Dr James Ward

This course is available on the BSc in Management. This course is available as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit. This course is available with permission to General Course students.

Students should have previously taken MA107 Quantitative Methods (Mathematics). It is not available to students who have taken MA100 Mathematical Methods, or equivalent, nor higher level methods courses.

This is a second course in quantitative methods, following on directly from Quantitative Methods (Mathematics) (MA107). This course will contain further algebra and calculus. As with the course MA107, the emphasis will be on applications in economics and finance. Topics covered: Matrix methods in portfolio analysis. Linear independence. Rank of a matrix. Eigenvalues and eigenvectors. Diagonalisation. Linear systems of recurrence equations. Markov process. Second-order recurrence equations. Macroeconomic models. Vector geometry. Gradient and directional derivative. Tangent hyperplanes and the optimal bundle. Resource allocation and Pareto efficiency. Orthogonal matrices and quadratic forms. Critical points of quadratic functions. Taylor's approximation. Optimisation of functions of two or more variables.

This course is delivered through a combination of classes and lectures totalling a minimum of 30 hours across Lent Term. This year, apart from pre-recorded lecture videos, there will be a weekly live online session of an hour. Depending on circumstances, classes might be online.

Written answers to set problems will be expected on a weekly basis.

M Anthony & N Biggs, Mathematics for Economics and Finance (Cambridge, 1996); A Ostaszewski, Mathematics in Economics (Blackwell, 1993).

Exam (100%, duration: 2 hours) in the summer exam period.

Some departments have produced short videos to introduce their courses. Please refer to the course selection videos index page for further information.