Class web home page: http://www.ma.utexas.edu/users/mks/362K/home.html (You can get to this from my home page, which can be accessed from the math department home page , which in turn you can get to from the UT home page (http://www.utexas.edu). From the class home page you can link to many class handouts plus other web sites of interest.
Class email list: An email list has been created for this class. The name is M362K-Smith@math.utexas.edu. You can use this address to send a message to everyone on the list. You may find this useful for discussing homework, sharing information about web sites or other resources, or forming study groups. I will also use the list for announcements of misprints, resources, etc. If you want to be on the list, you need to send me an email message (to mks@math.utexas.edu) including your email address (don't assume that it will appear on the "From" line of your message) and the name of the list you want to be included in (since I am maintaining class lists for three classes.)
Prerequisite: M408D with a grade of at least C. See the handout Some Things You Need to Know from Calculus and Precalculus for some of the skills from calculus and precalculus that you will need to use in this course.
Required Text: An Introduction to Probability and Its Applications, by Larsen and Marx
Please Note: The Coop messed up the order for this book, so it won't be available for another week or two. In the meanwhile, you can pick up a copy of the first couple of chapters free in the Textbook Office of the Coop. There is also a copy of the book on reserve at the PMA library (RLM, ground level).
Syllabus: Most of Chapters 1 through 6 of the textbook, plus some of the material from Chapter 7, but done from a more intuitive approach than the textbook's.
The purpose of the course will be to develop probabilistic intuition and reasoning and skill in some of the basic techniques of probability. This requires an active approach on the part of the student. Therefore the class will involve reading from the textbook, lots of exercises, and lots of class discussion.
Use of Technology:
1. Calculators: On exams, you will be permitted to use a nonprogrammable, nongraphing calculator. If you have a graphing calculator that does extensive statistics (e.g., the TI-83), you may find it helpful to play around with it on your own when we study distributions.
Computers: Computer use is not required, but strongly recommended.
Three types of computer use will be helpful to you in this course:
a. Email. There will be a class email list (see
above) which you can use to help form study groups, to ask questions of
me or your classmates, and to receive messages relevant to the class from
me or other students (e.g., notification of misprints)
b. World Wide Web. Many class handouts,
will be on the Web. You will also be able to access interactive sites to
help illustrate probabilistic ideas on the Web. The class web home
page, with links to other relevant web pages, is
http://www.ma.utexas.edu/users/mks/362K/home.html
.
c. Minitab statistical software. Although
you will not have any assignments that specifically require use of Minitab,
you may find it helpful to explore distributions on this software. It is
available on all computers (both PC's and MAC's) in the Student Microcompouter
Facility (SMF) in Flawn Academic Center. I encourage you to go through
the Minitab Tutorial that is available in the Documentation Room
in the SMF. If you plan to take statistics, you will probably need
to use Minitab, so this can give you a head start.
You can obtain access to all three of these uses
of computers through an Individually Funded (IF) account. If you do not
already have an IF account, you can obtain one at either of the following
locations (be sure to bring your valid UT ID):
The Help Desk, WCH 1.104
The Student Microcomputer
Facility, FAC 212
You may also want to attend one of the IF Account Orientation Sessions, held in the Computation Center, Room 8 (COM 8) at the following times: Wednesday, January 21, 11- 11:30; Wednesday, January 21, 2 - 2:30; Thursday, January 22, 11- 11:30; Thursday, January 22, 2 - 2:30; Friday, January 23, 11 - 11:30.
Attendance and Class Participation. You are expected to
attend and participate in all classes. The most efficient way
to learn the material is to do all reading assignments before class, come
to every class, pay attention and participate in class activities, and
start the homework soon after that. If you miss class, you are still responsible
for what was covered in that class. If you miss many classes (or two in
a row) it may be very difficult for you to catch up.
Time and Effort Required. As in most college courses, the average student should expect to spend an average of two or more hours outside of class for every hour in class to earn the average grade. In this course, that means an average of at least six hours per week on the course outside of class.
Assignments: You will be given two types of assignments:
1. Assignments to be completed before class. These
will be a combination of reading and exercises. Be sure to do them so that
you will be prepared to participate actively in class. See the handout
Hints on
Textbook Reading for suggestions on how to proceed.
2. Problems to be turned in once a week. Most
of these will be individual, but some may be group assignments. You will
be expected to give clear explanations of what you are doing in your homework
write-ups. See the handout Guidelines for Written Homework
to see what I expect of you on written homework.
Exams: There will be three midsemester exams and a final exam.
The dates of the midsemester exams will be announced later. The final exam
will be Friday, May 15 from 2 to 5 p.m. The final exam will cover the
entire course, with emphasis on what has been covered since the third exam.
Unless otherwise announced, exams will be closed book, closed notes.
You will need to bring the following to exams: pencil, eraser, scratch paper, calculator of an approved type (see above).
Late and make-up policy:
Late homework will NOT be accepted. Written
homework is due at the BEGINNING of class on the day it is due. If you
are unavoidably late to class, you may turn in your homework when
you enter, but it will not be accepted later than that. However,
the lowest two homework grades will be dropped in computing
your overall homework average.
There will be NO EARLY EXAMS.
There will be NO MAKEUPS on midsemester exams. However,
I will give excused absences for very good cause, provided the excused
absence is requested as soon as possible (which usually means before
the exam). Oversleeping or other events for which you are responsible
are not considered good cause. In the case of an excused absence,
the other components of the course will be weighted more heavily than in
the normal procedure outlined below.
A makeup final exam will be given ONLY for
very good cause.
Requests for regrading: If you believe there is a mistake in
the grading of any assignment or quiz, you may do one of the following:
1. Write a note of explanation
on a separate sheet of paper, staple it to the paper, and give it to me
for re-grading; or
2. See me during office
hours to discuss the grading. (Be sure to bring the paper with you.)
Requests for corrections must be made very soon after the paper was originally graded.
Course Grade:
Your course grade will be determined in the following
manner. Each midsemester exam will count one unit. The homework average
will count one unit. The final exam will count two units. The lowest of
these six units will be dropped. The remaining five units will count
for 95% of your grade. The remaining 5% will be a class participation grade.
The class participation grade will be determined
according to the following guidelines: a student who attends regularly,
pays attention, participates in group or individual activities, and does
nothing to interfere with other students' learning will receive 3.5
percentage points. Additional points will be added for students who participate
constructively in class discussion and present problems at the board. Points
will be subtracted for poor attendance or behavior which detracts from
other students' learning. A grading scheme of A: 90-100; B:
80-89; C: 70-79; D: 60-69; F: < 60 will be used unless you are told
otherwise.
Add and Drop Dates:
Friday January 23: Last day to add or drop a course
with TEX.
Wednesday February 4: Last day to drop a course
through departmental drops.
Monday, February 16: Last day to drop a course without
a possible academic penalty.
Monday, March 30: Last day for an undergraduate
to drop with Dean's approval, except for urgent and substantiated nonacademic
reasons.
Incompletes: Incomplete grades (X) will be given only in very rare circumstances. Generally, to receive a grade of X, a student must have taken all examinations (except possibly the final exam), be passing, and have a very good nonacademic reason which occurs after the last date to withdraw and prevents course completion on time.
Scholastic Integrity and Academic Dishonesty: Academic
dishonesty is defined at the University of Texas at Austin as "any act
designed to give unfair academic advantage to the student." Unauthorized
collaboration is one common type of academic dishonesty. Just what is and
is not authorized varies from class to class. The following describes what
is and what is not authorized in this class.
1. Working with other students on assignments
for this class outside of class is fine. But copying someone else's homework
to hand in, or getting the solution from someone else is academic
dishonesty. Similarly, letting someone copy your homework or hiring someone
to do your homework is academic dishonesty. Putting someone's name (yours
or another person's) on group homework when that person did not participate
in the group work is also academic dishonesty.
Having someone else read your homework paper
and critique it so you can revise it before handing it in is fine. But
having someone else write your homework paper is academic dishonesty.
2. Using unauthorized materials on an exam is academic
dishonesty.
3. Just because something is not explicitly mentioned
above as academic dishonesty does not mean that it is not academic dishonesty.
You can find more information on academic integrity and scholastic
dishonesty at the following Web address:
http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/academicintegrity.html
Supplemental Resources:
Websites: I have recently discovered some interactive probability sites on the Web. As soon as I get a chance, I will look them over to see if any of them might be helpful in understanding some of the concepts we will be studying. If so, I will establish links to them from the class web page and let you know when they will be relevant. If you discover any appropriate websites, please let me know!
Learning Skills Center
The Learning Skills Center (Jester Center A332) has the following resources available:
LETTER TO STUDENTS
Dear M362K Student,
Welcome to the important world of probability. This
is a subject that is rich with applications -- to activities of ordinary
life as well as many occupations and areas of study. I have chosen
our textbook, even though it is out of print, for several reasons. First,
it is exemplary in giving a wide variety of applications and
integrating them into the exposition. Second, it introduces what is called
"continuous probability" -- the part where you need calculus --earlier
than most textbooks on probability. When this aspect of probability is
introduced late in the textbook, as it is in most, one or both of two things
happens: The students find the change of flavor hard to adapt to, or the
instructor cuts coverage of this important aspect of probability
short. Third, the text is less proof oriented than most probability textbooks.
This seems appropriate for a course that has students from a variety of
majors. Fourth, this book gives better preparation for statistics than
do most probability textbooks. Many of you will be going on to take a statistics
course either in this department or in another, so this is an important
consideration.
One important aspect of learning probability
is building intuition. Most people's initial intuition about probability
is wide of the mark -- but it gets better with study of probability. I
hope that the many examples, the class discussion, and the
hands-on activities and simulations will help you in this sometimes challenging
task.
I believe that helping students learn to learn is
the most important thing a teacher can do. Therefore I believe that, now
that you are beyond calculus where the volume of students necessitates
large classes, you will benefit most from having reading assignments and
participating in class discussion rather than from my lecturing to you.
I hope you enjoy this class and benefit from it.
It will be a lot of work, but worth it.
Sincerely,
Professor Martha K. Smith