MATH 151: INTRODUCTION TO PROBABILITY THEORY Syllabus

Text (required): C.M. Grinstead and J.L. Snell,
Introduction to Probability, 2nd Edition. AMS.

This syllabus is tentative. It will be superseded by later versions as the course evolves. (Jan. 13, 2013 version)

# Date Topic Reading Assignment Due
1 1/9 Simulation of Discrete Probabilities Section 1.1 1.1: 1, 3, 9, 10, 15;
recommended: 1.1: 4, 12, 17
2 1/11 CANCELLED
3 1/14 Discrete Probability Distributions Section 1.2 1.2: 1, 6, 7, 14, 18, 28;
recommended: 1.2: 2, 3, 13, 15, 17, 21, 24
4 1/16 Continuous Probability Densities Sections 2.1 and 2.2 2.2: 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 18
5 1/18 Continuous Probability Densities Sections 2.1 and 2.2 2.1: 6 and 2.2: 5, 6, 9, 12, 13, 14
6 1/23 Permutations Section 3.1 3.1: 3, 7, 8, 10, 13, 16, 19,
recommended: 3.1: 9, 22
7 1/25 Combinations Section 3.2 3.2: 3, 7, 15, 26, 29
recommended: 3.2:9, 20
8 1/28 Card Shuffling Section 3.3 3.3: 1, 2
9 1/30 Card Shuffling Section 3.3 3.3: 3, 4, 5
10 2/1 In-class Midterm 1
solutions
Chapters 1, 2, and 3
11 2/4 Special Lecture: Percolation take-home Midterm 1
12 2/6 Discrete Conditional Probability Section 4.1 4.1:1,2,12, 40, 41, 42, 44
recommended: 11, 20
13 2/8 Continuous Conditional Probability Section 4.2 4.1: 16, 27 4.2: 2, 8, 10, 11, 14
note: we did #10. What does it have to do with conditional probability?
14 2/11 Paradoxes Section 4.3 4.3: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Project Proposal due
15 2/13
16 2/15
17 2/18 Project Description due
18 2/20
19 2/22
20 2/25 In-class Midterm 2
21 2/27 Special Lecture take-home Midterm 2
22 3/1
23 3/4
24 3/6 PROJECT DRAFT DUE
25 3/8
26 3/11
27 3/13
28 3/15
Final Exam Covers Chapters: