MATH-408: Probability and Statistics 

---

Note: The following weekly notes are gnerated using Microsoft Powerpoint '97. This version is available at the Applied Mathematics Laboratory (Room 3-333 & 3-335). If you have any problem, please let me know ASAP. Thanks!
 

•  Collection of (statistical) techniques used in practice.

• Range from very simple ones such as graphical display, summary statistics, and time-series plots, to sophisticated ones such as design of experiments, regression analysis, principal component analysis, and statistical process control.

• Successful application of statistical methods depends on the close interplay between theory and practice.

• There should be interplay (communication and understanding) between engineers and statisticians.

• Engineers should have adequate statistics background to (a) know what questions to ask; (b) mix engineering concepts with statistics to optimize productivity; (c) get help and understand the implementation.

• The object of statistical methods is to make the scientific process as efficient as possible. Thus, the process will involve several iterations, each of which will consist of an "hypothesis", data collection, and "inference". The iterations stop when satisfactory results are obtained.

 Quality is something we all look for in any product or service we get.

• What is Quality?

• It is not static and changes with time.

• Continuous quality improvement program is a MUST to stay competitive in these days.

• Final quality and cost of a product are pretty much dependent on the (engineering) designs and the manufacture of the products.

• Variability is present in machines, materials, methods, people, environment, and measurements.

• Manufacturing a product or providing a service involves at least one of the above 6 items (may be some other items in addition to these)

• Need to understand the variability.

• Statistically designed experiments are used to find the optimum settings that improve the quality.

• In every activity, we see people use (or abuse?) statistics to express satisfaction (or dissatisfaction) towards a product.

• There is no such a thing as good statistics or bad statistics.

• It is the people who report the statistics manipulate the numbers to their advantage.

• Statistics properly used will be more productive.