MS&E 343: Optimal Control
Theory
with Applications in Economics
Course Page
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Summary
This course provides an overview of classical and nonclassical optimal control applications in economics. The
approach is hierarchical. First we discuss single-person decision problems in
which a firm or a social planner maximizes an objective function subject to
certain constraints. Applications include dynamic pricing, investment,
marketing, and the harvesting of renewable resources. Second we introduce games
in which several decision makers interact, either in a leader-follower (Stackelberg) setting or in a situation where all players
reach their decisions simultaneously. Applications include dynamic oligopolies
with open and closed-loop equilibria, capital
accumulation games, and the dynamic pricing with a strategic buyer. In the
third part of the course, we look at problems, which involve the design of
economic mechanisms for the interaction of different players. Applications
include screening, market design, and dynamic auctions.
<Download
Current Syllabus (Version: April 3, 2009)>
Contact Details
Phone: (650)
725-6827 [650-PALM-VCR]
E-Mail: webert@stanford.edu
E-Mail: mjrose@stanford.edu
Course Materials
(requires authentication)
Current Problem Sets & Solutions
· Problem
Set 1 (Due: April 16) – Solutions
· Problem
Set 2 (Due: April 30) – Solutions
· Problem Set 3 (Due: May 28) – Solutions
Current Exams & Solutions
· Midterm
Exam (Take-Home; May 8, noon – May 11, noon) –
Solutions
· Final Exam (Take-Home [3 days w/ on-demand pick-up & drop-off; e.g., June 5 – 8]) – Solutions
Useful Links (Some Stanford Only)
·
Engineering Library × obtain the reference books for this
course from the circulation desk
·
Econlit
× major database where you can look for published work by
keyword, etc. (go to: EBSCOhost → Research
Databases ... → Econlit)
·
Inomics × index of Economics conferences (quite
comprehensive, but still incomplete)
·
JSTOR × download top journal papers in Business,
Economics, Statistics; most recent years not available
·
Social Science Citation Index × useful to forward-search references to
key papers that you identify: after searching the paper, go to its full record,
click on the number next to “Times Cited”, then on the following page click on
“Total”; the citation index sometimes also contains direct links to databases
with pdf-copies of the papers
·
Social Science Research Network × large repository of current working
papers in the social sciences