BIS 315								Understanding Statistics  

SYLLABUS								Prof. Rasmussen

Because of the varied interests and backgrounds of the students, the overall goal of this course will be to prepare the students
for the critical reading of reports and articles that contain statistical material in their field of interest.  In order to accomplish 
this goal the course will cover basic probability concepts, statistical calculations, data analysis, and statistical tests.
The personal computer will be an integral part of the course and will be used both to develop the statistical concepts and show
the students how to do statistical analysis on the computer.  The students will be expected to do hands on work on the PC.
There will also be a variety of other learning activities, such as homework, group exercises, reports, and quizzes.  
Knowledge of algebra is required; knowledge of calculus is not required.  A calculator that does basic statistical calculations
is recommended.  If the student does not have one at present, the Hewlett-Packard 10B calculator is recommended.

Required texts:

Textbook:  Devore, Jay, & Peck, Roxy,  Statistics: The Exploration and Analysis of Data, 6th edition,  Brooks/Cole  Belmont, California,  2008.

Salsburg, David,  The Lady Tasting Tea:  how statistics revolutionized science in the twentieth century,  W. H. Freeman and Company  New York, N. Y. 2001

Additional (optional) reference:  Gonick, Larry & Smith, Woolcott,  The Cartoon Guide to Statistics, Harper Collins  New York, N. Y. 1993

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Week 1	Introduction to descriptive statistics
		Histograms
		Average and standard deviation
		Median, quartiles
`		Examples/applications
		How to implement on Excel
		Homework assignment 1

Week 2	Descriptive statistics continued
		Introduction to probability
		Excel
		Examples/applications
		Homework assignment 2

Week 3	Introduction to binomial distribution
		Introduction to the normal distribution
		How to implement on Excel
		Examples/applications
		Homework assignment 3
		Quiz 1

Week 4	Normal distribution continued
		Concept of random sample
		The Central Limit Theorem on Excel
		What the CLT means to statistical inference
		Examples/applications
		Sample distributions and the population mean
		Application to the binomial situation
		Homework assignment 4

Week 5	Statistical inference
		Point estimates
		Confidence intervals
		Use of Excel to illustrate the concepts
		Examples/applications
		Homework assignment 5

Week 6	Hypothesis testing
		Excel and hypothesis testing
		Examples/applications
		Homework assignment 6
		
Week 7	Hypothesis testing continued
		Examples/applications
		Homework assignment 7
		Quiz 2

Week 8	Correlation
		Scatter diagrams
		Pearson coefficient
		How to do on Excel
		Examples/applications
		Homework assignment 8

Week 9	Correlation continued: linear regression
		Excel and linear regression
		Examples/applications
		Introduction to non-parametric test: Rank Sum test
		Homework assignment 9

Week 10 & 11   Chi-squared "goodness of fit"
				Introduction to Chi-squared "goodness of fit"
		Examples/applications
		Homework assignment 10

Calender Week 12	Quiz 3

Homework will be assigned on a weekly basis.  Homework assignments will be due at the beginning of class. 
Assignments turned in after the beginning of class are late and will be graded at 50% credit. 
All late assignments will count towards class participation.  For example if a student turns in all the homework assignments late, 
they will receive 100% for participation but will have the homework graded at 50% of the original possible score. 
There will be three quizzes during the course.  Grades will be based on class participation (25%), the homework problems (37.5%), the quizzes (37.5%) 
For example, if a student had an 85% average on the homework, a 100% average on participation, and an 82% average on the three quizzes, 
their overall score would be calculated as follows:


OVERALL SCORE CALCULATION EXAMPLE

			Score%		Times %

Homework		85.0%		37.5%		 31.875%
Participation		100.0%		25%		 25.00%
Quizzes			  82.0%		37.5%		 30.75%

Overall Score					 87.625%

The students' grade for the course is determined by using their overall score and the University of Washington's grade conversion table from the faculty handbook. 
The following table indicates the lowest letter grade from the chart to give the overall range.  The first column contains the overall student score which equates to the grade:

		Overall score		Letter Grade		University Grade
			90%			A-			3.5	
			80%			B-			2.5		
			70%			C-			1.5	
			60%			D-			0.7	
			below 60%		E			0.0			

So for this example the student would receive a University Grade of 3.3

To request academic accommodations due to a disability, please contact Disabled Student Services (DSS) in the Counseling Center. 
 If you have a documented disability on file with the DSS office, please have your DSS counselor contact me and we can discuss accommodations you might need in class.

Prof. Rasmussen's office is room UW1-345  	Phone is 206-283-4698
							  	or 425-352-5388
								FAX    425-352-3367

Office Hours:			M & W  8:00-8:45 and 12:15-1:15  
				Other times by appointment

e-mail:  jrras@u.washington.edu

Course Web site: http://faculty.washington.edu/jrras/bis315am.htm
Note: The web site works best if you use Microsoft's Internet Explorer.