Instructor: David Aldous
T.A. None.
Class time: MWF 10.00-11.00 in room 332 Evans
Prerequisite: Upper division probability (STAT 134 or equivalent). The course emphasizes student participation and initiative while offering students the opportunity to pursue intellectual curiosity in directions of their individual choice.
Courses in mathematical probability teach you to do certain mathematical calculations, but these are often far removed from broader questions about the the role of randomness in the ``real world" of science or of human affairs. In contrast, this junior/senior seminar course adopts the classical science paradigm: can we use probability theory to make predictions about the real world which can be verified or falsified by experiment or observation? In class I will talk about successes and failures of this paradigm. The only requirements for students are