[EM] request for reading matter

[Bart Ingles]

"John B. Hodges" wrote:
> 
> In the last Digest, Adam Tarr had 3 posts. I'm a new subscriber,
> educating myself about all these issues.
> 
> I've heard of "ranked pairs", but what is "beatpath"? I presume it is
> a method of resolving Condorcet elections in case of circular
> pairwise pluralities. Where can I read about the properties,
> mathematical and otherwise, of Ranked Pairs and Beatpath?
> 
> I've read a book by Donald Saari, CHAOTIC ELECTIONS, in which Saari
> finds unique virtues in the Borda Count and many weaknesses in
> Approval. I don't regard Borda Count as a realistic contender, both
> from vulnerability to manipulation, and from its requirement that all
> voters rank all candidates. Can y'all recommend some text that
> replies to Saari regarding Approval?

Try the following four-article debate in Public Choice
http://www.kluweronline.com/issn/0048-5829
(I recommend checking your university library for these):

(1) The problem of indeterminacy in approval, multiple, and truncated
voting systems
Donald G. Saari and Jill Van Newenhizen
Public Choice 59: 101-120 (1988)  (c) Kluwer Academic Publishers

(2) The responsiveness of approval voting: Comments on Saari and Van
Newenhizen
Steven J. Brams, Peter C. Fishburn, Samuel Merrill III
Public Choice 59: 121-131 (1988)

(3) Is approval voting an 'unmitigated evil'?: A response to Brams,
Fishburn, and Merrill
Saari, Van Newenhizen
Public Choice 59:133-147

(4) Rejoinder to Saari and Van Newenhizen
Brams, Fishburn, Merrill
Public Choice 59:149



> More generally, how did y'all learn what you know about this stuff?
> Please recommend some books or publications. I live in walking
> distance of a University library, so obscure tomes are available to
> me.