STAT/MATH 318, Section 001- Elementary Probability

Fall 2016

Instructor: Priyangi Bulathsinhala

Class Time: MWF 1:25 pm-2:15 pm (8 Mueller Lab)

Email:

Office: Thomas 422B

Office hours: Monday 10:30 to 11:30

Tuesday 10:00 to 11:00

Friday 10:30 to 11:30

OR by appointment.

TA: Elana Hadjicosta

Email:

Office: Thomas 418

Office hours: Tuesday and Thursday 11:00-12:00

Prerequisite: MATH141 - The calculus techniques most frequently used in this course include: Differentiation, Integration, Series, and Limits.

Required Textbook: Probability and Statistical Inference, 9th edition, by Robert V. Hogg, Eliot A. Tanis, and Dale Zimmerman. It is important that you have the current version of the textbook. Older versions are not recommended and you may use an older version on your own responsibility.

Overview: In this course you will learn basic rules of probability, conditional probability and independence, discrete and continuous random variables, expectation, limit theorems, and some additional topics.

Grading: Your semester grade will be determined as follows:

Homework / 20% weekly (mostly due on Wednesday), lowest 2 will be dropped
Quizzes / 10% weekly (on Fridays), lowest 2 will be dropped
Midterm 1 / 20% Friday October 7th
Midterm 2 / 20% Friday November 18th
Final exam / 30% TBA

Lectures: Lectures are very important for you to understand the material and doing well on the exams. All the class notes will be available to you on CANVAS in pdf file format. However, these class notes will mostly be an outline of the lectures with enough space for you to take notes in class. Usually I will upload the class notes on CANVAS for each day 24 hours before the class starts. You MUST bring a printed copy of the notes with you to the class. Class attendance is required. Failure to attend regularly will put your success in the course in serious jeopardy!!! You MUST come on time and stay until end of the class unless excused by me prior to the class starts.

Homework: You will have weekly homework. Homework problems mostly will be from the textbook. I will post the homework problem numbers on CANVAS. Usually, homework will be due on Wednesdays and will be collected at the beginning of the class. NO LATE homework will be accepted!!! You may work together in groups, but each student MUST submit his/her written up homework separately, which should presumably reflect their understanding of the material. Be sure to put your full name, class section, and the user ID (e.g.: abc123) on the first page of your homework. If you have more than one page, please have the courtesy to staple the pages together.

Quizzes: On Fridays you will have in-class quizzes (closed-book) of about 5-10 minutes at the beginning of the class. You MUST be in the class by the time we start the class and if you come late, you will get a zero for the quiz.

Midterms: There will be two in-class midterms and they are closed-book. You are allowed to bring one, 8.5 × 11 (letter size) double-sided hand-written formula sheet. Please bring a calculator to the exams, as you will not be allowed to share calculators with others or your phones.

Final Exam: Final exam will be cumulative, which will be scheduled during the final exam period. You are allowed to bring two, 8.5 × 11 (letter size) double-sided hand-written formula sheets. Please bring a calculator to the exams, as you will not be allowed to share calculators with others or your phones. Time and location of the final exam will be announced later.

Late Assignment Policy: Homework will be collected at the beginning of the class. No late homework will be accepted under any circumstances. There will be NO make-up homework, quizzes or exams. Attendance for all midterms and the final exam is mandatory.

Grading Scale: The final letter grading will follow the standard University guidelines and are as follows:

F / D / C / C+ / B- / B / B+ / A- / A
<60 / 60 / 70 / 77 / 80 / 83 / 87 / 90 / 93

Academic Integrity:

All Penn State and Eberly College of Science policies regarding academic integrity apply to this course.

See http://science.psu.edu/current-students/Integrity/Policy.html for details.

Code of Mutual Respect:

The Eberly College of Science Code of Mutual Respect and Cooperation ( http://science.psu.edu/climate/code-of-mutual-respect-and-cooperation/Code-of-Mutual-Respect%20final.pdf/view embodies the values that we hope our faculty, staff, and students possess and will endorse to make the Eberly College of Science a place where every individual feels respected and valued, as well as challenged and rewarded.

Disabilities statement:

Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University's educational programs. If you have a disability-related need for reasonable academic adjustments in this course, contact the Office for Disability Services (ODS) at 814-863-1807 (V/TTY). For further information regarding ODS, please visit the Office for Disability Services web site at http://equity.psu.edu/ods/.

Campus emergencies:

Campus emergencies, including weather delays, are announced on Penn State Live(http://news.psu.edu/) and communicated to cellphones, email, the Penn State Facebook page, and Twitter via PSUTXT (to sign up, please see http://psutxt.psu.edu).

NOTE: Specifics of this Syllabus are subject to change, and I will notify of any changes. You are responsible for keeping up with any changes.