BSTA 001: Population Health Data Science (PHDS) - I
Coordinates and Contact
- Instructor: Tom McAndrew
- Email: mcandrew@lehigh.edu
- Office coordinates: HST 175
- Office hours: To be voted on by students | By appointment
Class Logistics and Resources
Class Time and Location
- Monday, Wednesday 12:10 PM - 1:25 PM in Packard Lab 258
Course Website
The course website is regularly updated at Course Website with short videos supporting classroom learning. Homework assignments, the midterm, and the final will be distributed in class.
Tentative Timeline
| Topic | Timeline |
|---|---|
| Sets, Sample Space, Probability | Weeks 1-2 |
| Conditional Probability, Multiplication Rule, Partitions, Bayes’ Theorem | Week 3 |
| Random Variables and Joint Distributions | Week 4 |
| Probability Mass Function and Functions of a Random Variable | Week 5 |
| Probability Distributions: Bernoulli and Geometric | Week 6 |
| Markov Inequality, Chebyshev’s Inequality, and Midterm | Week 7 |
| Continuous Densities and Just-in-Time Integration | Week 8 |
| IID Samples and Properties of Expectation/Variance of a Sum | Week 9 |
| Law of Large Numbers and the Method of Moments | Week 10 |
| Central Limit Theorem, Z-values | Week 11 |
| Confidence Intervals, Hypotheses, and Testing | Weeks 12-14 |
| Final | TBD |
Textbook
The course follows the Textbook
being written for this class.
Additional free resources include:
Policies
Attendance
Attendance is crucial. If sick, notify the instructor and stay home. Excused absences allow for makeup evaluations.
Collaboration
Work together, but submit your own answers. Collaboration on quizzes, midterms, and finals is prohibited.
Dishonesty, plagiarism, and violations of the Lehigh University Honor Code will be reported.
Technology
Computing
Python 3 will be used to illustrate statistical concepts. However, coding is not required for assignments in this course. Coding will be reserved for BSTA103 – Algorithms Lab II.
Assignments
Grading Breakdown
| Item | Weight |
|---|---|
| Quizzes | 25% |
| Homework | 50% |
| Midterm | 12.5% |
| Final | 12.5% |
Homework
Homework is due in person, one week after the assignment is given. Late homework grades are reduced as follows:
[
f(\text{grade}, \text{days late}) = \text{grade} \times e^{-0.35 \cdot \text{days late}}
]
Homework more than one week late is evaluated as zero unless related to documented mental or physical illness.
Exams
- Midterm: In-class, full period.
- Final: In-class, full period.
- Quizzes: Due by midnight on the same day they are assigned. No communication with anyone except the instructor is allowed for quizzes and exams.
Extra Credit
Extra credit opportunities arise through activities like attending out-of-class lectures, pointing out mistakes in course material, or suggesting relevant datasets or articles.
Grading
Grading focuses on technical correctness and clear reasoning. Brief, clear answers that explain your thinking are valued over just correct numerical answers.
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
Lehigh University provides accommodations through Disability Support Services. Contact DSS:
- In person: Williams Hall, Suite 301
- Phone: 610-758-4152
- Email: indss@lehigh.edu
- Online: Disability Services
Principles of Our Equitable Community
Lehigh University endorses The Principles of Our Equitable Community . Respect for differing viewpoints is essential inside and outside the classroom.