E28 - Setting up a research project folder with Julian Reif

The Hidden Curriculum

In this episode, we talk with Julian Reif about setting up a research project folder for best replications purposes. Julian is an Assistant Professor of Finance and Economics at the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois. He is also a Senior Scholar at the Institute of Government and Public Affairs and a Faculty Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research. His research focuses on health policy evaluation and the value of health and longevity. Professor Reif received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago and his BA from Vanderbilt University.

In this episode, we go over how to set up a research project folder structure. We follow the guide that Julian has on his page. [https://julianreif.com/guide/#folder-structure]. This is a great guide to follow for structuring all your projects. I usually have an "empty" project folder, and every time I start a new project, I copy and rename that folder for my new project.

We also have a companion video tutorial on how to do this, in which you can follow step-by-step how to do it. [https://youtu.be/KUtxJyauQ-o]

Sebastian Tello-Trillo is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Economics at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy at the University of Virginia.

Alex Hollingsworth is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University.

During the episode, we talk about Julian's paper on teenage driving and mortality risk. You can find that paper here https://julianreif.com/research/reif.wp.driving.pdf

Recommendations of the week

Julian's recommendation of the week is to listen to a podcast while you exercise! His two recommendations are (1) Conversations with Tyler and (2) Mindscape. https://conversationswithtyler.com and https://www.mindescapepodcast.com

Alex’s tip of the week is to use code snippets when writing in latex and sublime text. Basically ways of automating annoying tasks. You can check out examples here: http://www.peterhaschke.com/workflow/2013/05/08/SLT2-Snippet.htmlFor example, you can type `fig` then hit tab and all the code to create a figure with a centered graphic will replace the `fig` text you typed, with your cursor in the place to add the appropriate file path.

Sebastian's recommendation of the week is to use the text-replacement app Autohotkey. This app allows you to map any keyboard combination to an action or other words. For example, I type "-zoom" for my personal zoom link, and my zoom link appears. https://www.autohotkey.com