PART I. Textbook problems from Moore & McCabe 

Chapter 3.2: 3.10, 3.15(part a only), 3.18

Chapter 3.3: 3.45, 3.48

(you may handwrite this part, pen or pencil, doesn't matter)

PART II. An Essay question from Professor Lew.

(THIS PART MUST BE TYPED)

Maximum Length: One page, two if you are wordy (don't spend > hour on this OK?)

Spacing: Single or double-spaced.

Guidance: This part is required for full credit. If you do the textbook problems above and fail to do this one, your homework assignment grade is an automatic 2/6 maximum even if you got the other ones 100% correct. Be as creative or dull as you want. Do not get upset by the word "essay" instead, pretend you are writing an e-mail or chatting about what you have learned in the first two lectures of Statistics 11/Economics 40.

Goal: To help you understand statistical concepts by having you to apply them in real-life situations.

Questions: After reading the handout from the first lecture on "Tired reporter flight-tests a product to combat jet lag", please answer the following questions somewhere in your essay:

  1. What are the explanatory and response variables?
  2. What is the "basic question" being asked in the study?
  3. Is this an experiment? If it is, tell us what feature(s) make it an experiment. If it is not, tell us why you believe it is not an experiment.
  4. Is confounding an issue here? If it is, please suggest some possible confounding variables.
  5. Suppose you were hired to replicate this study. How might you improve it? Pretend time and money are not a consideration.

If you have lost your copy or did not get one, go to the course web page or you can access it directly at http://www.fortmyersnews.com/00/11/business/d477896a.htm because you do not have subscription access to the Wall Street Journal.

Final Instructions: :WHEN YOU HAND THIS IN, STAPLE PART I and PART II TOGETHER. PUT YOUR NAME ON BOTH PARTS. PUT YOUR TA'S NAME OR THE SECTION YOU ATTEND ON THE FIRST PAGE. WE DEDUCT A POINT IF WE CANNOT IDENTIFY THE SECTION YOU ATTEND. THANKS FOR YOUR COOPERATION.