Spring 2008 Courses
The following courses will be offered in spring 2008. This schedule will be updated if any other courses are added to the schedule.
| Demography 24 Freshman Seminar | The United Nations is an organization of governments that exists for the promotion of peace and security, development, and human rights throughout the world. Formed after World War II, the UN has played a unique role in world history during the past 60 years, yet it role and authority in today’s world are often challenged. This seminar will examine both the history of the United Nations and its current activities. Is the UN a feckless organization of incompetents that is doomed to failure? Is it a power-hungry incipient world government that threatens the authority of sovereign states? Or is it a complex system of key international organizations that are playing critical roles in the promotion of widely shared ideals, including peace, prosperity, and personal freedom? Readings and discussions will focus on these and related topics. John Wilmoth, M 4-5pm, 81 Evans. |
Demography 145AC |
The American Immigrant Experience. Satisfies the American Cultures requirement. This course covers the history of the United States focusing on the causes and effects of immigration, from the colonial period to the present. Students will use very cool thematic mapping software and census data to complete two fascinating labs. Carl Mason, MWF 3-4pm, 110 Barrows. |
| Demography/Econ C175 |
Introduction to Economic Demography. How do economic changes affect marriage, divorce, and child-bearing decisions? How does immigration to the US affect the ethnic composition of the population, the earnings of native workers, taxes on natives, and the macro-economy? What causes the aging of populations, and how will population aging affect the economies of industrial nations, and in particular, pension programs like Social Security? What accounts for the rise in women's participation in the wage labor force over the past century? How are family composition and poverty interrelated? Does rapid population growth slow economic development in Third World countries? Ronald Lee, T-Th 2-3:30pm in F295 Haas. |
| Demography 211 | Advanced Demographic Analysis. Prerequisites: 210, 110, or consent of instructor. Stable population theory, demographic measurement, and estimation procedures for flawed and incomplete data. Sensitivity testing of demographic measurement using micro-simulation. John Wilmoth, T/Th 11-12:30pm in room 100 (the seminar room) at 2232 Piedmont Ave. |
| Demography 212 | Advanced Demographic Methods/Current Research Topics in Demography. Students will become familiar with active research projects in demography and improve skills in R and Stata. Topics will include demographic micro-simulation with SOCSIM, the Human Mortality Database, stochastic simulation/forecasting, GIS for demographers, and mortality forecasting. Lec/Lab. Carl Mason, M 1-2pm and W 1-3pm, seminar room and computer lab at 2232 Piedmont Ave. |
| Demography 296 | Advanced Research
Techniques. Problems in data acquisition, analysis, and presentation
of technical demographic research. Required of graduate students in the Ph.D. program in Demography. Eugene Hammel, W 9-12pm, room 100 (seminar room), 2232 Piedmont Avenue. |
| Demography C275A/Econ C275A | Economic Demography. Economic Demography teaches economic consequences of demographic change in developed and developing countries, for savings and capital formation, labor markets and intergenerational transfers. It also considers economic influences on family, fertility, migration, health and mortality. Ronald Lee, W 4-6pm, Rm. 100 (seminar room) at 2232 Piedmont Avenue. |
| questions regarding program: Monique Verrier, monique@demog.berkeley.edu |
questions regarding webpage: webmaster@demog.berkeley.edu |
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