Material for Session 1

Material for Session 1: The Basics

Math Refresher:

Basic Algebra:
Basic Operations: + - * / ^ (or ** or Power(() ), !
Hierarchy of Operations: ^ and ! first, then * and /, then + and -
Evaluate stuff within ( ) first
Percentages
Logarithms
Function notation

Important Concepts:

Probability:

Probability of an event occurring: a number between 0 and 1.0 means it won't happen; 1 means it will; any fractional number between 0 and 1 means it might happen.
In the long run, the ratio of the # of times it happens divided by the # of opportunities for it to happen settles in on the probability.
Strength of belief that a statement is true.

Randomness: The absence of any pattern that could be used to predict future specific occurrences.

Random Variate: something (usually a number, but can also be a category) that arises from a random process.
Random Process: a process, usually a sampling or a measurement (but could also be a calculation) whose individual results do not conform to any pattern that could be used to predict specific future outcomes.

Distribution Functions: Formulas and/or graphs that describe how a particular type of random variate behaves.

Theoretical: a formula (with a graphical representation) that gives the probability of obtaining every possible outcome in some specific situation.
Actual: a bar chart ("histogram") showing the results of tallying how many of each outcome was actually observed.

Using the Web:

Start at: StatPages.net

Books:

Software: