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                  Information about the first mid-term exam
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The first midterm examination is on Thursday, February 5, 1998.  Here
are some guidelines for it.  I will be posting sample questions and 
answers on the internet later on.

WHAT TO STUDY:
You are responsible only for topics covered in class.  Read Chapter 1,
Sections 2.1 through 2.6 (with special focus on Section 2.3), and
Sections 3.1 through 3.3, 3.A.2, and 3.A.3.  This applies to both the
third and fourth editions.  Skip all other sections not mentioned above. 
Do the practice problems.  Some of them have answers in Appendix B (C
in the third edition).  Answers for the remaining practice problems are
available from Soft Reserves.  Also, do the exercises marked with a
dagger.  Their answers are also in Appendix B.

You should be able to compute simple integrals such as the one in the
homework and apply them to calculate, mean, variance, and covariance. 
There will be no questions on the maximum likelihood method.  In Chapter 
3, you should be able to answer questions such as Exercise 3.6 in the 
fourth edition and 3.1 in the third edition as well as the last question 
in the homework.

WHAT TO BRING:
1) Pen(s) to write.  If you use a pencil, you forfeit the right to
complain about the grading, unless you pick up the exam from the TA's
office and take care of grading complaints before leaving his/her office. 
You need not bring paper or blue book because you will be writing the
answers on the paper itself.
2) A 4 inch by 6 inch index card or paper on which you should copy down
all formulas and any other information you think you would want to
reference.  Note that the index card should be handwritten and not
photo copied from the book.  The idea is that, in the process of
deciding what to copy and actually copying, you would have learned the
material and wouldn't need to look at the card except for messy
formulas.
THERE IS NO NEED TO BRING A CALCULATOR FOR THE FIRST EXAM.

TIME LIMITS:
You are not allowed to turn the cover page to look at the exam until
everyone has received the papers and I signal that you may start
writing.  Also, you must stop writing when asked to.  You will,
however, be given a two-minute warning so that you can wrap things up. 
TEN POINTS WILL BE DEDUCTED FOR EACH MINUTE OF EXTRA TIME IT TAKES YOU
TO STOP WRITING.

If you need help with difficult material, feel free to ask for help. 
Remember what I said, "One person can lead a horse to the water, but 20
cannot make him drink." There is no sense in going to the exam feeling
frustrated about materials you haven't understood.  In this course you
will not be able to study the day before an exam and expect to do well. 
You should be in constant touch with the material, the messages, and
all the assignments posted on the computer.  We are here to help as
much as possible, but you should do your part.  Doing the homeworks
will be of great help.  Don't expect any sympathy from me if you don't
turn in homeworks.
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