Probability

  • A cartoon to teach the idea that averages are less variable than individual values. The cartoon is free for use on course websites or in the classroom. Commercial uses must contact the copyright holder - British cartoonist John Landers (cartoons@landers.co.uk) who drew this cartoon based on an idea from Dennis Pearl.
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  • August 25, 2009 Activity webinar presented by Michelle Everson, University of Minnesota and hosted by Leigh Slauson, Capital University. In a classroom setting, students can engage in hands-on activities in order to better understand certain concepts and ideas. Replicating hands-on activities in an online environment, however, can be a challenge for instructors. The purpose of this webinar is to present an applet that was created to replicate a "Post-it Note" activity commonly used in classroom sections of an undergraduate introductory statistics course at University of Minnesota. The Post-it Note activity is meant to help students develop a more conceptual understanding of the mean and the median by moving a set of Post-it Notes along a number line. During the webinar, participants have an opportunity to see and experience just how online students are able to interact with an applet named the "Sticky Centers" applet, and the webinar presents the kinds of materials and assignments that have been created to use in conjunction with this applet. The webinar ends with a preview of a newer applet that is being developed in order to replicate the famous "Gummy Bears in Space" activity (presented in Schaeffer, Gnanadesikan, Watkins & Witmer, 1996). A supplemental student handout is available for download free of charge.
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  • The same set of statistics can produce opposite conclusions at different levels of aggregation. is a quote useful in teaching about Simpson's Paradox from American Economist Thomas Sowell (1930 - ). The quote may be found on page 102 of his 1996 book "The vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation As a Basis for Social Policy". The quote may also be found at the science history website www.todayinsci.com.
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  • Every careful measurement in science is always given with the probable error... every observer admits that he is likely wrong, and knows about how much wrong he is likely to be. This is a quote by Welsh Mathematician and philosopher Bertrand A.W. Russell (1872 - 1970). The quote may be found in his 1931 book "The Scientific Outlook" and is also found on the science history website www.todayinsci.com
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  • In the philosophic sense, observation shows and experiment teaches. This is a quote by French physiologist Claude Bernard (1813 - 1878). The quote is from his 1865 book "An Introduction to the Study of Experimental Medicine" as translated by Henry Greene (the first printing of this english translation was in 1927 by Macmillan).
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  • Many of us, while teaching an introductory statistics course, have mentioned some of the history behind the methodology, perhaps just in passing. We might remark that an English chap by the name of R. A. Fisher is responsible for a great deal of the course content. We could further point out that the statistical techniques used in research today were developed within the last century, for the most part. At most, we might reveal the identity of the mysterious "Student" when introducing the t-test to our class. I propose that we do more of this. This webinar will highlight some opportunities to give brief history lessons while teaching an introductory statistics course.

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  • A highly trained mathematical statistician without knowledge of the subject can be quite as dangerous as a subject-matter specialist trying to use statistical methods of which he has little knowledge. This is a quote of American Economist and Statistician Aryness Joy Wickens (1901 - 1991). The quote is from her Presidential Address to the American Statistical Association at the 112th annual meeting on December 28, 1952. The full address is reprinted in "JASA" v. 48 p. 1-14. (picture from LIFE magazine; copyright by Time, Inc. for non-commercial use only)
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  • The true method of knowledge is experiment. This is a quote of British poet and artist William Blake (1857 - 1827). The quote is found in his 1788 book "All religions are one".
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  • In our society, if you love dogs, cats, or goldfish you're considered normal and even nice. Say a kind word for statistics and you're regarded as a little mad. This is a quote from Newsweek and Washington Post columnist Robert J. Samuelson (1945 - ). The quote appears in a column titled "The Joy of Statistics" in "Newsweek" on November 4, 1985.
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  • This song is an ode to bad teaching in statistics written by Dennis Pearl to be sung to the tune of Roger Miller's 1965 classic country/pop tune "King of the Road." Musical accompaniment realization and vocals are by Joshua Lintz from University of Texas at El Paso.
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