You have been hired by a government agency to collect and analyze economic data and generate economic forecasts. Since you do not have much experience in this area, your manager, Ms. Hernandez, has decided to give you a chance to practice your skills. Ms. Hernandez believes that it would be a good idea for you to use the Internet to collect and monitor a sample of economic data. She has given you a list of Web sites to access. Your first assignment is to collect a sample of local, national, or international economic data from one of these sites. Next, try to analyze the data you have collected and identify any patterns. Then, using one of the techniques discussed in the chapter, generate a forecast for the future. Finally, as new data are posted, evaluate your performance using the error measures discussed in the chapter. How did you do, and what have you learned about the data you collected? Web sites:

1. Census Bureau—provides economic and demographic information from the U.S. economy (http://www.census.gov/)
2. Penn World Tables—provides international economic data (http://www.hbs.edu/ units/bgie/internet/penn.html)
3. Regional Economic Information System—provides regional, state, and local data (http://www.ciesin.org/datasets /reis/reis-home.html)
4. Resources for Economists on the Internet—provides business and economic data (http://www.rfe.org)