Cities, Inequality, and Innovation
(ECON 129)
Fall 2024
Time TUE: 8:00AM – 9:20AM
THU: 8:00AM – 9:20AM
Place: CSB 001
Teaching Assistants: Jordan Mosqueda (
[email protected])
Canvas: Click Here
Prerequisites: ECON110A (Macroeconomics A)
ECON120A (Econometrics A)
Office Hours: Fabian Eckert: TBD
In Brief:
This undergraduate course studies the economics of the emergence and perserverance of cities and their role
as places of innovation and economic inequality in the US inequality.
Course Description:
The course explores the dual role of American Cities as places of innovation and job creation but also places
of great economic inequality and segregation over the last century.
We start with an overview of American Cities, their growth over the last century, the demise of some, and
the prospering of others.
Then we focus on cities in the era of manufacturing, factory towns, the moving western frontier, and trade
between cities and between cities and the agricultural hinterland. We will learn about the fundamental
forces that shaped cities at the time and the impact they had on people’s lives. At the end of this section,
we will also look at historical data ourselves and produce maps of economic outcomes across regions in the
United States.
The second half the course deals with cities since 1980, the end of the manufacturing era. It will start with
a lecture on trends in economic inequality in the US, and facets of it, such as intergenerational mobility,
nutritional inequality, etc. Then we discuss the changing role of cities in these trends. How high house
prices work to keep certain people out of cities, how the distribution of jobs in cities has changed, and what
is driving these trends. In the end, we relate them back to the aggregate developments in inequality.
We end by evaluating whether cities are more places of opportunity or engines of inequality and what the
future of cities should and maybe going forward.
Cities, Inequality, and Innovation September 25, 2024
Main References:
The most important reference are the course slides uploaded for each lecture. The slides alone are enough
to get full marks on this course. There are no required textbooks or other books. A lot of material in the
course comes from ”Urban Economics” (9th Edition) by Arthur O’Sullivan
This is a restricted list of various interesting books that will be touched during the course. Reading them
is optional.
1. The New Geography of Jobs by Enrico Moretti
2. Urbanism and its End by Douglas Rae
3. Triumph Of The City by Edward Glaeser
Logistics:
We meet twice a week for class.
I will hold regular office hours on Wednesday afternoon from 5pm to 6pm on Zoom. For fairness, if another
student is waiting while we are talking, I will limit the time with each student to 10 minutes.
We have a great teaching assistant, Jordan Mosqueda. He will be doing a lot of work in the background to
support the class an guarantee a smooth learning experience. He will hold office hours to support your class
project.
Grading Policy:
There is a total of 1000 points in this course. They are distributed across different types of assignments as
follows:
1. 5% or 50 points from weekly reflections (complete/incomplete), 10 reflections total
2. 10% or 100 points from problem sets (complete/incomplete), 4 problem sets total
3. 25% or 250 points for the Midterm
4. 25% or 250 points for the Mapping Project
5. 35% or 350 points for the Final
If you do not submit a problem set, a reflection, or the project you get zero points for the assignment. See
further below for the protocol on missed examinations.
Exams:
There will be one in-class midterm exams (70 minutes, covering content from weeks 1 to 4), and one final
exam (90 minutes, covering content from Weeks 5 to 9). The exams are in a closed-book, closed-notes
format. Exams will be held in class on your own personal computer through Canvas.
Problem Sets:
There are four problem sets covering the material from Weeks 1-2, Weeks 3-4, Weeks 6-8, and Weeks 8-9.
Problem set due dates are listed below. Problem sets appear on Canvas a week before their due date.
Solutions are posted shortly after the due date. Problem sets are lightly graded as “check” (handed in and
gave solutions to at least 80% of the exercises), and “zero” (did not turn anything in, or more than 20%
of the questions are missing). If you are unable to solve a problem, please describe why instead of just not
answering the question. This way you will be able to secure a check on the assignment.
Your performance in this class crucially depends on your constant practice. Attending class and working on
the problem sets will significantly affect your level of success in this course.
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Reflection Notes:
In addition to problem sets, there will be a short graded assignment every week that is meant to promote
better reflection and learning of the materials. Reflection notes appear as a quiz on canvas and should take
you 5 minutes to complete, at most. Reflection notes are posted on Canvas as a Quiz when class is over and
are due 24 hours later. At the beginning of each class I discuss question from the previous’ weeks reflections
notes.
Research on pedagogy shows that such reflection notes are highly effective at promoting learning and helps
to make faculty and students accountable for what they have taught/learnt in each lecture. It is also a
low-pressure form of assessment. They will be lightly graded as “check” (turned in), and “zero” (did not
turn anything in). The reflections make up 5% of your final grade, but they will help both you and me in
making progress in this class.
The Mapping Project:
Each student is expected to complete a mapping project. In this project the student chooses some economic
variable that varies across locations in the US and is available publicly, e.g., average income by county. They
then use statistical software (R, Python, Stata) to plot this variable on a map of the US. In the final class
students present their project in 5 minutes, showing their map, and describing their question. In addition
they write up to 400 words on a topic inspired by this map. For example, if you show average income you
could write about income inequality across space and some of the reasons for income inequality across space
that we have learnt about or policy attempts to alleviate it. Students have to hand in a pdf with the map
and write up and their code that constructs the map. We will teach you how to use mapping software and
be generally available to provide guidance on this project. A separate guide on the Mapping Project with
substantially more detail will be made available on Canvas.
Course Overview + Important Dates:
Part #1: Why Do Cities Exist? . . . . . . . . . Weeks 1-4
Problem Set #1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Due October 11
Problem Set #2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Due October 25
Midterm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . October 29, in class
”How-To” Lecture and Guide for Mapping Project
posted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . October 31
Part #2: Cities and Inequality . . . . . . . . . . Weeks 6-7
Submit Project Outline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Due November 10
Problem Set #3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Due November 15
Part #3: Cities and Innovation . . . . . . . . . . Weeks 8-9
Problem Set #4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Due November 29
Present Mapping Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . December 3 and 5
Mapping Project Submission Deadline Due December 10
Final Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TBD
Syllabus:
The course consists of 16 lectures in 3 parts. In most classes, we will cover 1 lecture.
1. Part 1: Why Do Cities Exist?
(a) A first look at the data
(b) Cities in the Data
(c) Backyard Production
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(d) Trading Towns
(e) Factory Towns
(f) Agglomeration Economies
(g) What determines the size of cities?
(h) Where do cities develop?
2. Part 2: Cities and Inequality
(a) A first look at the data
(b) The Urban Labor Market
(c) Inequality across Cities
(d) Inequality within Cities and Segregation
3. Part 3: Cities and Innovation
(a) A first look at the data
(b) Cities and Innovation in History
(c) Growth and Ideas
(d) Ideas and Cities
Exam Policies:
Proctoring Protocol. Exams have to be taken in the class room on a personal computer.
Missed examinations. You must take the final exam in order to receive a grade in this course. The date is
written above, please be sure to mark your calendar. If you miss the midterm exam without a university
accepted excuse you will be assigned 0 point for it. Excuses for missed exams must be pre-approved by me
(except when this is not possible in an emergency situation). A student who misses an exam due to physical
illness will be required to provide documentation from a health care professional indicating why the student
was physically unable to take the exam. All documentation must be provided to Professor Eckert within
two working days of the end of the emergency.
If you miss a midterm with an accepted excuse, I will offer an oral exam via zoom instead.
Academic Integrity. Students are expected to do their own work, as outlined in the UCSD policy on Aca-
demic Integrity. All students of UC San Diego are responsible for knowing and adhering to this institution’s
policy regarding academic integrity. Cheating, plagiarism, fabrication, lying, bribery, threatening behavior
and assistance to acts of academic dishonesty are examples of behaviors that violate this policy. Ordi-
narily, a student engaged in any act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade for the course. In
addition, all incidents of academic misconduct shall be reported to the Academic Integrity Office. De-
pending on its findings, students who are found to be in violation of the academic integrity policy will
be subject to non-academic sanctions, including but not limited to university probation, suspension, or
expulsion. The Academic Integrity Office can be contacted by email at [email protected] or by telephone at
858-822-2163. Additional information regarding the University Academic Integrity policy is available at
https://academicintegrity.ucsd.edu/.
University Policies and Resources:
Conduct Code. To foster the best possible working and learning environment, UC San Diego strives to
maintain a climate of fairness, cooperation, and professionalism. UC San Diego’s Principles of Community
illustrate the expectations of all members of our community. Consistent with such principles, the Student
Cities, Inequality, and Innovation September 25, 2024
Conduct Code underscores the pride and the values that define UCSD’s community, while providing students
with a framework to guide their actions and behaviors. I recommend reviewing the Student Conduct Code
to make sure you are familiar with the behavior that is expected from you in class and on campus in
general.
Disability Accommodations. Campus policy regarding disabilities requires that faculty adhere to the recom-
mendations of the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD). Any student eligible for and needing academic
adjustments or accommodations because of disability should submit to me a letter from OSD describing
appropriate adjustments or accommodations and should arrange to meet with me as soon as possible so
that arrangements can be made in a timely manner. University policies regarding disabilities are available
at http://disabilities.ucsd.edu/students/. Appointments with OSD (phone or in-person) can be made by
calling 858.534.4382 or by email at [email protected]. More information can also be found here.
Religious Observance. Campus policy regarding religious observances requires that faculty make every effort
to reasonably and fairly accommodate all students who, because of religious obligations, have conflicts with
scheduled examinations, assignments or required attendance. See full details of policies on examinations
here. If you have scheduling conflict covered by this policy, please let me know as soon as possible so that
we can reschedule the relevant assignment/examination.
Harrassment Policy. The University Policy on Discrimination and Harassment applies to all students,
staff and faculty. Any student, staff member or faculty member who believes (s)he has been the subject
of discrimination or harassment based on race, color, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, creed,
religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, political affiliation, or political
philosophy, should contact the Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination (OPHD) at (858)
534-8298, [email protected], or reportbias.ucsd.edu
Data Privacy. The University adheres to the standards for student privacy rights and requirements as stipu-
lated in the Federal Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974, see http://ucsd.edu/catalog/front/ferpa.html.
Counseling. Managing the many challenges of being a college student can be very stressful. Always remember
that talking to somebody that is professionally trained to help is just an email, or short walk, away:
https://caps.ucsd.edu/.
