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发信人: kuangshui ((▄︻┻┳═一)), 信区: Postgraduate
标题: How to Build an Economic Model in Spare Time 9
发信站: 荔园晨风BBS站 (Sat Mar 25 23:12:08 2006), 站内

9. Planning your paper

Almost everyone writes on computers these days. I know that computers are
great time savers: I get almost as much work done now as I got done before I
started using computers.*2

I thought that I would spend a bit of time talking about how I use computers,
not because it is all that important, but because no one else in this
collection will discuss such mundane matters. Since I am well known as a
computer nerd, people always ask me what I use, and I figure I can save
time by pointing them to this article. Undoubtedly this will all look
incredibly archaic in a few years, but that's the cost of being on the
bleeding edge of technology.

I currently use a Unix machine, but most of what I say applies equally well
to other environments. I have a directory on my computer called Papers and
when I start to work on a new topic I create a subdirectory under papers.
(For example, this paper is in a directory Papers/how-I-work.) When I

create the directory I create a notes.txt file: this contains my initial
ideas, a rough outline, whatever. For example, the notes.txt file for this
paper initially had entries in it like:
*read the newspaper
*simplify
*write and talk
**if you don't grab them in the first page, they won't read it

I create a notes file like this when I first start to work on a topic
---I jot down the initial ideas I have, which are usually pretty sketchy.
In the following days and weeks I occasionally take a look at this outline.
When I look at it I move things around, add material and so on. I rarely
take anything out completely---I just move material to the end of the
file. After all, I might want those notes again.

After organizing these ideas for several weeks or months I am ready to write

the first draft of the paper. I usually try to do this in a day or two, to
keep it all fresh. I normally put the notes in one window and the paper
in the other and write the paper while I refer back and update the notes to
keep them in sync with the paper.

Once the paper is written I put it aside for a couple of weeks. Papers need

to age like fine cheese---it's true that mold might develop, but the flavor
is often enhanced. More importantly, it gives your subconscious mind a
chance to work on the idea---maybe it will come up with something your
conscious mind has missed.

When I come back to the paper I try to read it with a fresh mind, like
someone who has never seen it before.*3 On rare occasions I like what I
read, but usually I have lots of criticisms. Whenever I have to pause and
think ``what does that mean?'' I rewrite---I add more explanation,
change the notation, or whatever is necessary to make the paper clearer.
When I'm done with this process I have a first draft.

I next check this draft into a revision control system. This is a piece of
software that keeps track of the revisions of a paper. It documents all of
the changes you make and allows you to restore any previous version of a
paper. I use the Unix utility rcs but I know there are many other systems
available. Revision control systems are especially valuable if you are
working with a coauthor since they keep track of which person made
which changes when.

I then repeat the process: let the paper sit for a few more weeks or months,
then come back to it, read it with a fresh mind and revise it accordingly.

It is particularly useful to do a revision right after you give a seminar.
Remember those notes I told you to write after your seminar ended? Sit down
with the paper and go over the questions the audience had and the
suggestions they made. Can you answer their questions in your paper? Can you
incorporate their suggestions?

Be sure to modify the notes/outline/slides for your talk when you incorporate
the audience's suggestions.

Bibliographic software
One very useful computer tool is a bibliographic system. This is a piece of
software designed to managed a list of references. There is a master database
of references that is stored on your computer. You assign a key to each
article like Arrow70 or ArrowRisk. When you want to refer to a paper you
use the key, by saying something like ncitefArrow70g. The bibliographic
program then looks up the appropriate citation in your database and puts it
in the list of references at the end of your article. I use the system
called BibTEX, since it works well with TEX. However, there are many
other systems available that work for other wordprocessing packages. It's
a good idea to get in the habit of using a system like this. Over the years
you will build up a comprehensive bibliography for the areas you work in.

ask people: your adviser, your colleagues, your friends, and so on. This is
still one of the most reliable ways. But nowadays there are a number of
computerized databases available online or on CDs that allow for easy
search. You can open the CD for the Journal of Economic Literature, type in
a few key words like``price discrimination'' and get the last 10 years
worth of abstracts of published articles that contain the words ``price
discrimination.'' As you look at these articles you will see a few
``classic'' articles cited. When you identify these classic articles go
to the Social Science Citation Index and search for all the recent papers
that have cited these classics. This process should give you an
up-to-date bibliography pretty quickly. Often you can download the citations
you get directly into your bibliography database program.

*2 If a train stops at a train station, what do you think happens at a work
station?

*3 This is much easier once you reach middle age.
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