ECON 2041
Introductory Econometrics
Get using Python
Plan for the semester
2 Basic mathematical tools
7 Flavors of OLS & OVB Quiz
10 Inference, continued PS due 16 Oct
12 Measurement error & IRL
Plan for today
- Why you should learn to code
- What is Python & why are we using it?
- Setting up Google Colab
- Python basics
The elephant
in the
(class)room
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Prompt: elephant in the classroom
What's your background?
Quick survey on your background & interests
- Open your portal link
https://emiliatjernstrom.com/econ2041/portal.html
OR scan the QR code, then enter your code
- Answer the five questions and hit Submit
Portal answers are anonymous & ungraded
Why you should still learn to code
... even though AI can (sort of) do it for you
Coding builds core transferable skills
- teaches problem solving
- sharpens logic & structure
- trains you to check & debug
Why you should still learn to code
... even though AI can (sort of) do it for you
Coding builds core transferable skills
- teaches problem solving
- sharpens logic & structure
- trains you to check & debug
Coding makes you stand out
- signals technical fluency
- shows initiative & curiosity
- you will do more than peers who rely on AI
AI can't replace understanding
- AI guesses but you still need to judge
- bad code may still run
- without knowing the basics you can't fix errors
Why you should still learn to code
... even though AI can (sort of) do it for you
Coding builds core transferable skills
- teaches problem solving
- sharpens logic & structure
- trains you to check & debug
Coding makes you stand out
- signals technical fluency
- shows initiative & curiosity
- you will do more than peers who rely on AI
AI can't replace understanding
- AI guesses but you still need to judge
- bad code may still run
- without knowing the basics you can't fix errors
Python!
We'll use Python & Jupyter notebooks for our econometric data work
Python is...
one of the most popular programming languages
Python!
We'll use Python & Jupyter notebooks for our econometric data work
a free & open-source general-purpose programming language
used for
- AI
- scientific computing
- communication
- web development
- CGI and graphical user interfaces
- game development
- etc.
Python!
We'll use Python & Jupyter notebooks for our econometric data work
a free & open-source general-purpose programming language
used by
- Google
- OpenAI
- Netflix
- Meta
- Dropbox
- Amazon
- Reddit
- etc.
Jupyter notebooks
We'll use Python & Jupyter notebooks for our econometric data work
Jupyter notebooks: one of the many ways of interacting with Python
They let you use your browser to
- write & execute Python commands
- format output, including tables, figures, animations, etc.
- combine text, mathematical expressions, and code
Jupyter notebooks
We'll use Python & Jupyter notebooks for our econometric data work
Jupyter notebooks: one of the many ways of interacting with Python
Jupyter isn't the only way to code in Python, but it's GREAT for
- getting started coding in Python
- testing new ideas
- interacting with small pieces of code
- using online interactive environments such as Google Colab
- sharing / collaborating on research
We work in Colab
Everything in this unit runs in Google Colab,
in your browser
- nothing to install
- works on any machine you sit at
- your work saves to your Google Drive
Google Colab
Colab allows you to run Python (in a Jupyter notebook)
on a Google-provided remote cloud computer
Amazingly, this is free but it does require a Google account
One cool feature of this is that you can run it from your smartphone
Over to the notebook
Open this week's lecture notebook and follow along:
https://emiliatjernstrom.com/econ2041/lectures/w02
It will open directly in Colab
Click Copy to Drive first, so your edits save
-
How to open and run a Jupyter notebook
-
How to get Python to print something for you
-
How to use Python as a calculator
I hope you're excited about applying these skills
and building on them!
