Students will be introduced to the methods and statistical analysis used by
planners to ... Statistics for People Who Think They Hate Statistics by Neil J.
Salkind.
BIOP 522 Planning Methods Instructor
Fall Semester 2012
Dr. Mike Lowry Engineering Physics, EP 115D 208-885-0139 mlowry at uidaho.edu
Class time: Tues, Thur 9:30 pm – 10:45 pm Class location: EP 110 and sometimes EP 113 Instructor’s office hours: M, T, W 11:00–12:00 Or you can email me and I will set aside time.
Course Description This is an overview course of the methods used in making evidence based decisions in regional planning. This course will focus on the scientific method, statistics, hypothesis testing, regression analysis, spatial analysis, qualitative analysis, and design methods; giving students a feel for power and limitations of each. 3 credits, prerequisite: basic GIS course
Objectives
Students will gain an overview of how to think about making evidence based decisions Students will be introduced to the methods and statistical analysis used by planners to make evidence based decisions Students will gain experience using some of the tools at the disposal of planners to answer relevant questions and inform evidence based decision making
Topics Covered Part 1: Data Collection - ethics, survey design, interviews, focus groups, communicative rationality Part 2: Descriptive Statistics - measures of centrality and variation, scientific method Part 3: Hypothesis Testing - two sample t-test, paired t-test, ANOVA, chi-squared, correlation, multiple regression Part 4: Models - ordinary least squares, trip forecasting, population forecasting, land use forecasting
Class materials and website The syllabus and all class materials are subject to change until the instructor indicates otherwise. www.uidaho.edu/~mlowry/Teaching/syllabus.biop522.pdf
Required Text Statistics for People Who Think They Hate Statistics by Neil J. Salkind. Third Edition, Excel Edition. Sage Publishing, 2012. Note this is the Excel edition. http://www.sagepub.com/books/Book236672
Grading Criteria Grades will be assigned according to the following criteria: Participation in class or my office 8 Homeworks 2 Exams Total possible
5 80 100 185
points points points points
3% 47% 59%
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BIOP 522 Planning Methods Schedule Topic
Part 1: Data Collection
Part2: Descriptive Statistics
Part 3: Hypothesis Testing
Part 4: Models
Date T 21-Aug Th 23-Aug T 28-Aug Th 30-Aug T 4-Sep Th 6-Sep T 11-Sep Th 13-Sep T 18-Sep Th 20-Sep T 25-Sep Th 27-Sep T 2-Oct Th 4-Oct T 9-Oct Th 11-Oct T 16-Oct Th 18-Oct T 23-Oct Th 25-Oct T 30-Oct Th 1-Nov T 6-Nov Th 8-Nov T 13-Nov Th 15-Nov T 20-Nov Th 22-Nov T 27-Nov Th 29-Nov T 4-Dec Th 6-Dec F 14-Dec
Reading*
6 2,3 4 5
7,9 11,12
13 14 15 17 16
Discussion Introduction Data collection ethics Surveys Surveys Interviews Focus Groups Algebra and measurement scales Central tendency and variability Analysis Toolpack Histograms Charts and correlation Pivot tables Data organization Scientific method t tests Review/Catchup Midterm Exam t tests ANOVA single factor ANOVA two factor Correlation test Chi-squared test Regression Regression Regression Regression No class today No class today Traffic forecasting Population forecasting Population forecasting Review/Catchup Final Exam 7:30-9:30
Due*
HW1.1
* All Readings and HW (homework) are due before class begins. I will not accept late homework.
Homework HW1_Data_Collection.docx HW2_Descriptive_Statistics.docx HW3_Hypothesis_Testing.docx HW4_Models.docx
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HW1.2
HW2.1
HW2.2
HW3.1
HW3.2 HW4.1
HW4.2
BIOP 522 Planning Methods Data Files Student_Dataset_1.zip HW2&3_Data.zip
Websites For correlation test use this website: http://www.danielsoper.com/statcalc3/calc.aspx?id=44 For chi-squared test use this website: http://www.physics.csbsju.edu/stats/contingency_NROW_NCOLUMN_form.html
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