[EM] FBC paper, "style"

[Alex Small]

I should add that while I appreciate the point about how long the paper is, I haven't seen too many other people approach voting methods as sequential checks of different linear inequalities, and combine that with Saari's geometrical approach.  However, I found that approach absolutely essential for proving what I was trying to prove.  Doing something different requires setting up the formalism first, and I wanted to develop it gradually rather than tersely, so that inevitably adds some length.  However, like I said, I will try to reduce the burden on the reader by inserting a summary table earlier in the paper.

--- On Thu, 8/26/10, Alex Small <alex_small2002 at yahoo.com> wrote:

From: Alex Small <alex_small2002 at yahoo.com>
Subject: FBC paper, "style"
To: "Election Methods List" <election-methods-electorama.com at electorama.com>
Date: Thursday, August 26, 2010, 3:17 PM

Warren,

You're right, I erred.  "Style" should be used to refer to more subjective aspects of writing.  Perhaps I should have described formal mathematical writing as following a particular "structure."

All I can say in defense of how I wrote the manuscript is that I am inexperienced at formal mathematical writing (physicists are to rigor what jello is to structural integrity) so I took my cues from how Saari wrote in "Basic Geometry of Voting."

The weaknesses of that approach are, as you point out, substantial.  However, Saari wrote for a wider audience than just formally-trained mathematicians, including social scientists (some of whom are indeed schooled in formal mathematical approaches, but not all) in his audience.  There is some merit in that, and I need to think things through as I consider restructuring the
 paper.  I appreciate your feedback on this.

Anyway, revising to a more formal structure will take some time.  In the near term, I'll try to include a table earlier in the paper to at least give the reader a more organized summary and preview of what is to come.

Thanks for the feedback.



Alex



      


      
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