Spring 2000	Choice and Chance: The Mathematics of Decision Making Assignments

PDF Version of this document Unit I Study Guide: The Logic of Preferences Synopsis: Thinking systematically about complex choices.   For Class I.1 on February 3, 2000 Topics: Classification of decision-making problems. Group vs. Individual decisions. Descriptive, Normative, and Prescriptive Theories. Transitivity of preferences. Choice functions that give the best of a set. Indepence of irrelevant alternatives. Set theory. Reading: Syllabus and hand-outs. Do: Fill out a student data form and an Activity I questionnaire. IMPORTANT: for the questionnaire, first flip a coin. If it comes up heads, click here. If tails, click here.   For Class I.2 on February 8, 2000 Topics: Formulating Problems, Objectives, and Alternatives. Framing, anchoring, and other distortions. Binary Relations and how they can represent preferences. Read: Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4 of Smart Choices. Try Chapters 2, 3 of Kreps, especially the first few pages. Note that Totrep is the name Kreps uses for a fictional character (Trade-off Talking Rational Economic Person), but Houthakker and Sen are names of real economists. Due: Fill out a student data form and an Activity I questionnaire if you have not yet (see above).   For Section I.1 on February 9, 2000 Topics: Help with exercises, lecture material, and setting up Excel. Due: Find a copy of Microsoft Excel you can use for this course.   For Class I.3 on February 10, 2000 Topics: Consequences. Partitions. Conditional evaluation of alternatives. Value functions. Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, and Ratio scales. Quantitative and substantive meaningfulness. Read: Chapter V of Smart Choices. " Measurement Scales" module by Growney, handed out and available on our website: www.fas.harvard.edu/~qr26 Do: Work on the Unit I Exercises as attached.   For Class I.4 on February 15, 2000 Topics: Discussion of how concepts like Proact, preferences, relations, and value functions apply to personal decision problems. Due: For discussion, a page or so analysis of choosing a course, plus a page or so beginning analysis of the personal decision problems you wish to pursue (cf. Growney #11 and #13). Also hand in the Unit I Exercises.   For Section I.2 on February 16, 2000 Topics: Review of algebra, arguments, and exercises. Getting started with Excel.

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