今天下午1：00是新学期CREDIT的第一次Seminar，我以为是CEDEX，虽然与我的专业不是很相关，但想起导师建议哪怕专业不相近也可以积极参与，一方面学习表达presentation skill ，一方面学习方法的应用，这是不分专业的。感觉收获很大，上星期Applied Microeconometrics的instrumental variables方法应用恰好得到了体现。这篇文章主要是希望研究冲突（conflict)与经济发展（economic development)之间的关系。使用的是Rwanda的数据，与以往使用宏观数据从convergence角度出发的文献不同的是，作者利用了微观数据来研究。可惜没有找到原文，可能尚属于working paper阶段，没有正式发表。作者的robustness检验相当丰富，值得学习。

How does conflict affect economic performance. Micro evidence  from Rwanda

Pieter Serneels, University of East Anglia and Marijke Verpoorten, K.University Leuven 

Abstract: Important gaps remain in the understanding of the economic consequences of civil war. Focusing on the conflict in Rwanda in the early 90s, and using micro data to carry out econometric analysis, this paper finds that households and localities that experienced more intense conflict are behind in terms of consumption six years after the conflict, a finding that is robust to taking into account the endogeneity of violence. Significantly different returns to land and labour are observed between zones that experienced low and high intensity conflict which is consistent with on-going recovery. Distinguishing between civil war and genocide, the findings also provide evidence that these returns, and by implication the process of recovery, depend on the form of violence.  

另外一点收获发现这个seminar一直都是提供午餐的，倒是便宜了我。大家边听workshop，边品尝食物倒也显得自然。忽然之间明白了为什么在英国午餐会显得比较随意，而且大多是冷盘，只有drinks是热的。一方面可以节省时间，另一方向冷食不会散发出香味，不会影响周围的人。这也是为什么在图书馆的silent zone，热食是被禁止带入的。