Meeting Times, Location, & Course Delivery Details
This course will be taught as a face to face course.
Contact Information
Course Materials (provided by instructor)
Mathematical Statistics with Applications. 7th Edition, John Freund. 2004.
The course provides students an introduction to the basic concepts of probability. While emphasis is given to the derivation of formulas, practical methods and useful applications will be presented as possible. Probability is applicable to a broad spectrum of fields including but not limited to actuarial science, business, education, economics, engineering, decision analysis, life sciences, and social sciences. A scientific calculator will be required for this course.
This course will provide a theoretical background for statistics through an extensive review of probability topics and give an introduction to the basic concepts involved in analyzing sets of data derived from scientific experiments. Students discuss combinatorics and the classical definition of probability and then proceed to a more axiomatic approach to the subject. Discussions include the topics of sample spaces, events, conditional probability, random variables, probability distribution and density functions, mathematical expectations, moments and moment generating functions. The normal distribution and the central limit theorem are discussed in detail. Probability histograms, graphs and area beneath graphs are emphasized to provide an intuitive, geometrical understanding of the concepts. A rigorous treatment of sampling, estimation of population parameters, using appropriate distribution functions, hypothesis testing, correlation and regression and analysis of variance.
Topics to be covered include: various combinatorial methods; conditional probability; density functions; Chebyshev Theorem; moments; various distributions such as Bernoulli, Binomial, Geometric, Hypergeometric, and Poisson; and probability densities such as Uniform, Normal, Gamma, Exponential, Chi-Square, Beta, and Bivariate. We will cover the bulk of the first 6 chapters, and will proceed into additional materials as time permits.
Tentative Schedule
| Chapter 1 Homework |
| 5b, 11, 14, 16, 21, 24, 25, 27, 28, 37, 41-45 all, 50, 51 |
| Chapter 2 Homework |
| 1-5, 7, 9, 16, 35, 37, 41, 51-53 odd, 61, 63, 69, 72-74 all, 76, 79, 81, 88, 89, 93-99 odd, 107, 111-119 odd |
| Chapter 3 Homework |
| 2, 4a, 7, 9, 10-13 all, 16, 17, 19-21 all, 24, 25, 29-31 all, 37, 38, 41-45 all, 51, 56, 57, 65, 66, 69-73 all, 75, 77, 82, 83, 85, 86, 89, 91, 93, 101, 102, 105-108 all, 110 |
| Chapter 4 Homework |
| 6-15 all, 18-20 all, 22, 24, 33, 35, 41, 42, 44, 45, 48, 50, 53, 60-66 all, 69-71 all, 73-80 all, 83 |
| Chapter 5 Homework |
| 40-43 all, 47, 51, 57, 59a, 61, 63, 67-69 all, 75, 80 |
| Chapter 6 Homework |
| 51, 53, 57, 59, 63-67 odd, 71-79 odd |
Subject to change during the semester. Adequate notice of changes will be given.
Assignments will include some in class activities as well as homework problems. Quizzes and exams will also be administered throughout the term.
HOMEWORK POLICY: “It is imperative to practice in order to get better.” “Repetition is the mother of learning.” As a result, I assign quite a bit of homework for practice and repetition. I also take quite a bit of class time to go over homework problems with which students struggled.
PHILOSOPHY
I assign quite a bit of homework. It is my strong belief that practice at any particular thing is necessary to improve one’s skills. As a result, many homework problems help you to practice and improve your algebra skills. Your homework is 10% of your total grade, but it should be the easiest 10%. If you make a real effort at the homework, I will give you full credit irrespective of whether your answer is 100% correct. That being said, a “real effort” is not considered to copy down the answers for the odd numbered problems in the back of the book. Nor is it considered a “real effort” to do the homework well after it is due. Each homework assignment is a tool to 1) generate in-class questions for the next class period and 2) to give you practice on problems before the next test.
LENGTH OF ASSIGNMENTS
I expect you to get practice, I do not expect you to pound your head against the wall. Only work on each assignment for a maximum of 4 hours. If it is taking you longer than that, either I made too long an assignment, or you do not “get it” and you aren’t getting good practice anyway. Bring your questions to me either in my office or in class. Believe me, you will not be the only one with questions. STOP AFTER FOUR HOURS. Write on your homework paper that you worked for four hours and only got so far. I will be able to tell if you really worked hard or not.
HOMEWORK ASSESSMENT
I will expect each of you to keep your homework assignments organized in a notebook. I do not care if it is a simple spiral notebook, a three ring binder, or something else. I will collect this homework notebook each time that I give a test or quiz. I will then evaluate the work that is done up to that point, and you will be graded accordingly. I will not accept the notebook any later than the day the test is scheduled without a doctor’s note. I will expect all work to be shown for each problem.
The grading scale will be as follows:
EVALUATION: GRADING SCALE:
Quizzes 40% A 93-100% A- 90-92% B+ 87-89%
Exams 30% B 83-86% B- 80-82% C+ 77-79%
Final Exam 15% C 73-76% C- 70-72% D+ 67-69%
Homework 15% D 60-66% F < 60%
Instructor Course Policies
More than three unexcused absences will significantly lower your grade. Of course, if you miss many classes, your grade will already be lower naturally. In the case of excused absence, the student is responsible for calling or emailing the professor ahead of the class they expect to miss and is also responsible for obtaining a note from a professional documenting the reason for absence and the dates. See the current Student Handbook for the college Attendance Policy especially as it pertains to excused absences.
On quizzes and exams, students must show their work in order to receive full credit. If calculators are used extensively, then the student should express in words the process that they are performing with their calculators. Any instance of cheating will result in a zero for the assignment, may result in an “F” grade for the course, and could result in referral for judicial review. See the current Student Handbook for the college’s Academic Integrity policies as they pertain to examinations, plagiarism, classroom behavior, and the process for handling academic misconduct charges. Cell Phone use in the classroom, including texting, is prohibited. Each instance of texting detected by the instructor during the course of class time will result in an immediate pop quiz for the entire class over the day’s material. Such quizzes may recur as often as ten times in one class period.
Institutional and Program-Level Policies
All exams will follow the Final Exam Schedule. Students scheduled to take three or more final examinations on one day may request to arrange their examination schedule, so no more than two exams occur on one day.
Requests for early or late exams are considered only under extreme circumstances. Prior to the exam period, the student must file a written request on the Early/Late Exam Form available in the Student One Stop Center, Academic Records, and on the WC portal. The form must be signed by the Instructor and the Academic Dean, approving the alternate exam time. This process must be completed prior to the scheduled exam period.
Undergraduate: FA26 Final Exam Schedule
Out-of-class Work Expectation A minimum of 2 hours of out-of-class student work is expected for each hour of in-class time for traditional face-to-face courses. For online and hybrid courses, the combination of face-to-face time and out-of-class work should be equal to 3 hours per credit hour per week. |
Instructional Course Delivery Definition of Courses |
Academic Integrity Policy The use of generative AI is prohibited except where expressly allowed in assignment instructions. Academic Integrity Policy |
Class Attendance Policy Institutional Class Attendance Policy |