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Statistics: From Data to Decision, 2nd Edition

ISBN: 978-0-470-55994-9

December 2009

832 pages

Description
This text is an unbound, binder-ready edition. This book teaches statistics with a modern, data-analytic approach that uses graphing calculators and statistical software. It allows more emphasis to be put on statistical concepts and data analysis than on following recipes for calculations. This gives readers a more realistic understanding of both the theoretical and practical applications of statistics, giving them the ability to master the subject.
About the Author
Ann E. Watkins is professor of mathematics at California State University, Northridge. She received her PhD from the University of California, Los Angeles. Before moving to CSUN in 1990, she taught for 15 years at Los Angeles Pierce College and before that taught junior high school.
She is the former president of the Mathematical Association of America, having served previously as second vice-president, governor of the Southern California Section, chair of the Coordinating Council on Education, and co-editor of the College Mathematics Journal. She is a former chair of the Advanced Placement Statistics Development Committee. She was selected as the 1994-1995 Cal State Northridge Outstanding Professor and won the 1997 Cal State Northridge Award for the Advancement of Teaching Effectiveness. In 1999, she was elected a Fellow of the American Statistical Association.
New to Edition
New Title
  • The name of the book has been changed to highlight two emphases of the college-level course. An informed citizen understands where data come from and has a feel for data and how to assess it. Also, familiarity with statistics as a discipline and mindset leads to critical thinking and sound decision making.

Reorganization of the Contents

  • The author team revamped the table of contents.
  • Chapter 3 (Relationships Between Two Quantitative Variables) was streamlined to focus on the descriptive statistics for correlation and regression covered in the college course.
  • Chapter 6 was heavily rewritten and reorganized, highlighting the big ideas of probability distributions—especially the binomial setting and binomial distribution.
  • Finally, Chapter 16 (Martin vs. Westvaco Revisited) takes another look at the opening case study from Chapter 1.

Examples

  • In addition to reorganizing topic coverage, the authors also added new examples throughout the book, selecting them from a wider array of scenarios, in line with the interests of students and the many majors that require the course.
Features
  • Emphasizes data analysis.
  • Data and problems are real rather than hypothetical.
  • Encourages students to be active participants in the classroom through activities and dialog.
  • Due to the emphasis on a variety of technologies such as graphing calculators and software, the text features many graphical displays and computer printouts.
  • Realistic models are provided for design and analysis of experiments and surveys at an intro level.