MATH 0010 - An Introduction to Wealth Inequality

Instruction Method Online

Course Description

In this interdisciplinary course, we will learn to think about wealth distribution in a quantitative fashion. We will learn the difference between wealth, money and income, and we will learn how these things are measured by central banks, governments and international institutions. We will survey historical thought on this subject from mathematical, economic and philosophical perspectives.

We will ask questions such as,

Can inequality be quantified? What properties should a mathematical measure of inequality have to capture our intuitive notion of the concept?
Can idealized mathematical models, such as agent-based models, describe the current distribution of wealth with any accuracy?
Are market economies naturally stable, or is continuous government intervention needed to keep them stable?
What ethical tools exist to determine the morality of decisions that societies make about wealth distribution and wealth inequality?
Should societies attempt to manage their levels of inequality? If so, what public policy tools do they have at their disposal for doing so? If not, what, if anything, should be done about runaway concentration of wealth?

What we learn along the way will raise deep mathematical, economic, and ethical questions about the way that human society has chosen to allocate limited resources amongst people and populations. Our emphasis will be on how mathematical thinking contributes to this critically important conversation.

Some description will be given of available databases for the study of wealth distribution, including that maintained by the Federal Reserve and the U.S. Census Bureau, as well as international data available, for example from the World's Top Incomes Database.

Only high school mathematics is required as a prerequisite, and no prior background in economics is assumed.

Learn more about Professor Boghosian's work.

Instructors

Bruce M. Boghosian

Enroll Now - Select a section

MATH 0010 - A

6 week course (May 23-Jun 29)

Online

Enrollment Closed

An Introduction to Wealth Inequality

Online

May 23, 2018 to Jun 29, 2018

Online

Credit or Non-Credit: High School Students credit (3 units)	$2,898.00	Click here to get more information
Credit: Undergraduate Level credit (3 units)	$2,898.00	Click here to get more information

3 credits

Section Notes

This is an online course that will not meet on campus. Most course activities and interactions will occur asynchronously and online through Tufts Canvas, the university's learning management system. You can take this course from anywhere, as long as you have a reliable internet connection (broadband highly recommended).

Online and blended courses are held to the same academic standards as campus-based courses and students can expect high levels of interaction with faculty and classmates. Online and blended courses at Tufts are not self-paced, but they they offer much more flexibility for students. Typically, course content is organized in a weekly structure, so students will be expected to login and participate regularly. However students can generally set their own schedule within each week as long as assignments and activities are completed on time.

All online courses will have regular instructor office hours where students have an opportunity to speak to their teacher, via telephone or web conferencing. Some courses may require a live session(s), where students are expected to login to a web conferencing site at a certain date and time.

Some online courses require proctored exams. Students within fifty miles of the Medford campus will come to campus to take these exams at a specific date and time. Students taking the course truly from a distance will take their exam through an online proctoring service or will need to find a qualified academic proctor. All exam details can be found on the course site.