Alan Isaac
**Note:**
Please post your Mushroom Hunt code Wednesay 8:30am to the Mushroom Hunt thread.
(NOT Tuesday!)
Alan Isaac
Week 3: Monday
==============
Due to the national holiday,
there is no assignment today.
**Reminder:**
Please post your Mushroom Hunt code Wednesday 8:30am to the Mushroom Hunt thread.
(NOT Tuesday!)
**Reminder:**
The Gambler’s Ruin project is due next Monday.
Allocate 20 hours (!) for its completion.
Late submissions will not be accepted!
Discuss your difficulties in the *Gambler's Ruin* thread.
Alan Isaac
Week 3: Tuesday
==================
**Reminder:**
Post your Mushroom Hunt code tomorrow morning!
**Reminder:**
The Gambler’s Ruin exercise is due Monday. Allow 20 hours!
**Reminder:**
Your two-page course project outline is due next week!
(Follow the ODD protocol, as detailed in chapter 3 of your textbook.)
**Reminder:**
Timely and substantive participation in the discussions is
a graded activity.
Assignments
------------
- Early tomorrow morning (ideally, as previously requested, at 8:30am),
post your Mushroom Hunt model code in the *Mushroom Hunt* thread.
Remember, you are implementing [railsback.grimm-2011-pup]_ ch. 2.
with the following modifications:
https://subversion.american.edu/aisaac/hw/450hw.xhtml#mushroom-hunt
Readings
--------
Today's required reading:
- Lecture Notes: Introduction to Implementation Verification
https://subversion.american.edu/aisaac/notes/compute-verification.xhtml
- Reread [railsback.grimm-2011-pup]_ ch. 3.
Use this ODD protocol to start preparing your two-page project outline,
which is due next week. Also, start reading ch. 4.
- NetLogo Procedures (with input arguments)
http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/2.0/docs/programming.html#procedures2
- Array and Table Extensions
http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/docs/arraystables.html
(Note: use the array extension in your Gambler's Ruin code.
Note: extensions must be declared before being used!
http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/docs/extensions.html)
- Lecture Notes on Gambler's Ruin
https://subversion.american.edu/aisaac/notes/gamblers_ruin.xhtml
Graduate students should additionally read:
- More on ODD:
http://www.railsback-grimm-abm-book.com/Chapter03/GrimmEtAl2010_ODD-Update-1.pdf
Today's recommended (i.e., entirely optional) reading and resources.
- [grune-2009-synthese]_
http://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/3669/1/ACEpaper070925.pdf
(The published version is available through the library.)
Some Possible Topics for Discussion
-----------------------------------
- Post questions and comments about the Mushroom Hunt assignment
in the *Mushroom Hunt* thread.
- Post questions about your work on the **two-person** Gambler's Ruin,
which is part of the first collected assignment (due date on the syllabus).
Do **not** post your code.
When the assignment is done, you will submit it via Blackboard.
- What is the DRY principle? Why is it important?
Can you provide an example from your own code?
(Use the *NetLogo Programming* thread.)
- What economic activities could you model
by modifying the Mushroom Hunt model?
Might a simple modification of the model
be useful for thinking about e.g. agricultural day labor?
Post this discussion in the *Mushroom Hunt* thread.
.. One student suggested oyster diving / clamming.
He grew up on the Eastern Shore.
Oysters and clams are typically spread out in clusters (just like mushrooms);
when you find one, you find a bunch.
Alan Isaac
==================
**Reminder:**
Your two-page course project outline is due next week!
(Follow the ODD protocol, as detailed in chapter 3 of your textbook.)
**Reminder:**
You must submit the assignment on or before the due date!
**Reminder:**
The Mushroom Hunt extension exercise was due this morning!
By completing the Mushroom Hunt assignment, you have
acquired substantial NetLogo programming skills.
This week you will put them to work in the Gambler's ruin assignment.
Start the assignment *early* and ask lots of questions right away!
Readings
--------
Today's required reading:
- Lecture Notes on Gambler's Ruin
https://subversion.american.edu/aisaac/notes/gamblers_ruin.xhtml
- Plotting
http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/docs/programming.html#plotting
Graduate students should additionally read:
Today's recommended (i.e., entirely optional) reading and resources.
(This model is an adaptation of the Epstein (2002) model of civil violence.)
Assignments
------------
- Work on your Gambler's Ruin assignment.
Allocate 20 hours to this assignment.
It must be submitted on time!
- In the NetLogo Models Library, under Code Examples,
examine ``Plotting Example``.
(You need this for the Gambler's Ruin exercise.)
Ask questions about anything you do not understand.
- Post your questions about your implementation in the
*Gambler's Ruin* thread.
Do **not** post your code.
(Remember, the TA is available for coding questions!)
Some Possible Topics for Discussion
-----------------------------------
that others have posted (or about your own, for that matter).
Post these in the *Mushroom Hunt* thread.
Some things to try with your Mushroom Hunt model.
- Ask questions about aspects of the assignment you did not understand.
- Change metabolism to 0.1.
How do your results change?
- Clear your plot when you clear your drawing.
Set the X limits from 0 to 100, so the plot is more informative.
- Add a monitor that gives the current value of the mean energy of turtles.
(Recall that http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/docs/tutorial3.htm discusses monitors.)
- Allow setting metabolism with a slider.
(This will make metabolism a global variable rather than a turtle attribute,
so change your code accordingly.)
- Have each hunter keep track of the number of mushrooms it has found.
- A number of other changes are suggested at the end of R&G ch.3.
- Experiment with the Rebellion model in the NetLogo Models Library.
Post any comments or questions in the *Models Library* thread.
Alan Isaac
==================
**Reminder:**
The due date for the Gambler's Ruin assignment is Monday!
(All due dates have been on the Assignments page since class began.)
Please allocate 20 hours to complete this assignment.
**Reminder:**
Your two-page course project outline is due next Friday.
Follow the ODD protocol, as detailed in chapter 3 of your textbook.
Timely and substantive participation in the discussions is
a graded activity.
------------
- Work on your Gambler's Ruin code.
This assignment will take a substantial amount of effort and time:
allocate at least 20 hours for its completion.
It is meant to use all the NetLogo programming skills you have
been acquiring in this course.
- In the NetLogo Models Library, under Code Examples,
(You need this for the Gambler's Ruin exercise.)
ask questions about anything you do not understand.
- Post your questions about your implementation of the Gambler's Ruin,
which is part of the assignment due Monday.
Do **not** post your code.
Readings
--------
Today's required reading:
- Reread the Lecture Notes on the Gambler's Ruin
https://subversion.american.edu/aisaac/notes/gamblers_ruin.xhtml
- CSV
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comma-separated_values
(You need this for the assignment.)
- ``export-plot``
http://ccl.northwestern.edu/netlogo/docs/dictionary.html#export-plot
(You need this for the assignment.)
Graduate students should additionally read:
Today's recommended (i.e., entirely optional) reading and resources.
(Highlight the importance of verification.)
- [gilbert-2007-abm]_ ch. 3
http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/17240_Chapter_3.pdf
Some Possible Topics for Discussion
-----------------------------------
emphasize the role of institutions?
Should economists care about institutions?
- What common or different lessons do we learn from
the Gambler's Ruin model and from the Wealth Distribution model?
Alan Isaac
==================
**Reminder:**
The Gambler's Ruin assignment must be submitted Monday!
Late submissions are not accepted.
Allow 20 hours (!) to complete this assignment.
**Reminder:**
Your two-page course project outline is due next Friday.
Your two-page outline should produce the core of the ``Info`` tab
for your project.
**Reminder:**
Timely and substantive participation in the discussions is
a graded activity.
Assignments
------------
(Including the patch-based version.)
Make sure you've completed **all parts**:
https://subversion.american.edu/aisaac/hw/450hw.xhtml#gamblers-ruin
Do **not** post your code.
You will include the following attachments.
- ruin01.nlogo : the two-person gambler's ruin
- ruin02.nlogo : the n-person gambler's ruin, using arrays
- ruin03.nlogo : the n-person gambler's ruin, using patches
- lineplot.png : the line-plot you create in a spreadsheet
- histogram.png : your wealth histogram
Note that you need to produce a line graph and histogram.
For example, in your two-person gambler's ruin simulation,
produce a time-series plot of the wealth of one player.
Give it the name "Player 1 Wealth".
- For Tuesday: post a link to the most important paper you have
found related to your course project. (This should be a
paper you would like the class to read, in order to be able
to better discuss your project.) If you cannot find a link,
you can post the paper. You should plan to devote
next week to your course project. I'd like to see discussion
of your project on the list. I will reduce other demands
of the course, and I'll try to pick readings that you should
find helpful for your project.
Readings
--------
**Required reading:**
- Start [railsback.grimm-2011-pup]_ ch. 6.
Graduate students should additionally read:
**Recommended (i.e., entirely optional) reading and resources:**
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spreadsheet
- http://www.railsback-grimm-abm-book.com/Chapter05/JovaniGrimm2008.pdf
Some Possible Topics for Discussion
-----------------------------------
- Discussion of the Butterfly model (R&G chapter 4).
(Be sure to work through the butterfly model by following chapter 4,
because it provides many clues about how to proceed with your own models.)
What are other possible applications of the concept of moving up a gradient?
- What programming practices do R&G recommend in chapter 3?
What justifications do they provide for these recommendations?