Math 141 - Introductory Statistics - Spring 2003

Reading Assignments

Be sure to check back every so often, because this may change during the semester.
(Last modified: Wednesday, March 19, 2003, 1:37 PM )

All numbers indicate sections from The Basic Practice of Statistics, Second Edition.
Always explain your answers in your own words, don't just quote the text verbatim.

For January 29

Section 1.1 Displaying Distributions with Graphs
Section 1.2 Describing Distributions with Numbers

To read : Section 1.1 through page 14, all of Section 1.2

Reading Questions :

  1. What does the standard deviation of set of observations measure?
  2. Which is a better measure of the center of a distribution, the mean or the median? Why?

For February 3

Section 1.3 The Normal Distribution

To read : All

Reading Questions :

  1. How does a normal distribution differ from a non-normal distribution?
  2. What is special about the standard normal distribution?

For February 10

Section 4.3 Sampling Distributions
Section 6.1 Estimating with Confidence

To read : All

Reading Questions :

  1. What does each data point in the sampling distribution used in the Central Limit Theorem represent?
  2. In two or three sentences, explain the idea of a confidence interval for a parameter.

For February 17

Section 6.1 Estimating with Confidence

Introduction to Chapter 8

Section 8.1 Inference for a Population Proportion

To read : Reread Section 6.1, read all of Section 8.1

Reading Questions :

  1. Look at your answer to question 2 from last time, and answer it again using what you know now.
  2. What is the connection between Sections 6.1 and 8.1?

For February 24

Exam 1 today. No reading assignment.

For March 3

Section 6.2 Tests of Significance

To read : All

Reading Questions :

  1. What is a null hypothesis?
  2. What does the p-value tell you about the null hypothesis?

For March 10

Section 7.1 Inference for the Mean of a Population
Section 7.2 Comparing Two Means

To read : All

Reading Questions :

  1. Why is the t-test more realistic than the z-test?
  2. What is the difference between the matched-pairs and the two-sample t-tests?

For March 24

Section 7.2 Comparing Two Means
Section 8.2 Comparing Two Proportions

To read : Reread Section 7.2, and read all of Section 8.2

Be sure to do the reading, but no Reading Questions for today.

For March 31

Introduction to Chapter 9
Section 9.1 Two-Way Tables
Section 9.2 The Chi-Square Test

To read : All

Reading Questions :

  1. What is the motivation for this chapter?
  2. What does the chi-square statistic measure? Don't give a formal definition for how it is calculated, but explain the basic idea in a sentence or two.

For April 7

Section 10.1 The Analysis of Variance F Test

To read : All

Reading Questions :

  1. What is the connection between the chi-square and ANOVA tests?
  2. Why is a test comparing population means called analysis of variance?

For April 14

Section 11.1 Inference about the Model (regression)
Section 11.2 Inference about Prediction

To read : All

Reading Questions :

  1. What is the purpose of regression?
  2. In Example 1, the slope of the least squares regression line is positive. What does this tell you about the relationship between the count of crying peaks (the explanatory variable) and the IQ at age three (the response variable)?

For April 21

Section 11.2 Inference about Prediction

Reread Section 11.2, but no Reading Questions. Put the extra time into studying for Exam 3 on Wednesday.

For April 28

Course overview this week. No new reading assignments.

Math 141 Home | T. Ratliff's Home
Maintained by Tommy Ratliff, ratliff_thomas@wheatoncollege.edu
Last modified: Wednesday, March 19, 2003, 1:37 PM