Use the preparation materials to prepare hand-written answers for the following questions. Please ask any questions on the "Questions -- Preparation Guide" on the course Team (see link on the homepage.)
  1. Define “statistics” (as a field of study)?
  2. What are the two major goals of statistics? Explain why each is important.
  3. What are the two types of variability? Specifically define each.
  4. What type of variability is represented by two pencils having different lengths? Explain.
  5. What type of variability is represented by the average number of pencils per student being different between two samples of ten students? Explain.
  6. What are the three “realities” (things that exist in “real-life”) for why statistics (as a field of study) exists?
  7. How does statistics (as a field of study) differ from a microscope?
  8. What are three “main activities” in statistics (as a field of study)? [These are not “realities”.]
  9. What was the “hottest skill” to “get people hired” in 2014 and 2015? [BTW, this is even more the case now!]
  10. What questions do you have from this reading that you would like me to address? [Please be as specific as possible. Don’t just say “everything” or “I don’t understand anything.” Of course, you can ask questions about the reading before class on MS Teams (see link above).]