Lesson 0:  A Gentle Introduction to Statistics

Contents

This lesson covers ... Professor Sungur and I (Anderson) both think that being a statistician is the greatest job in the world.  I think it is like being a data detective.  We look at a relatively small amount of quantitative information and observe what it has to tell us about a larger research problem.   In this course we will show you some of the ways that we can learn important things about the world from data.  You will then be on your way to becoming a data detective too!

Objectives

After completing this lesson, you should be able to appreciate some of the ways statistics is used in the real world.  We hope that you will be able to see that statistical applications are just about everywhere in the world.   It is actually very difficult to think of any academic subject areas, or career professions  that don't involve statistics in some way.

Key Terms

Reading Assignment

Start reading the text and check out the Internet sites below. 

Internet Links

Each day you go online, be sure to check out the Random Statistical Quote for the Day
 
  • Investigate the following examples from other Internet sites:

    • Study Questions

    1. Suppose you worked in a factory that bottled Coca-Cola, and your job was to ensure that the bottles were filled to the correct amount, say 2 liters.  How would you decide if the machines that fill the bottles were working properly?  Post your responses to the discussion board.
    2. Recent news programs have found that dairies and juice companies have been underfilling milk and juice containers sent to public school lunch programs.  This underfilling of containers costs school districts=taxpayers mega-bucks.  How could you discover if containers in your school district were being underfilled?    Again, post your responses to the discussion board.

    Study Notes

    Written Assignment

    None for this lesson.