MONT 103N -- Analyzing Environmental Data

Syllabus and Schedule

• Course syllabus (.pdf)
• Detailed course schedule
• Natural World Cluster Common Events are listed in the course syllabus (see above)

Readings, Examples, Class Notes, Etc.

• Fable from David Foster Wallace's Kenyon College commencement address (2005)
• Fitting a logistic model -- class 1/30
• Chaotic behavior of some logistic models -- class 2/1
• Extract from Sherry Turkle, Alone Together
• A more humorous take -- Bumping into Mr. Ravioli by Adam Gopnik (from the New Yorker)
• Research on cognitive effects of "multitasking" and media immersion (Ophir, Nass, Wagner)
• Extract from Gotelli and Ellison, A Primer of Ecological Statistics
• Boxplots in Excel (instructions for various versions)
• Demo of Galton's ``quincunx''
• Study/discussion questions on The Botany of Desire
• Modern tulips
• The Semper Augustus tulip
• The Viceroy tulip
• "Tulipomania" -- the Netherlands, 1636-1637.
• Andean potatoes
• The Russet Burbank potato
• Our text's normal table
• Lecture Notes and practice problems on statistical hypothesis testing, corrected April 10
• Solutions for midterm exam.
• Study/Discussion questions on Hot, Flat, and Crowded
• A provocative opinion piece about environmentalism from NY Times, September 7, 2011.

Assignments

Notes: In the following assignments,

• ``LH'' means our main mathematical text, Quantitative Reasoning and the Environment by Langkamp and Hull.
• ``P'' means The Botany of Desire by Pollan
• ``F'' means Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Friedman

1. Group Project 1, class February 3 and 6.
   
   
2. Problem Set 1 -- due: in class, Friday, February 10.
   • LH Chapter 9: 2,3,7,9,14,15,23,28.
   
   
3. Problem Set 2 -- due: in class, Friday, February 17.
   • LH Chapter 11: 2,5,9,13,18.
   
   
4. Paper 1 -- due: no later than 5:00pm Friday, February 24.
   
   
5. Problem Set 3 -- due: in class, Friday, March 2.
   • LH Chapter 12: 4,6,7,10,12,22.
   
   
6. Group Project 2, class February 29 and March 2.
   
   
7. Information on Final Projects
   
   
8. Problem Set 4 -- due: in class, Friday March 23.
   • LH Chapter 13: 6,7,12,13,17,21,23,26.
   
   
9. Group Project 3, class March 26 and 28.
   
   
10. Problem Set 5 -- due: in class, Friday, April 20.

Information and Announcements

• Group Project 3 in class Monday and Wednesday, March 24 and 26. Please bring at least one computer for each group.
• Midterm Exam is coming up on Friday, March 30. Information and practice questions for the exam. Solutions for practice questions
• As announced in class on Friday, January 27, you can earn 1 extra credit point on the course average (up to a maximum of 5 points) this semester by attending any combination of the following exhibits, campus events, etc. and submitting a one-page reaction paper for each one.
  • January 24-March 21: ‘Painting Borges’ Exhibit in Cantor Art Gallery.
  • Now-March 11: Julien Hudson Exhibit at Worcester Art Museum (you will need to arrange for off-campus transportation)
  • Fri., February 17, 4:30: David Montgomery, Dirt: the Erosion of Civilization (O’Neil 112)
  • Weds., February 29, 4:30: LALS Fishbowl on Living in Multiple Languages (Rehm Library)
  • Weds., March 14, Seelos Film Series -- Margin Call, 3:00pm and 8:00pm
  • Thurs., March 15, 6:00: Bassam Haddad, One Year after Arab Spring (Dinand Browsing Room)
  • Weds, March 21, 4:00: Paul Mann, "Ancient Organic Matter that matters: The Cycling and Fate of Siberian Carbon" (O'Neil 112)
  • Thurs.-Fri., March 22-23: ``Michael Harrington’s Other America: Then and Now'' Conference (Rehm Library) (any of the talks)
  • Thurs. April 12, 7:30: Gabriella Petrick, Ethics of Industrialized Food (Rehm Library)
  • April 19, 12:30, Christopher Williams, Title TBD, topic - global carbon cycle seminar (O'Neil 112)
  • April 19-21, 26-28, 8:00: Shackled Spirits (Fenwick Theatre, Holy Cross)
  • Weds. April 25, 7:30: Marion Kaplan, Jewish Life in Nazi Germany (Rehm Library)

Related Links

• NOAA National Climatic Data Center (NCDC)

Academic Support for Students at Holy Cross

• Overall information: Academic Services and Learning Resources
• Support Services for Students Contact: Tina Chen (Director) x2713.
• Academic workshop schedule for Fall 2009
• The Writer's Workshop (In addition to the locations in Dinand Library, Stein, and Smith, check the Montserrat Moodle page to see when Writer's Workshop tutors will be offering sessions in Wheeler, Hanselman, and Mulledy. Contact: Elaine Hayes (Director) x3648.
• Holy Cross Libraries -- Contact: Patty Porcaro (Head of Reader Services), x3533.
• Counseling Center -- Office: Hogan 207, x3363.
• Career Planning Center -- Office: Hogan 203, x3880.

Downloading Information

Last modified: April 18, 2012