Probability and Statistics
(MATH 1530) - Spring 2009

COURSE: MATH 1530-017
CALL #10355
TIME AND PLACE: 2:15-3:35 T in Gilbreath 306 ("The Stat Cave") and 2:15-3:35 R in Gilbreath 304 ("The Mansion")
INSTRUCTORS: Dr. Bob Gardner and Dr. Robert Davidson
OFFICES: Room 308F of Gilbreath Hall (Gardner) and Room 308C of Gilbreath Hall (Davidson)
OFFICE HOURS: 1:45-2:15 & 3:35-4:05 TR (Gardner), 3:35-4:35 TR (Davidson)
PHONE: 439-6979 (Gardner), 439-6690 (Davidson), Math Department Office: 439-4349
E-MAILS: gardnerr@etsu.edu (Gardner), davidson@etsu.edu (Davidson)
WEBPAGE FOR GARDNER: See Gardner's webpage for a copy of this course syllabus, copies of the classnotes in PDF form, and updates for the course: http://www.etsu.edu/math/gardner/gardner.htm.

Primary Resources and Details

WEBPAGES FOR THIS CLASS: A copy of this syllabus is posted online at:

http://www.etsu.edu/math/gardner/1530/sillspr09.htm.
Updates to the class will be posted on the webpage. A webpage with links to online resources relevant to our class is available at:
http://www.etsu.edu/math/gardner/1530/online.htm.

MATH 1530 RESOURCE PAGE: This webpage includes departmental policies, objectives for each chapter, and links to data files, Applets, worksheets, and other online resources:
http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/1530link.htm.

TEXT: Basic Practice of Statistics, 4th edition, by David S. Moore, W. H. Freeman and Company. You may either use the "East Tennessee State University Custom Edition" or the standard edition. (WARNING: The 5th edition is in print and will be in use soon.) READ THE BOOK!!! ... READ THE DAMN BOOK!!!! ... READ THE @#$&*@%* BOOK!!!!!!!!!! This is not a standard math class with definitions, theorems, and computations. It involves some difficult ideas that are discussed and illustrated though numerous (and sometimes lengthy) written descriptions. Simply flipping to the exercises and trying to solve them will not work.

Standard Edition

ETSU Custom Edition

OPTIONAL SUPPLEMENT: Study Guide for Moore's The Basic Practice of Statistics, 4th edition, by Michael A. Fligner and William I. Notz, W. H. Freeman and Company. Quoting from the back cover: "[This] will help you sharpen the analytical an problem-solving skills you will need to review material from the text and prepare for quizzes and exams. ... the Study Guide provides step-by-step solutions to selected text exercises along with summaries of the key concepts needed to solve the problems. Each chapter begins with an overview of each section's basic concepts, followed by guided solutions to selected problems in that section. These solutions provide hints for setting up and thinking about each exercise and explain both how the answer was reached and why it was done that way."
SAMPLE FINALS: The MATH 1530 Resource Page contains links to old copies of the departmental final:
  1. Spring 2007
    Test: http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/FinalSpring07A.PDF
    Solutions: http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/spring07solution.txt
  2. Fall 2007
    Test: http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/FinalFall07A.PDF
    Solutions: http://faculty.etsu.edu/pricejr/Math1530/final_exams/fall07solution2.txt
  3. Spring 2008
    Test: http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/Spring08A.PDF
    Solutions: http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/Spring08AFinalSolution.txt
  4. Fall 2008
    Test: http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/Fall08A.pdf
    Solutions: http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/Fall08AFinalSolution.txt

ONLINE CLASS NOTES: Class notes will be given primarily in the form of overheads. Definitions, notes, examples, and graphs will be included on the overheads. Most examples and questions concerning homework problems will be written on the board. Links to copies of the overheads are online at:
http://www.etsu.edu/math/gardner/1530/notes.htm.
It is strongly recommended that you get copies of the overheads before the material is covered in class. This will save you from writing down most notes in class and you can concentrate on listening and supplementing the notes with comments which you find relevant. The following notes are from chapters which have been significantly revised from the originally posted versions:
PREREQUISITES: As the ETSU catalog states, the prerequisite for this class is two years of high school algebra. You must be familiar with elementary algebraic manipulations and the graphing and equations of lines. If your background on these topics is weak, you should consider taking a college-level algebra course first.
CALCULATORS: You will need a basic calculator that takes square roots.

Grading and Tests

GRADING: There are a possible 1,000 points in this class, plus up to 50 bonus points for good attendance. The 1,000 points are distributed as follows:

Assignment
Points
Actual Points
Exam 1
250
266
Exam 2
250
266
Daily Quizzes
100
106
Worksheets
100
105
Practice Quizzes
50
51
Departmental Final
250
265
TOTAL
1,000
1059
Details on the individual components are given below. Homework will be assigned on an almost daily basis, but will not be collected or graded. The homework is intended to help you learn the topic at hand so that you can work similar problems on the exams and final. By departmental decree, the grading scale is as follows:
Total Points Grade
950-1050
A
900-949
A-
880-899
B+
820-879
B
800-819
B-
780-799
C+
720-779
C
700-719
C-
650-699
D+
600-649
D
0-599
F

EXAMS 1 AND 2: There will be two major in-class exams. Each will count 250 points, or 25% of your final grade. Copies of the exams along with solutions will be posted online so that you can study them as additional preparation for the departmental final:
Exam 1: Test and Solutions. Exam 2: Test and Solutions.

DAILY QUIZZES: Every non-test day (starting the second class day), you will be given a brief quiz consisting of, on average, two multiple choice questions. Each question will be worth 2 points. These quizzes will also be used to determine your presence or absence, according to the policy stated below in "Bonus for Good Attendance." Here are copies of the Daily Quizzes:
1/15
Reply to Dr. Bob's E-Mail (2 points)
 3/12
Spring Break
1/20
Snow Day
3/17
Quiz 3/17 (4 points)
1/22
Quiz 1/22 (4 points)
3/19
Quiz 3/19 (6 points)
1/27
Quiz 1/27 (4 points)
3/24
Quiz 3/24 (4 points)
1/29
Quiz 1/29 (4 points)
3/26
Exam 2
2/3
Quiz 2/3 (4 points)
3/31
Quiz 3/31 (4 points)
2/5
Quiz 2/5 (4 points)
4/2
Quiz 4/2 (4 points)
2/10
Quiz 2/10 (4 points)
4/7
Quiz 4/7 (4 points)
2/12
Quiz 2/12 (4 points)
4/9
Quiz 4/9 (4 points)
2/17
Quiz 2/17 (4 points)
4/14
Quiz 4/14 (4 points)
2/19
Exam 1
 4/16
Quiz 4/16 (4 points)
2/24
Quiz 2/24 (a survey, 6 points)
Results of the survey
4/21
Quiz 4/21 (4 points)
2/26
Quiz 2/26 (4 points)
4/23
Quiz 4/23 (4 points)
3/3
Quiz 3/3 (4 points)
4/28
Quiz 4/28 (4 points)
3/5
Attendance taken by turning in Worksheet #3 (4 points)
4/30
Attendance taken by turning in Worksheet #7 (4 points)
3/10
Spring Break
5/2
Final

WORKSHEETS: You will be given (through Desire2Learn, "D2L") about 8 worksheets prepared in Word. These sheets will often include data which you will need to enter into Minitab. The worksheets may require you to paste Minitab output into the Word document. You will be asked to interpret the results of the statistical test and explain your reasoning (in complete sentences, of course). Some of these worksheets will involve data from the films of the Three Stooges and may require you to watch segments of the Stooges films on YouTube in order to gather your own data. The worksheets are all available as Word documents. After the due date, solutions will be posted. Printed copies of the completed worksheets are due on the following dates:
#
Worksheet Title
Due Date
Solution
1
Pie Charts and Bar Charts on Directors of Three Stooges Films
February 3
"Pie Charts and Bar Charts" Solutions
2
Basic Statistics for the Number of Slaps per Film in the Three Stooges’ Works
February 12
"Basic Statistics for Slaps per Film" Solutions
3
Two-Way Tables from Slaps per Film in the Three Stooges’ Works
March 5
"Two-Way Tables from Slaps per Film" Solutions
4
Data Collection from Three Stooges Films
March 26
"Data Collection" Solutions
5
Confidence Intervals from Three Stooges Data
April 9
"Confidence Intervals" Solutions
6
Hypothesis Testing Illustrated with Three Stooges Data
April 23
"Hypothesis Testing" Solutions
7
Proportions Test with Three Stooges Data
April 30
"Proportions Test" Solutions

PRACTICE QUIZZES: A quiz for each chapter will be available on D2L. There is no time limit and unlimited attempts to complete these quizzes is allowed, but you must get at least 75% of the questions correct on a chapter quiz to get full credit (3 points) on that quiz. All quiz solutions must be submitted by Saturday, May 2, 2009 at 12:00 p.m. (this is 1 hour before the departmental final starts). These quizzes can be accessed through the D2L site by clicking on the "Assessments" tab. For practice, there are also online quizzes available from the publisher of the text - see "Text Website" below.
HOMEWORK: There is a homework assignment for every chapter we cover. These are the problems that the Math Department recommends you do. Homework will not be collected nor graded and hence does not directly affect your grade. However, the only way to understand the material is to work with it! The questions on the exams and final will be very similar to the homework questions. Do the homework assignments and ask questions about it during class!!!!
BONUS FOR GOOD ATTENDANCE: You may receive a bonus for good attendance! We will start taking attendance on the third day of classes (January 22, 2009). We will take attendance based on your completion of the Daily Quizzes mentioned above. Hence your presence or absence will be determined by your completion of the daily quiz. If you are not present for that part of class, you will be counted as absent. An absence can only be "excused" by presenting the instructors with an official ETSU Class Absence Authorization For Student Participation In A University-Sponsored Activity prior to the occurrence of the absence. No other types of absences will be excused even it you have an impeccable reason for not being in class. We interpret the number of absences recorded for a student as an indication of the amount of lecture material missed during the semester, not as a critical judgment of that students character, motivation and honesty. Bonus points will be awarded in the following manner:
Number of Absences
Bonus Points
5
0
4
10
3
20
2
30
1
40
0
50

DEPARTMENTAL ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS: The Department of Mathematics strongly advises students to attend all mathematics classes when physically able. Because there is a positive correlation between attendance and student success in mathematics, the following attendance guidelines will be used in all mathematics courses. Regardless of the reasons for the absences, should a student exceed 5 absences, the instructor has the authority to assign a grade of FN or W; this policy takes precedence over the grade assignment policy for MATH 1530.
THE FINAL: All MATH 1530 students take the departmental final at the same time. A study guide for the final is posted online at:
http://www.etsu.edu/math/price/1530/studyguide.doc.
The department has a very regimented procedure for the final:
  1. The examination will be given on Saturday, May 2, 2009 (in Gilbreath Hall, room 314). The exam will begin promptly at 1:00 p.m. All papers must be turned in by 3:30 p.m.
  2. A card containing the statistical tables and formulae will be provided for the examination. Please do not write on this card and return the card when you return other test materials.
  3. Any type battery powered calculator may be used. Students may not share calculators during examination. Calculator instructional materials may not be used.
  4. No paper other than what is provided is allowed.
  5. Students must show official ETSU student ID to instructor and/or proctor at examination. Students not having an official ETSU ID will nto be permitted to take the exam.
  6. Students must have a sufficient supply of #2 pencils for marking the scantron answer sheet.
  7. Instructors will not interpret questions on examination or discuss course content during exam.
  8. Students must turn in tests, tables, scratch paper and scantron sheets before leaving room.
  9. Information needed on scantron: Name, color of test, instructor, and section umber.
  10. Caps or hats may not be worn while taking exam.
  11. Please do not congregate near exits following exam.
  12. Recent final exams (with answers) on on the Math 1530 Resources Page.
  13. If you make less than 40% on the final, you will automatically receive a semester grade of F!
The departmental final will be modeled after the Fall 2008 final. Therefore, one of your primary study aids should be this old final:
Copy of the Fall 2008 final in PDF.
Solutions to the Fall 2008 final.
You will be given a handout with tables and formulas (a "blue card"). A copy is available on the BPS website at: Tables and Formulas for Moore.

Other Resources to Help You

MATH LAB: The Mathematics Laboratory is located in Room 309 of Warf-Pickle Hall. It is staffed by graduate students and upper level undergraduates. They are there to help you! Hours of operation are (tentatively) Monday-Thursday 11:00-7:00, Sunday 1:00-5:00. The phone number is 439-7611. The Math Hotline is 439-7887 (for short questions). Your precious tuition dollars help fund the Math Lab, so take advantage of it. If you find that you are having trouble in this class, then you should make yourself a "frequent flyer" at the Math Lab!
STATISTICS HELP SESSIONS: Help sessions will be conducted in the "Stat Cave" (Gilbreath 306) by Math Department graduate assistants. The help sessions are scheduled for 4:00-7:00 pm on Tuesdays (Anna Davis) and Wednesdays (Romual Tchouta), and 9:00 am to noon on Fridays (Romual Tchouta). Since these sessions are being held in the Stat Cave, you can get help on homework problems as well as the use of Minitab.
STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES: Student Support Services provides free individual tutoring to qualified individuals through their NEXUS program. The criteria state that the student must be: (1) a first-Generation College student, meaning, neither of your natural parents has completed a four-year college degree, (2) income eligible, or (3) a student with a documented disability. For more details, see:

http://www.etsu.edu/sss/.

OTHER FREE ON-CAMPUS TUTORING: University Tutoring Services,
http://www.etsu.edu/scs/uts/AboutUTS.asp,
provides both online tutoring (through D2L) and on campus group tutoring. For the online tutoring, you need to enroll in the D2L site and instructions can be found at
http://www.etsu.edu/scs/uts/OnlineTutoring/.
Details on group tutoring, including time and location, are available at
http://www.etsu.edu/scs/uts/GroupTutoring/.
The current (1/15/2009) schedule is: Wednesday & Thursday in Rogers-Stout Room 125 from 3:30pm to 4:30pm. (first session on Wednesday, January 21).
TUTORS FOR HIRE: University Tutoring Service also provides an online tutor referral service. The sight allows you to contact potential tutors for one-on-one fee-based tutoring
http://www.etsu.edu/scs/uts/TutorReferralPost.asp.

TEXT WEBSITE AND CD-ROM: W.H. Freeman and company provides a website for The Basic Practice of Statistics:
http://bcs.whfreeman.com/bps4e/.
Initially, you will need to create a password to login. This site gives you access to Applets, online quizzes (this is good practice), and the software CrunchIt!, which is similar to Minitab. The website also has data sets, tables and formulae, and more exercises. This same information is available on the CD in the back of the text.
DESIRE2LEARN (D2L): "Desire2Learn," or simply "D2L," is the software currently used by ETSU to make materials available to students online. The daily quizzes, worksheets, and practice quizzes mentioned above will be made available on the D2L site. We have also created an extensive discussion list on the Desire2Learn ("elearn") website. There is a discussion forum for each section of the book, and for each test. You may discuss problems among yourselves through the discussion forum. We will monitor this and give input as we see necessary. You can log in at: http://elearn.etsu.edu/. Use the same username and password you use for your university e-mail.
COMPUTER LABS: We will make extensive use of the 50 computers in the Stat Cave (Gilbreath Hall, room 306) during our Tuesday class meetings. Outside of class, you have access to university computers in two computer labs. The D. P. Culp Lab is located on the first floor of the Culp Center, near the post office. It has 92 PCs, 5 Macs, and 2 black and white network laser printers. The Sherrod Library Computer Lab is on the first floor of the library at the reference area. It has 26 PCs, 12 Macs, 24 laptops for use in the library, 2 black and white network laser printers, and a color inkjet printer. You can find hours for both labs at
http://www.etsu.edu/oit/computing/labs/default.asp.
ETSU has a site license for for Minitab and it is available on all university computers. Each university computer also has the Microsoft Office software which includes Word and Excel. Though we will not use it, the software "Statistical Package for the Social Sciences," or SPSS, and "Statistical Analysis System," "SAS," are also on most university computers.
SYLLABUS ATTACHMENT: You can find an on-line version of the university's syllabus attachment (which contains general information concerning advisement, honor codes, dropping, etc.) at:
http://www.etsu.edu/reg/academics/syllabus.aspx (website)
http://www.etsu.edu/reg/documents/PDF/SYLLABUS_ATTACHMENT_spring_2009.pdf (PDF)

Additional Information

NOTE: The text defines statistics as "the science of data" (page 3). More specifically, we want to take data (sometimes, we will even collect data ourselves) and put it in a form which is easier to understand than the simple "raw data." We will represent the data graphically and also use certain numbers to reveal properties of the data. We will discuss sampling populations and make inferences about a population based on a sample. Probability is used in the level of confidence we can put in these inferences. The ideas presented in this class will be the foundation on which any other statistics class you may take if you are majoring in criminal justice/criminology, psychology, sociology, education, business, biology, public health, ...
USE OF THREE STOOGES FILMS AS A SOURCE OF DATA: This class will take a novel approach to illustrating many of the ideas illustrated in the text: Data based on the films of the Three Stooges will be used in examples and exercises! We know that many of you may be anxious about this class. Studies have indicated that the use of popular culture in the classroom can help alleviate some of this anxiety. In addition, you will have the opportunity to actually gather your own data! This is rare in this level of class and will expose you to an experience beyond just dealing with "canned data" presented in the text or in a data file. However, do not think that this class will be any easier than any of the other sections of Probability and Statistics... nor will this class be any harder. We will still cover many of the standard examples from the text and all of the homework assignments are from the text. Though this class will be no easier or harder than the other sections, we do expect it to be more fun! Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk!!!
STUDENT SUCCESS: The Math Department makes the following suggestions for success:

We would add one more suggestion: READ THE BOOK!!!!! (RTB)
IN-CLASS BEHAVIOR: It is important for one to stay focused in this class. This class is not for spectators. Statistics is not a spectator sport. One must get involved by coming to class and doing homework. In order not to be a spectator remember the following No-Nos: (1) Text messaging, (2) Surfing the web or playing around online, (3) Laying your head down and going to sleep, (4) Constantly being late, (5) Talking during lectures, (6) Text messaging, (7) Doing other homework in class, (8) Talking during the lecture, (9) Bringing a meal into class and eating it, (10) Using cell phones as a conversation piece or as a calculator, (11) Cheating of any kind, and (12) TEXTING IN CLASS.
IMPORTANT DATES:

Course Outline

Date
Topic
Homework
1/15
Syllabus, Intro to the Three Stooges
Chapter 1 - Picturing Distributions with Graphs
1: 1, 2, 3-9, 11-22, 24, 26, 32-34, 37, 44
Reply to the e-mail from Gardner (2 "Daily Quiz" points)
1/20
Snow Day/Inauguration Day - No Class
-
1/22
Chapter 1 (cont.) and Chapter 2 - Describing Distributions with Numbers
2: 1-5, 8, 10-22, 25, 26, 30-32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 44, 46
Stooge Directors Worksheet (Printed Copy Due 2/3)
You are now ready to take the Chapter 1 Practice Quiz
1/27
Chapter 2 (cont.)
Substitute Lecturer: John Hicks
-
1/29
Chapter 2 (cont.) and Chapter 3 - The Normal Distribution
3: 1, 2, 4-8, 14-24, 27-29, 32-43, 48, 50, 52
You are now ready to take the Chapter 2 Practice Quiz
2/3
Chapter 3 (cont.)
-
2/5
Chapter 3 (cont.)
Basic Statistics for the Number of Slaps per Film in the Three Stooges’ Works (Printed Copy Due 2/12)
You are now ready to take the Chapter 3 Practice Quiz
2/10
Chapter 4 - Scatterplots and Correlation
4: 1-9, 11-21, 23, 25, 28-30, 33, 35-37, 40
You are now ready to take the Chapter 4 Practice Quiz
2/12
Chapter 5 - Regression
5: 1-3, 5, 9, 11, 14-23, 24, 28, 32, 34, 36, 38, 41, 42, 44, 47, 50, 54, 55
You are now ready to take the Chapter 5 Practice Quiz
2/17
Review for Exam 1
-
2/19
Exam 1
Two-Way Tables from Slaps per Film (Printed Copy Due 3/5)
2/24
6 - Two-Way Tables
6: 1-3, 5, 7-18, 24, 28, 30, 31
You are now ready to take the Chapter 6 Practice Quiz
2/26
Chapter 8 - Producing Data: Sampling
8: 1-5, 7, 8, 14-26, 31, 32, 37, 39, 46, 50
You are now ready to take the Chapter 8 Practice Quiz
3/3
Chapter 9 - Producing Data: Experiments
9: 1-4, 9, 10, 12, 13, 16-26, 36, 39, 41, 45, 47
You are now ready to take the Chapter 9 Practice Quiz
3/5
Chapter 9 (cont.)
Chapter 10 - Introducing Probability

10: 4, 5, 8-13, 15-17, 19-28, 31, 39, 40, 43, 44, 46, 49, 51, 53
You are now ready to take the Chapter 10 Practice Quiz
3/10
Spring Break
-
3/12
Spring Break
-
3/17
Chapter 12 - General Rules for Probability
12: 5, 6, 14, 16, 20-23, 37, 41, 42, 52-55
Notice that there is no Chapter 12 Practice Quiz
3/19
Chapter 12 (cont.), Chapter 13 - Binomial Distribution
13: 1-9, 12-22, 25, 28, 30-32, 36
Data Collection from Three Stooges Films (Printed Copy Due 3/26)
3/24
Chapter 13 (cont.), Review for Exam 2
-
3/26
Exam 2
-
3/31
Chapter 11 - Sampling Distributions
11: 1-3, 5, 7-13, 17-24, 26, 31-34, 36, 38, 41, 42
Confidence Intervals from Three Stooges Data (Printed Copy Due 4/9)
4/2
Chapter 11 (continued)
Chapter 14 - Confidence Intervals: The Basics
14: 1-3, 6-20, 25, 27, 29-32, 34, 38
Check out Bob Cox's "YesterYear" column in the April 6 Johnson City Press!
4/7
Chapter 14 (cont.) Chapter 15 - Tests of Significance: The Basics
15: 1-5, 7, 9, 10-17, 19, 23-37, 39, 40, 44, 45, 48, 52, 53, 55
4/9
Chapter 15 (cont.)
-
4/14
16. Inference in Practice
16: 1-6, 8, 9, 14, 15, 19-27, 31, 32, 34ab, 35, 36, 38, 41, 42, 45
Hypothesis Testing Illustrated with Three Stooges Data (Printed Copy Due April 23)
4/16
Abbreviated class with Dr. Bob Price
-
4/21
Chapter 16 and Chapter 18 - Inference about a Population Mean
18: 1, 6, 7, 10-24, 26-28, 30, 32, 36, 39, 41, 43, 45
4/23
Chapter 18 (cont.) and
Chapter 20 - Inference about a Population Proportion
20: 1-9, 11, 13, 16-27, 31, 32, 38, 40, 41
Proportions Test with Three Stooges Data (Printed copy due April 30)
4/28
Chapter 20 (cont.) (Not covered: Chapter 23 - Two Categorical Variables:
The Chi-Square Test)
(Not covered 23: 1, 2, 6, 11, 16, 18-28, 37, 40, 41 )
4/30
Review for Final
-
5/2
Final, 1:00-3:30
The final will be given in Gilbreath Hall, room 314
-


Drs. Davidson and Gardner at the Stoogeum, Ambler, PA
January 7, 2009

Jon's Bar and Grille, Birthplace of Larry Fine, Philadelphia, PA
January 7, 2009


Click to see a Colbert Report segment (length 3:46, aired October 9, 2008)) featuring some Three Stooges segments,
including (at the end) Stephen being hammered by Curly.

Return to Bob Gardner's home page.
Last updated: May 6, 2009.