Name:

SM286A – Mathematics for Economics Fall 2015

Asst. Prof. Nelson Uhan

Exam 1

Instructions
● You have 50 minutes to complete this exam.

● There are 7 problems on this exam, worth a total of 100 points.

● You may not consult any outside materials (e.g. notes, textbooks, homework).

● You may not use a calculator.

● Show all your work. Your answers should be legible and clearly labeled. It is your responsibility to make sure
that I understand what you are doing. You will be awarded partial credit if your work merits it.

● Keep this booklet intact.

● Do not discuss the contents of this exam with any midshipmen until the end of 4th period.

Score

Maximum
Problem Your Points
Points
1 20

2 10

3 20

4 10

5 15

6 15

7 10

Total 100

1
Problem 1. (20 total points = 4 parts × 5 points)
Let
⎡ 1 −2⎤
⎢ ⎥ −1 2 8 −3
⎢ ⎥
A = ⎢−3 0 ⎥ B=[ ] C=[ ]
⎢ ⎥ 7 3 0 1
⎢2 5 ⎥⎦
⎣
Compute the following quantities, or state that the quantity is not defined.

a. 2B + C

b. CA

c. AC

d. A′

2
Problem 2. (10 total points)
Consider the following system of equations:

x + z=2
4y − 2z = 8
4x − y + 5z = 4

You are given that

⎡1 0 1 ⎤⎥
−1 ⎡ ⎤
⎢ ⎢ 9 −1/2 −2⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢0 4 −2⎥ = ⎢−4 1/2 1⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢4 −1 5 ⎥ ⎢−8 1/2 2 ⎥⎦
⎣ ⎦ ⎣
Use this information to solve for x, y, and z.

3
Problem 3. (20 total points)
⎡1 2 1⎤
⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥
Let A = ⎢2 3 2⎥.
⎢ ⎥
⎢3 4 2⎥
⎣ ⎦
a. (15 points) Find the inverse of A. (You may assume it exists.)

b. (5 points) Does ∣A∣ = 0? Why?

4
Problem 4. (10 total points)
Suppose you have a system of 4 linear equations with 5 variables: x1 , x2 , x3 , x4 , and x5 . You form the augmented matrix
of this system, and find its RREF:
⎡ 1 2 0 0 3 2⎤
⎢ ⎥
⎢0 0 1 0 −1 4⎥
⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥
⎢0 0 0 1 −2 3⎥
⎢ ⎥
⎢0 0 0 0 0 0⎥
⎣ ⎦

What are the solutions to the original system of equations? If there are no solutions, simply state so. If there is at least
one solution, write your answer in vector form. Your answer should look like this:

⎡ x1 ⎤ ⎡?⎤
⎢ ⎥ ⎢⎥
⎢ x2 ⎥ ⎢?⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢⎥
⎢ x3 ⎥ = ⎢?⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢⎥
⎢x4 ⎥ ⎢?⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢⎥
⎢ x ⎥ ⎢?⎥
⎣ 5⎦ ⎣ ⎦

5
Problem 5. (15 total points)
⎡1 1 2 3⎤⎥
⎢
⎢2 2 5 4⎥⎥
⎢
a. (7 points) Find the determinant of ⎢ ⎥.
⎢0 −1 0 0⎥⎥
⎢
⎢0 3 0 1 ⎥⎦
⎣

b. (8 points) Use Cramer’s rule to solve the following system of equations for x and y:

−2x + y = a
x + 3y = b

6
Problem 6. (15 total points)
Recall the two-commodity market equilibrium model we discussed in class:

Variables: Qd1 = quantity demanded for product 1

Qd1 = Qs1
Qd2 = quantity demanded for product 2
Qd1 = a0 + a1 P1 + a2 P2
Qs1 = quantity supplied for product 1
Qs1 = b0 + b1 P1 + b2 P2
Qs2 = quantity supplied for product 2
Qd2 = Qs2
P1 = price of product 1
Qd2 = α0 + α1 P1 + α2 P2
P2 = price of product 2
Qs2 = β0 + β1 P1 + β2 P2
Parameters: a0 , a1 , a2 , b0 , b1 , b2 , α0 , α1 , α2 , β0 , β1 , β2

a. (10 points) Rewrite the model above into matrix form, assuming the six variables are arranged in the order Qd1 ,
Qd2 , Qs1 , Qs2 , P1 , and P2 . Your answer should look like this:
⎡ ⎤ ⎡ Qd1 ⎤ ⎡ ⎤
⎢ ⎥⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢Qd2 ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ some ⎥ ⎢ Qs1 ⎥ ⎢some other⎥
⎢ ⎥⎢ ⎥=⎢ ⎥
⎢ matrix ⎥ ⎢ Q ⎥ ⎢ matrix ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ s2 ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ P1 ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ P2 ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎣ ⎦⎣ ⎦ ⎣ ⎦

b. (5 points) Suppose a2 < 0 and α1 < 0. What is the relationship between the two products? Why?

7
Problem 7. (10 total points)
Consider a Leontief input-output model for an economy with 2 industries, with input matrix A and final demand
vector d:
0.38 0.12 250
A=[ ] d=[ ]
0.19 0 600
a. (5 points) What is the economic meaning of 0.19 in the input matrix A above?

b. (5 points) Let

x1 = output of industry 1, in dollars

x2 = output of industry 2, in dollars

Write the input-output matrix equation for this model — i.e., the matrix equation that ensures that each industry’s
output is equal to the input demand and the final demand for its product. Your answer should look like this:

some some other

[ ] [ 1] = [ ]
x
matrix x2 matrix