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Math 217 - Voting Theory - Fall 2005
Syllabus

Be sure to check back, because this will be modified and updated during the semester.
The items in dark red are the reading assignments (RA) for each day. The primary readings for the course are
Enlargement of the EU and Weighted Voting in its Council of Ministers by Felsenthal & Machover. Available at http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/VPP/
Fair Representation by Balinski & Young
Chaotic Elections by Saari

Monday
Wednesday


8/31Welcome to Voting Theory
9/5Labor Day 9/7Penrose measure and Banzhaf index
RA: Felsenthal & Machover, Chap 1
9/12Penrose square root rule
The majority deficit
RA: Felsenthal & Machover, Chap 2
9/14Proposal for the Council of Ministers of the EU
RA: Felsenthal & Machover, Chap 2
Homework Due
9/19Supreme Court rulings addressing voting power
RA: Abate v. Mundt, 403 US 182 (1971)
Board of Estimate v. Morris, 489 US 688 (1989)
9/21Power in the Electoral College
Homework Due
9/26Methods of apportionment
RA: Balinski & Young, Chaps 1-4
9/28The Alabama & population paradoxes
Bias toward large or small states
RA: Balinski & Young, Chaps 5-6
Homework Due
10/3Resolving paradoxes, eliminating bias, and staying with the quota
RA: Balinski & Young, Chaps 8-10
10/5Federal and proportional representation systems
RA: Reread Balinski & Young, Chaps 8-10
Homework Due
10/10Fall Break 10/12A formal framework for apportionment
RA: Balinski & Young, Chaps 11-12
10/17Guest lecture by Prof. Allen
RA: Handout
10/19Proportional Representation in South Africa
RA: Handout
Exam 1 Due
10/24Elections with three candidates
RA: Saari, Sects 1.2, 2.1 & 2.2 (pp 17-45)
10/26The representation triangle, procedure line, and AV hull
RA: Saari, Preface, Sects 2.2-2.4 (pp 40-60)
Topic for Project Due
10/31The approval voting controversy
RA: Handouts
11/2A fundamental decomposition of R6
RA: Saari, Sects 5.3 (pp 129-135)
Homework Due
Rough outline of paper due
Redistricting Simulation paper due Fri 11/4
11/7Creating and decomposing profiles
RA: Reread Saari, Sects 5.3 (pp 129-135)
11/9More on creating and decomposing profiles
11/14Extending to four candidate elections
RA: Saari, Sect 2.5 & Chapter 3 (pp 60-89)
11/16Dropping candidates and runoff elections
RA: Reread Saari, Sect 2.5 & Chapter 3 (pp 60-89)
Exam 2 Due
11/21Inconsistency Theorems
Rough draft of paper due
11/23Thanksgiving Break
11/28Arrow's Theorem 11/30What does Arrow's Theorem really mean?
Paper due
12/5Student Presentations 12/7Student Presentations

Final Exam Due Saturday, December 17, 12:00 pm


  Maintained by Tommy Ratliff ratliff_thomas@wheatoncollege.edu
Last Modified May 7, 2009 10:14 PM