Making optimal use of scarce resources is the central theme of economics; constrained optimization lies at the heart of many economic applications. Roger Myerson (Game Theory: Analysis of Conflict, Harvard University Press, 1991) defines game theory as "the study of mathematical models of conflict and cooperation between intelligent rational decision-makers"; optimization theory plays an important role in analyzing strategic decision making. The case studies in this collection introduce some of the basic models in economics and in game theory and highlight the optimization formulation and solution of the models. Applets are included for the user to gain insight into the workings of the models. For the best results, we recommend using Firefox for the interactive case studies.

Economics: Life Cycle Theory of Consumption

• Three-Period Life Cycle Problem
• Life Cycle Consumption Problem
• Life Cycle Consumption with Assets
• Life Cycle Consumption with Assets and Labor Supply

Econometrics: new

• Nonlinear Least Squares with Cobb-Douglas Production Function
• Nonlinear Least Squares with Constant Elasticity of Substitution (CES) Production Function
• Maximum Likelihood Estimation with Probit Model (Binary Dependent Variable Case)
• Maximum Likelihood Estimation with Logit Model (Binary Dependent Variable Case)
• Maximum Likelihood Estimation with Tobit Model (Censored at Zero)

Game Theory:

• Two-Person Zero-Sum Games: Basic Concepts
• Oligopoly (Interactive MIRO model): Stackleberg and Cournot

Experiment with different players and their behavior assumptions. Are players acting strategically and what is the effect? Or is there a firm that has market power?