The lack of updates and blog posts over the last few months is because I was busy preparing and then living the Cambridge life! To make up for my neglect I have written about life at Cambridge for anyone who is thinking of applying (I’d imagine the majority of points are similar for Oxford and other top universities). If you have any further questions feel free to ask them in the Comment Section below.

Before I start I’d like to point out that my experience is as a Girton economist and actual experiences may vary from college to college. There are over 30 colleges in Cambridge where you live and socialise and also get ‘supervisions’. [...]

Reading the Economist newspaper the other day I stumbled upon an article about an interesting practice, called Jeonse, which happens in South Korea.

Rather than pay rent fees to the landlord, rent is a sum of money paid to the landlord for living in an apartment/residence they own which generally cant be recouped, they pay a fixed sum of money (typically between 50-100% of the market value of the property) to the landlord. The landlord then invests this money, and when the lease on the property has expired, pays the renters back their fixed sum.

This way the renters can save up to afford their own house whilst the landlord lives off the interest he accumulates by investing the lump sum. [...]

I am currently researching the banking industry to be able to add more to the Monetary policy and Inflation sections of the website. Here is a very neat, concise article explaining very briefly what the banking sector does and how it works – http://www.bized.co.uk/dataserv/chron/news/3200.htm. Hopefully I will come across more information on what I am looking for and will be able to update the site shortly! [...]

This years 3 co-winners of the Nobel Prize for Economics are Lars Peter Hansen, Robert Schiller and Eugene Fama. Click here to read why they won the idea and the theories they propose – http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24579616. [...]

Below is an example of how to use the formulae for PED and PES to work out the supply and demand functions.

Firstly we have to be able to re-arrange PED (the same applies for the respective formula for PES):

PED = ΔQD / ΔP (where Δ is change, QD is quantity demanded, and P is price)

We know that the formula for percentage change is:

((Change/Original)*100)

Therefore the formula for nominal change (a change in numbers, not percentages) is (Change / Original)

Hence, using this, we can change the PED formula to:

PED = ΔQD/QD ÷ ΔP/P

We can change the division symbol to a multiplication symbol by flipping the term on the right hand side:

PED = ΔQD/QD x P/ΔP

PED = ΔQD/ΔP x P/QD

A change in QD divided by a change in P can be written as the differential of QD in terms of P:

PED = dQD/dP x P/Q

We can then work out dQD/dP by differentiating the demand function and substituting this value in:

QD = a – bP

dQD/dP = -b (differentiate a – bP)

Substitute:

PED = -b(P/Q)

We can now use this formula to find out demand functions (and if you use the same process with PES, supply functions). [...]

As part of our redesign of the layout of content on the site we have made some changes and re jigged where certain content is accessible from. The Lessons page is now broader and more wide-ranging, no longer featuring content solely for the Edexcel exam board, but general knowledge on economics accessible to all.

The previous edexcel focused content is now available on the Revision Resources page, whereby each Unit has a narrow and focused curriculum in order to pass the edexcel exams.

We hope you find our Lessons page more accessible and easier to navigate and learn from!

LEO [...]

After a busy summer of exams, I’m back to working on the site! Over the next few months I’ll be busy writing new articles for the Blog, adding material to the site (Business Economics, Globalisation and Maths Notes) along with a whole re-design of the site to take the focus off the Edexcel specification (this will still be available, along with some other exam board specifications in the Revision Resource section) and have a broader economic focus for anyone interested in the subject!

Check back soon for more updates.
LEO [...]

Sorry for the lack of updates to the site and the blog, over the past few weeks. I am unlikely to get a chance to contribute to the site until early July. [...]