Mr. Hansen’s Abbreviations, Part III

(rev. 4/22/2004, 11/10/2004, 2/3/2005, 5/20/2005, 11/17/2005, 5/31/2009, 9/7/2010)

Part III: STA abbreviations, nonstandard abbreviations, or inventions of Mr. Hansen:

ABT	Angle Bisector Theorem (in any triangle, the side opposite a bisected angle is split in the same ratio as the lengths of the respective adjacent sides)
Angle Half SAD, or Angle Half SumArDiff	This is a memory aid for remembering angle-arc theorems in geometry. The key is the location of the angle’s vertex. 1. An angle with vertex inside the circle (i.e., a chord-chord angle) equals HALF THE SUM of arcs. 2. An angle with vertex on the circle (i.e., an inscribed or tangent-chord angle, as long as neither ray goes beyond being tangent) equals HALF THE ARC that is intercepted. 3. An angle with vertex outside the circle (i.e., a secant-secant angle, secant-tangent angle, or tangent-tangent angle) equals HALF THE DIFFERENCE of arcs.
BABS	Bigger Angle, Bigger Side: In any triangle, the biggest angle is opposite the biggest side, and the smallest angle is opposite the smallest side. A corollary is that the hypotenuse is the longest side in any right triangle, since the hypotenuse is opposite the largest angle, namely the 90-degree angle.
BAILC	Base Angles Iff Legs Congruent (a.k.a. ITT)
Big 3	the major trig functions found on a calculator (sine, cosine, and tangent)
calc-o	calculator keystroke error
CASA, Casar	Congruent And Supplement Angles Þ Right
CBC	calculator boot camp (you did not use your calculator correctly or to good advantage)
c.d.	common denominator
CFU	check for understanding (a quiz, usu. ungraded)
CIRC	circular logic
CR, CRI	*chain rule, chain rule for integrals
CSSFP, CSSTP	Corresponding Sides of Similar Figures (resp., Triangles) are in Proportion; abbreviations independently invented in Feb. 2003 by Zach W. (D period) and the E period Class of 2006
Dep-Scribble- SwykEA	method for doing word problems involving functions: define the Dependency (what depends on what), Scribble a rough sketch, make a better sketch that Shows What You Know, write an Equation, and Apply the equation
DOAPS	**Distribution Of All Possibilities for a Statistic. The technical name for this concept is “sampling distribution,” but most students find the term “sampling distribution” difficult to understand without some sort of memory aid. On your AP exam, be sure to write “sampling distribution,” since nobody outside STA has ever heard of DOAPS.
ECF	error carried forward (usu. no penalty, as opposed to NCWEE)
eoe, eoo	every other even, every other odd (used when assigning HW problems)
EOTR	economy of thought recommended (i.e., you have written too much)
ESM	equal sign misuse
FC	“freshman cancellation”
House Rule	the rule, named by the F period Class of 2008 in November 2005, that allows one to “pull down” the exponent involved in a logarithmic expression (more formally, log x^y = y log x); see also LPSL, LQDL
IOU	island of uncertainty
ITT	Isosceles Triangle Theorem (a.k.a. BAILC)
LPSL, LQDL	log of a product is the sum of logs, log of a quotient is the difference of logs (note: there is no rule for log of a sum or log of a difference!)
LSRL	**least-squares regression line; this abbrev. is standard enough that you can use it on the AP exam and probably be understood
MEAU / IMI	mutually exclusive probabilities can be added in a union; independent probabilities can be multiplied in an intersection
mo3, mo4, etc.	multiples of 3, multiples of 4, etc. (used when assigning HW problems)
MODE	wrong calculator mode (usu. degrees vs. radians, or vice versa)
NCN	no calculator notation allowed in written work (e.g., 5.236E–4 should be written as 5.236 ´ 10^–4 or, better, yet, as 0.0005236)
NCWEE	not consistent with earlier error (the opposite of ECF)
NR	not reasonable, or not a true mathematical fact; e.g., (a + b)^2 does not equal a^2 + b^2, but sometimes students act as if it does
NSBD	not supported by diagram
NSBW, NSW	not supported by work, not sufficient work
NSN, NST	no such notation, nonstandard notation, no such term, nonstandard terminology
OAP	other answer(s) possible
OOME	order-of-magnitude error
PBC	penmanship boot camp (illegible)
PBT	Perpendicular Bisector Theorem (a.k.a. Equidistance Theorem): In a plane, point C is equidistant from points A and B iff C lies on the ^ bisector of segment AB.
PEMDAS	error in order of operations (parens, exponentiation, mult./div., addition/subtr.)
PHA(S)TPC	**Please Help All Students To Pass Calculus (memory aid for hypothesis testing procedures)
PPME	power of a power (multiply exponents)
PR	*product rule for derivatives
PRAE	product rule for adding exponents
QR	*quotient rule for derivatives
QRSE	quotient rule for subtracting exponents
RAWQ	right answer, wrong question
RAWR	right answer, wrong reason
ROO	region of overlap (solution to a compound locus problem); abbreviation coined by Justin G., Class of 2008
rounding	error caused by rounding final result improperly, by rounding too soon and losing accuracy, or by failing to detect calculator underflow or overflow
SCO	spot-checked only
SRP	strongly recommended problem
SSOT	same side of the transversal
SSP-SAC	(pronounced “Sip Sack”) Similar Sides are in Proportion; Similar Angles are Congruent.
SWYK	show what you know
TBNEH	true but not especially helpful
TTT	Two-Tangent Theorem (tangent segments that meet at a coplanar point external to the circle are congruent)
unk. param.	**unknown parameter (“Known Only To The Almighty”)
VHA(S)TPC	**Very Hairy Apes Sometimes Trash People’s Cars (now called PHA(S)TPC)
WAWQ	wrong answer to the wrong question (i.e., you misunderstood the question, but your answer was incorrect even after accounting for that misunderstanding)
WNFFC	work needed for full credit
WNFPC	work needed for partial credit

* Calculus only.
** Statistics only.