This latter point will be the focus of the lecture. Think about the last time you had some breakfast cereal. It was probably fortified with extra vitamins and minerals. Don't you want the Food and Drug Administration to check that there's not too much of a mineral, or a contaminant such as Pb or rat poison, that could make the food unhealthy. Think about the last time you went for a doctor's visit.
Modern medicine relies on a variety of technological tools and clinical analyses.
The lectures will start with spectroscopy, which is discussed in Chapter 5 of Enke. Spectroscopy is a tool that you will use in the lab. We will start with it so that you are familiar with the principles when you use spectroscopy in lab. When we get to some examples, we'll use proper data analysis to demonstrate the statistical concepts for reporting uncertainty in experimental results. Introductory reading and problems in chapters 1 and 2 are listed on the course schedule.