Direct contact with professionals operating in the field give students experience in the complete process of data acquisition, analysis, hypothesis formulation and testing. Students acquire skills in modeling of relationships, iterative approximations to solutions, statistical analysis and curve fitting through applications of software packages to these areas. More significantly, the essential nature of these processes and their role in scientific investigation is revealed. Instruction will be provided through the lectures. Application experience will be gained through the assignments.
Discussions are a key component of the class.
It is important to read any material prior to the class and come prepared for participationClass time will be devoted to demonstration, explanation and discussion of concepts and techniques. Assignments will be used to apply and illustrate concepts, and techniques, and to develop orderly approaches to problem explorations. E-mail will be used for individual assistance and group discussions. The Internet will be used as a source of current information and expert assistance. Notes and examples will be made available through the WEB and file servers Recommended Materials You will need formatted 3.5 inch disks.