MATH 311-01, Elementary Probability and Statistics, Fall 2005

Abstract

This course is the first part of a two part sequence covering probability and statistics. Statistics is the science of gaining information from numerical data. Our modern technological world generates data at an enormous rate. Newspapers, business meetings, and governmental committee meetings are often inundated with data. However, all too often the data is improperly obtained and improperly assessed. Important everyday decisions for individuals, corporations, societies, and governments hinge on a proper understanding and assessment of data. Every facet of industry, science, engineering, economics and business benefit from a solid knowledge of statistics. This is why there are more statisticians employed in the United States than mathematicians from all other branches of mathematics combined. Probability is the language of statistics; it is a measure of the likelihood of an event occurring.