Re: st: Query on -set seed-

[Richard Goldstein <richgold@ix.netcom.com>]

I'm confused -- what is illegal about this seed?  it is clearly much smaller 
than 2^31 -1

Rich

Roger Newson wrote:


> Fellow Statalisters (especially StataCorp):
>
> According to -[R] functions-, the -set seed- command can take any seed 
> from 0 to 2^31-1 inclusive, and, if I specify a seed with one of these 
> values in a do-file under -version- control and then use the -uniform()- 
> function, then the same result will be produced every time I execute 
> that do-file with the same input data. My query is, will this still be 
> the case if I set the seed to an even higher integer? I ask because, 
> last July, I inadvertently wrote a do-file containing the statements
>
> set seed 4753533809;
> gene double ranord2=uniform();
>
> and executed it on 15 July 2004 under Stata 8.2 under Windows 2000, 
> producing some random-looking results and no complaints about the 
> illegally high seed. However, when I re-executed the same do-file today 
> (7 September 2005) with the same input dataset under the Stata 8.2 
> update dated 10 January 2005, it produced a completely different set of 
> random-looking results, and still no complaints about the same illegally 
> high seed. Have there been any unpublicised revisions to -set seed- or 
> to -uniform()- affecting the response to an illegally high seed?
>
> Best wishes (and thanks in advance)
>
> Roger
>
>
> --
> Roger Newson
> Lecturer in Medical Statistics
> Department of Public Health Sciences
> King's College London
> 5th Floor, Capital House
> 42 Weston Street
> London SE1 3QD
> United Kingdom
>
> Tel: 020 7848 6648 International +44 20 7848 6648
> Fax: 020 7848 6620 International +44 20 7848 6620
>   or 020 7848 6605 International +44 20 7848 6605
> Email: roger.newson@kcl.ac.uk
> Website: http://phs.kcl.ac.uk/rogernewson/
>
> Opinions expressed are those of the author, not the institution.
>
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