepts and their application in the real world. The class covers a range of topics (including real-world applicability, sustainability, inequality, ecology, development, and the role of institutions in the marketplace), allowing students to become familiar with economic tools through discussions, quantitative problem sets, reading and reaction papers. By the end of the class, students should be able to address economic policy questions using logical analysis within a political context: who benefits? who decides?
Syllabus (HTML)
Instructors: Noemi Giszpenc and Owen Ozier
Faculty Advisor: Prof. Esther Duflo
Noemi Giszpenc '98 graduated with degrees in economics, science journalism, and chemistry. After graduating she worked as a research assistant at the World Bank and as an associate editor at the Nonprofit Quarterly (a national publication for non-profit managers). She currently works at Ownership Associates Inc (a consulting firm addressing the needs of companies with employee ownership). For the past two summers, Noemi has co-taught The Big Game at the Educational Studies Program summer program HSSP. She is a coordinating member of the Sustainable Future Forum, an action and discussion group on issues of sustainability.
Owen Ozier '98 graduated from MIT with degrees in computer science and cognitive science. Through the Educational Studies Program, he has taught classes across the country for high school students in mathematics, economics, and global governance. He has worked as a software engineer for E Ink and as a lecturer in computer architecture at Northeastern University. He currently does research in computational biology for the Whitehead Institute and volunteers tutoring in Cambridge's public school system and doing econometric work for Oxfam America. He has co-taught the Big Game for HSSP and is also a coordinating member of the Sustainable Future Forum.
MIT Educational Studies Program (ESP, not ESG)