LEGACY CONTENT. If you are looking for Voteview.com, PLEASE CLICK HERE

This site is an archived version of Voteview.com archived from University of Georgia on May 23, 2017. This point-in-time capture includes all files publicly linked on Voteview.com at that time. We provide access to this content as a service to ensure that past users of Voteview.com have access to historical files. This content will remain online until at least January 1st, 2018. UCLA provides no warranty or guarantee of access to these files.

POLS 6386 MEASUREMENT THEORY
Seventh Assignment
Due 18 March 2003


  1. The aim of this problem is to study the relationship between correlated dimensions and their associated singular values (eigenvalues). This is a continuation of problem 1 of Homework 6. Download the following R program:

    R Program to Perform SVD on Bivariate Normal and Display Ratio of Singular Values

    Below is a listing of the program and the graph that it creates:
    
    #
    #  Program to Illustrate Singular Value Decomposition
    #
    #      Draws n points from bivariate normal distribution
    #         and draws graph of ratio of 1st over 2nd 
    #         Singular Values
    #
    nrow <- 1000
    ncol <- 2
    #
    #  Number of Iterations
    #
    nitr <- 39
    #
    #  These two commands create a matrix that is 39 by 4 and filled
    #   with zeroes
    #
    w <- rep(0,nitr*4)
    dim(w) <- c(nitr,4)
    #
    #  xinc is the increment -- that is, the value that is subtracted
    #    from the previous value of the correlation after every pass
    #    through the loop below.  Note that it equals .05
    #
    xinc <- 2/(nitr+1)
    #
    #  Initial Value for Correlation
    #
    rcor <- .95
    #
    #  Note that at the first pass through the loop r=.95, the 2nd pass
    #    r=.90, third pass r=.85, etc.  At the 39th pass, r=-.95.
    #
    iii <- 1
    while (iii <= nitr) {
    #
    #  Create Variance-Covariance Matrix
    #
    #         1.0  0.9
    #         0.9  1.0
    #
    Sigma <- matrix(c(1,rcor,rcor,1),2,2)
    #
    #  Call Bivariate Normal with zero mean and 
    #   Sigma Var-Cov Matrix, Place in X
    #
    X <- mvrnorm(n=nrow,rep(0,2),Sigma)
    #
    #  Perform Singular Value Decomposition
    #
    xsvd <- svd(X)
    #
    #  The Two Lines Below Put the Singular Values in a
    #    Diagonal Matrix -- The first one creates an 
    #    identity matrix and the second command puts
    #    the singular values on the diagonal
    #
    Lambda <- diag(ncol)
    diag(Lambda) <- xsvd$d
    #
    #  Compute U*LAMBDA*V' for check below
    #
    XX <- xsvd$u %*% Lambda %*% t(xsvd$v)
    #
    # Compute Fit of SVD -- This is just the sum of squared
    #  error -- Note that ssesvd should be zero!
    #
    #
    i <- 0
    j <- 0
    ssesvd <- 0
    while (i < nrow) {
      i <- i + 1
      j <- 0
      while (j < ncol) {
         j <- j + 1
         ssesvd <- ssesvd + (X[i,j] - XX[i,j])**2
      }
    }
    #
    #  Store the correlation, fit, and two singular values for plotting
    #   purposes
    #
    w[iii,1] <- rcor
    w[iii,2] <- ssesvd
    w[iii,3] <- xsvd$d[1]
    w[iii,4] <- xsvd$d[2]
    #
    #  Increment correlation value
    #
    rcor <- rcor - xinc
    #
    #  Increment Loop counter
    #
    iii <- iii+1
    #
    # End of Big Loop
    #
    }
    #
    #  Plot Commands
    #
    plot(w[,1],w[,3]/w[,4],xlab="Correlation Between Dimensions",ylab="Ratio of 1st to 2nd Singular Value",pch=16,col="blue")
    mtext(side=3,line=1.5,"Bivariate Normal Random Draws \nRatio of Singular Values",font=2)


    Note that the figure above is symmetric! Consequently, we only need to be concerned with studying correlation values between zero and 1.0.

    1. Modify the R program above so that it runs from .98 to .00 in steps of .02. Turn in your program listing and turn in the resulting graph. It should look something like this:



      You can insert text inside the graph with the command:

      text(.3,7.0,"1000 by 2 Matrix \n.02 Size Steps")

    2. Run your R program from .99 to .00 in steps of .01. Turn in the graph.

    3. Run your R program from .98 to .00 in steps of .02 with 2000 by 2 matrices. Turn in the graph.

    4. Run your R program from .98 to .00 in steps of .02 with 5000 by 2 matrices. Turn in the graph.

    5. Run your R program from .99 to .00 in steps of .01 with 100 by 2 matrices. Turn in the graph.

  2. This problem combines parts of problem 2 of homework 3 with parts of problem 2 of homework 6. We are going to study the recent vote to invoke cloture on the Miguel A. Estrada Nomination. We are going to create coordinates for the 107th Senate using the double-centered squared distance matrix computed from the agreement scores and then produce smoothed histograms of those Senators who served in both the 107th and the 108th who voted for or against cloture. Download the new agreement score program HOUSYM3.EXE, the 107th roll call data, and the control card file (the latter two files were used in problem 2 of homework 3).

    New Agreement Score Program

    107th Senate Roll Call Matrix

    Control Card File for Agreement Score Program

    The first few lines of the agreement score file SEN107.DAT should look like this:
     
    1079991099 0USA     200  BUSH        100  92  92  99  97  96  etc etc
    1074970041 0ALABAMA 20001SESSIONS     92 100  92  89  86  86  etc etc
    1079465941 0ALABAMA 20001SHELBY       92  92 100  90  87  83  etc etc
                          etc etc etc
    Use Epsilon to strip off the header of each row so that you only have the agreement score matrix itself. Download the double-centering program below:

    Double-Centering Program For Symmetric Agreement Score Matrix

    Below is a listing of the program:
    
    #
    # double_center_6.r -- Double-Center Program
    #
    # The Data Are assumed to be Squared Distances -- Data Must
    #     Be Transformed to Squared Distances Below
    #
    T <- matrix(scan("D:/R_Files/sen107_ascore.dat",0),ncol=103,byrow=TRUE)
    sennames <- read.csv("D:/R_Files/sen_107.txt",header=F)
    attach(sennames)
    #
    #  Catch The Missing Data
    #
    TT <- ifelse(T <= 0,50,T)
    T <- TT
    #
    #
    nrow <- length(T[,1])
    ncol <- length(T[1,])
    xrow <- NULL
    xcol <- NULL
    matrixmean <- 0
    matrixmean2 <- 0
    #
    # Transform the Matrix
    #
    i <- 0
    while (i < nrow) {
      i <- i + 1
      j <- 0
      while (j < ncol) {
         j <- j + 1
    #
    #  This is the Normal Transformation
    #
         TT[i,j] <- ((100 - T[i,j])/50)**2
    #
      }
    }
    T <- TT
    #
    #
    # Compute Row and Column Means
    #
    i <- 0
    while (i < nrow) {
      i <- i + 1
      xrow[i] <- mean(T[i,])
    }
    i <- 0
    while (i < ncol) {
      i <- i + 1
      xcol[i] <- mean(T[,i])
    }
    matrixmean <- mean(xcol)
    matrixmean2 <- mean(xrow)
    #
    # Double-Center the Matrix
    #
    i <- 0
    while (i < nrow) {
      i <- i + 1
      j <- 0
      while (j < ncol) {
         j <- j + 1
         TT[i,j] <- (T[i,j]-xrow[i]-xcol[j]+matrixmean)/(-2)
      }
    }
    ev <- eigen(TT)
    DIM.1 <- ev$vec[,1]*sqrt(ev$val[1])
    DIM.2 <- ev$vec[,2]*sqrt(ev$val[2])
    #
    SEN107_ASCORE.DAT is the agreement score matrix and SEN_107.TXT has the roll call vote. For example, here is the first few lines of my SEN_107.TXT file:
    
     99,USA    , 200,1,Bush       
     41,ALABAMA, 200,1,Sessions   
     41,ALABAMA, 200,1,Shelby     
     81,ALASKA , 200,1,Murkowski  
     81,ALASKA , 200,1,Stevens    
     61,ARIZONA, 200,1,Kyl        
     61,ARIZONA, 200,1,McCain     
     42,ARKANSA, 200,0,Hutchinson 
     42,ARKANSA, 100,6,Lincoln    
     71,CALIFOR, 100,6,Boxer      
        etc etc etc
    Note that I use "1" for Yea, "6" for Nay, and "0" for no longer in the Senate. I also treated President Bush as if he voted for Cloture.

    1. Construct the SEN_107.TXT file and turn in a listing of it.

    2. Produce a Density plot of the Yea and Nay voters on the Cloture vote for the Estrada nomination. If you do it correctly, it should look something like the following:



      Turn in your graph and the R code that you used to create the graph.

    3. Produce a Density plot of the Democrat Yea and Nay voters on the Cloture vote for the Estrada nomination. If you do it correctly, it should look something like the following:



      Turn in your graph and the R code that you used to create the graph.

  3. The aim of this problem is to show you how to use metric unfolding to analyze thermometer scores. To do this you need to run a program that unfolds the thermometer scores. We are going to analyze the 1968 feeling thermometers. Download the the program, control card file, and data file and place them in the same directory.

    Metric Unfolding Program (MLSMU6)

    Control Card File for Metric Unfolding Program

    1968 Election Data

    The 1968 Election Data file contains the same variables that we have used in the past plus the thermometer scores and voting information for the respondents. The variables are:
    
    idno           respondent id number
    partyid        strength of party id -- 0 to 6
    income         raw income category
    incomeq        income quintile -- 1 to 5
    race           0 = white, 1 = black
    sex            0 = man, 1 = woman
    south          0 = north, 1 = south
    education      1=HS, 2=SC, 3=College
    age            age in years
    uulbj          lbj position urban unrest
    uuhhh          humphrey pos urban unrest
    uunixon        nixon position urban unrest
    uuwallace      wallace pos urban unrest
    uuself         self placement urban unrest
    vnmlbj         lbj pos vietnam
    vnmhhh         hhh pos vietnam
    vnmnixon       nixon pos vietnam
    vnmwallace     wallace pos vietnam
    vnmself        self placement vietnam
    voted          1=voted, 5=did not vote
    votedfor       who voted for -- 1 = humphrey, 2= nixon, 3=wallace
    wallace        wallace therm
    humphrey       humphrey thermometer
    nixon          nixon thermometer
    mccarthy       mccarthy thermometer
    reagan         reagan thermometer
    rockefeller    rockefeller thermometer
    lbj            lbj thermometer
    romney         romney thermometer
    kennedy        robert kennedy thermometer
    muskie         muskie thermometer
    agnew          agnew thermometer
    lemay          "bombs away with Curtis LeMay" thermometer
    
    The control card file for the metric unfolding procedure is shown below. The first line has the name of the data file. The first number in the second line is the number of stimuli, the next two numbers are the minimum and maximum number of dimensions to estimate, and the "10" is the number of iterations.

    The third line contains some "antique" options we will never use. The only numbers that matter on this line are the "4" which indicates the number of identifying characters to read off each line of the data file (e.g., the respondent id number), and the "2" at the end. This is the number of missing data codes which appear in the sixth line.

    The first number in the fourth line is a tolerance value -- leave it as is. The next three numbers are parameters to transform the input data into squared distances. In this case, let amx=-.02, bmx=2.0, and cmx=2.0. The following equation transforms the thermometers into squared distances:

    d2 = (amx*t+bmx)cmx

    where t = input data. This formula takes a linear transformation of the input data to the power cmx. With amx = -.02, bmx = 2.0, and cmx = 2.0, this is equivalent to subtracting the thermometer score from 100, dividing by 50, and then squaring. This converts t from a 0-100 scale to a 4-0 scale. If the data, t, are distances, set amx = 1.0, bmx = 0.0, and cmx = 2.0. If the data are correlations, set amx = -1.0, bmx = 1.0, and cmx=2.0 or 1.0 if the correlations are initially regarded as unsquared or squared distances respectively.

    The next value, "1.5", is the maximum absolute expected coordinate value on any dimension. It is used for plotting purposes. If the squared distances are confined to a 4-0 scale, xmax=1.5 is usually sufficient. The last two numbers, "0.0" and "100.0", are the minimum and maximum expected values of the input data. These are used to catch coding errors in the input data. Anything out of range is treated as missing data.

    The fifth line is the format of the data file and the sixth line contains the missing data codes.

    Finally, the last 12 lines are labels for the stimuli.
    OLS68B.DAT
       12    2    2   10    0    0
        1    1    0    4    2
        .001  -0.02    2.0     2.0     1.5     0.0   100.0
    (1X,4A1,60X,12F3.0)
     98 99
    WALLACE
    HUMPHREY
    NIXON   
    MCCARTHY
    REAGAN
    ROCKEFELLER
    LBJ   
    ROMNEY 
    R.KENNEDY
    MUSKIE   
    AGNEW
    LEMAY   
    1. Run MLSMU6. It will produce an output file called FORT.22. The first 20 lines look like this:
      
       WALLACE          1.2646    0.5154  217.4823    0.5541 1242.0000
       HUMPHREY        -0.5559    0.3738  114.7892    0.6968 1252.0000
       NIXON            0.1480   -0.5415  123.2209    0.5319 1250.0000
       MCCARTHY        -0.6251   -0.4938  151.8926    0.3854 1204.0000
       REAGAN           0.3080   -0.8895  131.8091    0.4380 1212.0000
       ROCKEFELLER     -0.5579   -0.5995  148.1413    0.3724 1229.0000
       LBJ             -0.5223    0.4905  147.0334    0.5573 1253.0000
       ROMNEY          -0.4736   -0.7866  111.3147    0.3434 1167.0000
       R.KENNEDY       -0.4245    0.2351  148.8571    0.5418 1242.0000
       MUSKIE          -0.6611    0.1660  126.0836    0.4862 1177.0000
       AGNEW            0.2341   -0.8706  114.1418    0.4675 1180.0000
       LEMAY            1.1901    0.4267  174.3242    0.4601 1188.0000
       1681            -0.0285    0.2555    0.7918    0.6824   12.0000
       1124            -0.1768    0.2692    1.4788    0.6992   12.0000
         78             0.5707   -0.1514    3.5611    0.2141   12.0000
        553             0.1376    0.1064    0.1597    0.7047    9.0000
          7             0.2542    0.1235    1.2634    0.0116   12.0000
        412             0.2781    0.0867    0.1024    0.6197   12.0000
        631             0.5017    0.1088    1.1196    0.0742   12.0000
       1316             0.2175   -0.5842    1.1568    0.8577   12.0000
                             etc etc etc
                             etc etc etc
      The first two columns after the names are the two dimensional coordinates. The first 12 lines are the coordinates for the political candidates and lines 13 onward are the coordinates for the respondents. Use R to plot the 12 candidates in two dimensions. This plot should be very similar to the one you did for question 2 of homework 5.

    2. Use Epsilon to insert the voted and voted for variables into FORT.22 (strip off the candidate coordinates first). Turn in the Epsilon macro you used to do the insertion and the first 20 lines of the file.

    3. Use R to make two-dimensional plots of the Voters, Non-Voters, Humphrey Voters only, Nixon Voters only, and Wallace Voters only. For example, your Humphrey Voter plot should look something like this:



      Label each plot appropriately and use solid dots to plot the respondents. Turn in all these plots.