3000 Level Economics Course Descriptions

SOCSCI 3605
Art and Economics
The relationships between art and economics are studied from an economist’s perspective. The art market is presented as part of a system of markets for making choices about the use of scarce resources. An understanding is developed of what determines the demand for, the supply of, and the price and distribution of art. A look at the importance of various sources of giving to the arts is followed by an analysis of public funding for the arts and the role of the art museum. Emphasis is on the current situation in the U.S., with some limited efforts to provide both a historical and international context. Prerequisite: First Year English requirement.

SOCSCI 3610
Ecological Economics: Green Thought
Have we reached a situation on planet Earth where traditional responses and forms of organization are inadequate to sustain our societies into the future? In this course, we explore how economic systems for making decisions about the use of scarce resources, especially the market system, affect the natural environment. This class explores what our view of our relationship to the environment and to each other plays in the process. The class will look at the necessity of incorporating a longer time horizon into decision-making, and attempt to achieve a greater understanding of how those decisions affect the environment. In this course students will examine the roles that human beings and economic growth can play in the destruction or preservation of the natural world. Students evaluate ways that have been tried or suggested to direct the forces of self-interest toward community goals (such as the prevention of pollution, the preservation of species, and the encouragement of whole ecological systems), and will discuss the importance of an increasing appreciation of shared community interests, of incorporating that appreciation into our decisions, and of broadening the definition of community. Prerequisite: First Year English requirement.