Instructor: Dr. Beth Chance

Class Times: MWF 9:30-10:50 (Sec. 1), CR 122

Thursday Lab Times CR 102: (You must be in a Thursday lab).

Lab 1: 8:30-9:30 Lab 2: 9:45-10:45 Lab 3: 11:00-12:00

Office: CR 103 D Ext: 3030 Email: bchance@uop.edu

Office Hours: MF 12:30-2, W 11-12:30, MW 3:30-4:30, Th 1-3,

F 8:30-9:30, any time my office door is open, or by appointment

Course Website: http://www.uop.edu/cop/math/math37.html

Course Listserv: math37@vms1.cc.uop.edu (non-Groupwise users)

in: math37@vms1.cc.uop.edu (Groupwise users)

Prerequisite: Math 5 or appropriate score on intermediate algebra placement test. See instructor if you have not filled this prerequisite.

Texts: Introduction to the Practice of Statistics.

Moore, D.S. & McCabe, G.P. 3rd edition; 1998.

Lab Manual for Math 37

Available from instructor.

You should also have a 3 1/2" disk, a scientific calculator (TI-83 recommended), an email address, and a three ring binder. There will be large amounts of lecture handouts. Handouts from previous lectures will be available outside my office door and on the course web page. These handouts are intended to be an outline of material discussed, to be supplemented during lecture.

Course Objective: To gain an understanding of statistical principles and their uses. We will learn how to collect data, summarize data, examine data for patterns and relationships, and analyze data so we can draw conclusions. We will also learn to interpret and judge statistical information, including information embedded in computer output.

Statistical Package: We will be using the Minitab software package for data analysis. The Lab Manual includes descriptions of how to use Minitab and Microsoft Word as needed for this course. You are also encouraged to use a scientific calculator. Please see me or ask through the listserv if you aren't familiar with the statistical options on your calculator.

Homeworks: Homework is to be handed in at the beginning of the class period. You are encouraged to work together on assignments but must hand in your own work. Sample problems will be reviewed the class period before the homework is due. Students will be selected randomly to present their solution attempt. Students are also encouraged to ask questions about the homework at this time. See Guidelines for Homeworks for more description. Graded homeworks will be returned in class. Past assignments can be found in a box outside my office (DO NOT put ungraded work here!). Your homework grade will be based on your 10 best assignments and an "Extensions" grade which counts as one homework.

Extensions assignment: This will be worth one homework assignment. There are several ways to increase your Extensions grade such as: submitting good questions to the listserv (you are required to submit at least one), submitting reviews of uses of statistics from outside the course that you find interesting (like HW 1), making a reasonable attempt at the practice assignment problem when you are selected, reviewing selected talks on campus. I will periodically offer suggestions for outside applications possibilities.

Lab Assignments: There will be a series of lab assignments taken from the Lab Manual. You are encouraged to work in pairs for these assignments. Some of the lab assignments will require you to answer questions, the rest will require more formal writeups. See Guidelines for Full Lab Assignments in the Appendix of the Lab Manual for a description. Note, the purpose of the lab hour is to get you started on the lab and give you the opportunity to ask questions of the instructor. You should preview the labs ahead of time and will need to complete many of the labs outside of the lab hour.

Quizzes and Exams: There will be approximately 8 quizzes during the semester. Tentative dates are listed in the schedule. The two lowest quiz grades will be dropped. There will be two in class midterm exams and one comprehensive final (two parts). Graded quizzes will be returned in class or can be picked up from the instructor.

Make-up Policy: Make-up oral exams will be given to students who notify me (with appropriate proof) at least two days before the exam of their unavoidable absence. No quiz make-ups.

Term Project: There will be group projects due at the end of the semester. See accompanying details.

Grading:

Homework - 15%

Lab Assignments - 15%

Quizzes - 10%

Midterms - 30% (15% each)

Final - 15%

Term Project - 15%

Extra Credit: The text Statistics: A Guide to the Unknown will be placed on reserve in the library. This book contains numerous illustrations of applications of statistics and each chapter has a few questions at the end. You may turn in up to 2 chapter write-ups (longer chapters and questions sets will receive slightly more credit). These write-ups must be received by May 8.

Also on Reserve: There is a collection of tapes, entitled Against All Odds: Inside Statistics on reserve. Each 30 minute tape contains supplemental material and may be helpful if you miss the lectures on a certain topic.

Honor Code: The University Honor Code is an essential element in academic integrity. It is a violation of the Honor code to give or receive information from another students during an examination, to use unauthorized sources during an examination, or to submit all or part of someone else's work or ideas as one's own. If a student violates the honor code, the faculty member may refer the matter to the Office of Student Life. If found guilty, the student may be penalized with failure of the assignment or failure of the course. The student may also be reprimanded or suspended from the University.

A complete statement of the Honor code may be found in the Student Handbook, Tiger Lore.

1. Ask Questions!

2. Use the book, lecture material, lab material, and class discussion.

3. Continually review the material throughout the semester.

4. Ask questions of me and other students.

5. Practice the material in new situations.

6. Review the reading before lecture and then ask questions in class.

7. Start the homeworks early.

8. Additional tutorial help is available from Supportive Services and the Mathematics Resource Center.

9. Come to office hours and review sessions.

10. Be responsible for your own learning.

Course Outline: We can think of most statistical analyses as following these basic steps:

I. Collect Data (Sample)

- What do I want the data to tell me (Experimental Design)?

- How do I collect the data (Randomization, Survey Sampling)?

- Why these data, what do they represent?

- What type of variables (categorical, continuous)?

II. Describe and Summarize the Data

- What is the most effective summary?

- What are the visual relationships (graphs, plots)?

- What are the numerical characteristics (mean, quartiles, SD)?

- How does the data compare to other models?

- How are two "data sets" related (correlation)?

III. Model the Data

- Does the data follow any common patterns?

- Can we fit known models to the data (normality, regression)?

IV. Analyze the Data

- Estimation of population values

- Inference about characteristics of the pop, based on sample

- How "good" is the inference (Confidence)?

- Check Assumptions!

IV. Make conclusions/suggestions

- What did you learn about the data?

- What does my data tell me/management?

- How much can I generalize?

- What new questions have the data raised?

- What would you do differently next time?

Important Dates: Feb. 3: Last day to add; March 8: Last day to drop.

Fold your assignments in half lengthwise and include your name, section number, and assignment number on the outside. Your work is easier to grade if you write on only one side of each page. To ensure no pages are lost, you are required to staple all pages together. Include summary of the problem statement before each solution to aid later review. Your writing should be legible and your spelling and grammar should be correct.

Late homeworks will NOT be accepted, but I will review previous assignments with you if you complete them after the deadline. You will be allowed to drop two homework scores. You are advised not to use these up too early in the semester.

You are encouraged to work with other students in the course on the homework assignments, but the work you turn in must be your own. If you receive a large amount of information from another source, e.g. me, another student, another book etc., you must state the reference in your write-up. If I determine two assignments are too similar, neither student will receive credit.

The main requirement for all problems is that you EXPLAIN your answers. Often, questions may have more than one correct answer so several answers will be accepted as long as they are JUSTIFIED. You should also state any ASSUMPTIONS that you make. Soon you will be explaining your results to managers and people outside your research field, so you need to get used to explaining and backing up the numbers in English! You'll also be given partial credit for your work, so it is important to at least attempt each problem.

Since you have one week to complete each homework assignment, this allows you to start the problems early, see how lecture material ties in to the problems, and bring questions to class and/or the listserv early in the week if you are stuck.