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W 9/4/13
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First day of class. What is
a statistic? A parameter? The 1-sentence summary of our course? A long tail?
The course that arguably is a better goal for high school students than
calculus?
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Th 9/5/13
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HW due:
1. Send Mr. Hansen an e-mail. Please use a double underscore (__) at the
beginning of your subject line. Contact information is available at
www.studyofpatterns.com.
2. Then, watch the 3-minute Arthur
Benjamin TED talk a second time.
In class: Quiz on everything
discussed up to this point.
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F 9/6/13
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HW due:
1. If you have not already done so, send an e-mail beginning with 2
underscore characters like this:
__Stat class homework from [name]
Contact information is available at www.studyofpatterns.com. E-mails from
Bobby, Jack, Hyun, Alex, James, and Sammy are still stuck in cyberspace somewhere.
2. Write a homework assignment, following the format in the “HW guidelines”
link at the top of the schedule. Gather at least 20 data points from real
life and make a raw data table, a
histogram, and a boxplot. Label axes with text description, units, and
numbers with tick marks. For your source data, use something that is of
personal interest to you. Be creative! Or, if you can’t come up with anything
creative, you may use data pasted from the Internet (in which case you must
document your source), or you may use one of the ideas listed below.
- Number of seconds needed to sing the alphabet song. (Poll family members,
friends, and neighbors.)
- Weight
- Number of pairs of athletic shoes owned
- Estimated daily number of text messages sent
- Number of so-called Facebook friends
- Number of heads obtained
in 10 flips (repeat this experiment at least 20 times, so that you have at
least 20 data points in your table of raw data)
The raw data table should look something like this, depending on which idea you
use:
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M 9/9/13
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HW due:
1. Congratulations! All students have now submitted the first assignment that
was due on Thursday, 9/5, namely to send an e-mail.
2. Read the 2 pages from HyperStat Online [see footnote below] concerning variance and standard deviation. The reading consists of a general page of
information, followed by a continuation page that describes, among other
things, the critical importance of standard deviation in the finance field.
The variance and standard deviation are simply numbers that describe how
spread-out the data values in a set of data are. They are called measures of dispersion.
3. Learn the notation for sample standard deviation (s) and population standard deviation ( ). That’s the Greek letter sigma, by the way.
4. On your HW paper, explain (1 or 2 sentences) why the notation for sample
variance and population variance should logically be s2 and 2, respectively.
5. On your HW paper, explain why  and  are called measures of central tendency instead
of measures of dispersion.
6. On your HW paper, state at least two other measures of central tendency
that you know about.
7. If you did not complete last Friday’s assignment, then by all means read in your textbook about boxplots
and histograms, or check out the RVLS link (in the “Essential Links” section
of our class homepage). Last Friday’s assignment will be assumed to be
complete by Monday. No excuses! This is the 21st century.
Formal textbook reading assignments will begin as soon as nearly everyone has
a textbook, which should be early this week.
In class: Quiz is likely on all
material discussed so far.
* Instructions for HyperStat Online:
1. Visit the RVLS link (see “Essential Links” on our class homepage).
2. Under RVLS, click “HyperStat Online.”
3. Type whatever topic you wish to search for and click the Search button.
For example, to search for information about variance and standard deviation,
type the word VARIANCE in the search box and click the Search button.
4. In most cases, the top search hit will by the page(s) on HyperStat Online
dedicated to that topic.
5. Try this technique for any term that
puzzles you. For example if Mr. Hansen tosses out a term in class (such
as histogram) that you think you’re
supposed to know, and if you feel uncomfortable raising your hand and asking
for clarification, then by all means visit HyperStat Online!
6. You can also look up terms in the index of your textbook, but that’s so
20th-century! HyperStat Online is faster if you have a computer or smartphone
nearby.
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T 9/10/13
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HW due:
1. Read pp. 1-11. Reading notes are required.
2. Prepare for Two Quizzes: one on
all material covered in class to this point (a quiz that was originally
scheduled for yesterday), and one on the reading material.
Reading material quizzes may test not only your knowledge and comprehension
but also the fact that you read the assigned pages. You should pay attention
during your reading, and you should reread the text as many times as
necessary to understand it and make it stick. Taking notes while you read is
a good strategy. Writing down formulas, however, is not recommended, since
nearly all formulas you need to know are provided on a formula sheet that you
can use during quizzes and tests. Here is a sample question on the reading
material:
The textbook provided an example of
histogram comparisons to suggest a way of gauging which population would be
more likely to have been the source of a certain size of shoe. The histograms
used in the textbook compared . . .
(A) female gymnasts and female
basketball players
(B) male gymnasts and male
basketball players
(C) female runners and female
field hockey players
(D) male football players and
male basketball players
(E) none of the above
Answer: A. If a student had done the reading, it is highly likely that he
would remember the example. If he had skipped the reading (or skimmed it
while IMing his friends and watching YouTube videos), he would probably have
only about a 20% chance of guessing correctly.
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W 9/11/13
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HW due:
1. Read pp. 12-19, 24-25, and 27-31. Reading notes are required, as always.
In the future, you will simply have to remember that.
2. Write Activity 1.3 on p. 24, using your own words.
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Th 9/12/13
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HW due:
1. Read pp. 32-39, 42-49.
2. Write p. 32 #2.6, p. 41 #2.20.
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F 9/13/13
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HW due:
1. Read pp. 51-54, 56-60, 61-63.
2. Write #1 (only) from Activity 2.2 on p. 64.
3. Write #2.58 on p. 67.
4. Prepare for a quiz on this
recently published Washington Post
Quick Study. Handwritten notes are permitted during the quiz. (Computer
printouts or typed notes are not permitted.)
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M 9/16/13
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Every year, there is a one fall
weekend with weather so perfect, so ideally suited for outdoor activities,
that it would be a crime to have any homework due. This is it! Enjoy your
weekend of no additional homework, and get some good sleep. If you are behind
on your homework, this is your chance to catch up.
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T 9/17/13
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HW due:
1. Complete the group assignment chart, following the methodology given
below. Note that J.D. will be substituting for Mr. Hansen. (That’s a good
thing, actually, since J.D. will surely provide more assistance to the group
that gets him than Mr. Hansen would have provided.)
2. Group leaders (Alex, Nathan G, John, Colin, Andrew, and Jack Gaf) should
contact their other members and discuss an exploratory data analysis project proposal, which is due in writing
today at the beginning of class, 10:45 a.m. Draft submissions will be
accepted by e-mail for comment, but the version that is submitted for a grade
must be in writing. There is a small penalty if it is printed out after the
beginning of class.
Your draft proposal should consist of the following:
(a) Statement of your research
question. Try to choose something you personally find interesting.
Make sure that your group members agree! In class, we will discuss all
proposed topics, and you can change your topic later if necessary. You need
not choose any of those listed below, but here are some examples:
Do NCS students prefer rounded or squarish male faces, and
does the preference vary by grade level?
How does the ratio of index finger length to ring finger
length differ between NCS and STA samples?
[See, for example, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digit_ratio
for a discussion of this topic.]
What indicators (number of courses taken, type of sports,
etc.) are most associated with musical interest?
Do students with regular sleep patterns (as measured by
s.d. of sleep length or start/end times) have higher interest in sports?
Are left-handers more likely than right-handers to have had
at least one left-handed parent?
Are people, in general, able to write down a “random
enough” sequence of purely fictional coin flips?
(b) Time estimates. Break
your project into phases, and provide a written estimate (in days) for each
phase, as well as the date of the final project submission. Typical phases
are methodology review, data gathering,
table and graph production, discussion, report drafting, and final report delivery. Your project
may have more or fewer phases, depending upon how complex it is.
Please note that your research question and time estimates are not binding at
this point; they are merely part of a proposal that will be discussed.
Adjustments can and will be made later.
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W 9/18/13
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HW due: Read this
article about Shane Battier. Reading notes are required, as always.
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Th 9/19/13
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HW due: Read pp. 75-83,
87-92; write #3.6 on p. 84. Hold off on data gathering for your group project
until all 6 projects have been approved and have methodology that we have all
discussed in class.
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F 9/20/13
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HW due: Read pp. 97-113;
write #3.26 on pp. 114-115.
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M 9/23/13
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HW due:
1. Read pp. 117-124, 127-133, and the summary on pp. 135-136.
2. Write #3.56 on p. 138. Do not use your calculator!
3. For the data in #3.56, compute the 5-number summary. You may now use your
calculator if you wish.
4. Use your calculator to create a histogram and a modified boxplot for the
data in #3.56. Use a sensible bin size for your histogram, not necessarily
the default that your calculator gives you. (Remember, the WINDOW button lets
you change the Xscl value, which determines the bin size.)
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T 9/24/13
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HW due: Review problems as
listed below.
1. Write #3.59 on p. 139, doing all of the tasks listed below.
(a) Construct a stem-and-leaf display.
(b) Comment on any interesting features, including shape, gaps, and outliers
(if any).
(c) Give statistical evidence to corroborate the skewness direction that you
claimed in part (b).
(d) Construct a modified boxplot for the data. Compute and state the 5-number
summary.
(e) Construct a histogram for the data. Label both axes correctly.
(f) Describe, using complete sentences, exactly how you would determine
whether a new data point of x would
be an outlier for this data set.
2. Define each of the following terms, giving proper notation for those that
have a standard symbol: bias, quintile, percentile, sample standard
deviation, population variance, sample mean, statistic, parameter,
meta-analysis, time series, sample size, interquartile range, dispersion,
central tendency, symmetric distribution, median, scatterplot, cumulative
relative frequency plot, sample proportion, SRS, nonresponse, discrete
distribution, continuous distribution.
3. Research question: Does vitamin C improve short-term vocabulary memory?
You have 80 test subjects, 20 each from grades 9, 10, 11, and 12. All are
male. Describe an experimental design that addresses the research question.
Incorporate the terms blocking,
randomization, control, and replication
into your writeup.
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W 9/25/13
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Test (100 pts.) on all material in Chapters 1, 2, and 3, plus everything discussed in
class.
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Th 9/26/13
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HW due: Read pp. 147-156
and 159-166 (should go quickly, since it’s almost all review); write #4.4 on
p. 157, #4.20 on p. 167. For #4.20, you may omit the setup of the question;
writing only the answers is acceptable. (Note:
That is not usually permitted.)
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F 9/27/13
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HW due:
1. Read pp. 169-174, 176-183. Chebyshev’s Rule (p. 177) is not an AP topic,
but it is useful and will appear on tests and quizzes. Reading notes are
required, as always.
2. Start gathering data for your group project. Progress report (oral) will
be expected on Tuesday, 10/1.
There is no class today (senior retreat), but note that you are expected to
keep up with HW.
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M 9/30/13
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HW due: Write #4.64 on p.
194, and also compute the z score for each data point.
Note: You are strongly encouraged
to use a spreadsheet or a function on your calculator to speed up the z calculations. If you don’t know how
to do this, then you really need to find out! Read p.
9 of the calculator reference manual (the instructions near the top of
the page regarding the ASK mode for functions) if you have forgotten how to
use your calculator efficiently.
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