Lessons will now be posted in this guide. There is one topic remaining on the syllabus: statistics, the use of statistics to mislead, and erroneous conclusions drawn from statistics. This topic will be the focus of the lessons.
The final exam will be a take-home exam without fixed time limit; questions may require some independent investigation.
You are still responsible for the 4 essays on the syllabus. In addition, I will post "response" questions with most lessons. Responses to these questions replace the participation portion of the course grade.
Response Questions from lecture 3/18/2020.
1. Do all paradoxes fit one of the following categories: logical fallacy, self-referential, linguistic vagueness, linguistic ambiguity, or related to concepts of the infinite or infintessimal?
2. Even if we can successfully categorize paradoxes, can logical principles be adapted to prevent them?
3. Can you think of any ways that data can be deceptive other than those I listed in the lesson on statistical fallacies (part 1)?
4. Find two uses of statistics from your everyday life (could by newscasts, advertisements, websites, journal articles, etc.) Make one of them a use of descriptive statistics and the other a use of inferential statistics. Then analyze these two sources. Were the statistics used appropriately or deceptively? What evidence supports your conclusion?
This section begins with a list of planned lessons, posting dates, and suggested viewing dates. Blanks indicate the lesson has not yet been recorded. Once lessons are recorded, a link will be provided below, and dates will be filled in.
Lesson Topic Date Recorded Suggested Viewing Date
probability and distributions 3/29/20 3/30/20
data description: tables and graphs 3/29/20 4/1/20
data description: statistics 3/29/20 4/1/20
statistical inference: hypothesis testing 3/29/20 4/3/20
statistical inference: correlation 3/29/20 4/6/20
statistical fallacies part 1 3/31/20 4/8/20
statistical fallacies part 2 3/31/20 4/15/20
