15.0791  Intro. to Applied Probability (meets with 15.079)

THE COURSE EVALUATIONS! THE COURSE EVALUATIONS!

We're only at 50%. Do it now!!!

Thanks,

Arnie

Announced on 15 December 2016  1:17  p.m. by Arnold I Barnett

Tuesday Tuesday

Hi Class,

On Tuesday from 3:00PM to 6:00PM I will be in my office, E17-365, for those who want to discuss material that we covered in my lectures and PSets and on Quiz #2. At 4:00PM that day, for those who are interested, we will move from my office location to a nearby classroom in E17 and I will give my blackboard overview that was interrupted yesterday by the fire alarm.

After 6:00PM Tuesday and on Wednesday I plan to be available by email for those who have remaining questions.

Hope to see many of you on Tuesday! And good luck studying!

Best,

* Dick

Announced on 15 December 2016  8:17  a.m. by Richard Charles Larson

Where or When?

Students:

First of all, FILL OUT YOUR COURSE EVALUATIONS!! As of now, the response rate for this course is 40%, which is far below average for Sloan School courses. Professor Larson and I will be laughingstocks if we don't get those numbers up!! Friday noon is the absolute deadline, but please don't wait until the last minute. I'll wait here until you finish....

OK, now that that's taken care of, I will be at our classroom E51-372 on Monday evening from 8-10 PM and Wednesday evening from 8-10 PM. Come singly or in groups, in Poisson manner or under a uniform distribution over the period. Also, I am always available electronically throughout the pre-exam period, starting now. Please don't be shy about contacting me: there are no "stupid" questions, only a chance to achieve clarity on a point you're unsure of. OK?

Good luck in the days ahead, in all your courses. Don't stress out; if you're anxious about our course, let us ease your anxiety. This is a Probability course; take a chance on us if you think we can help.

Arnie

Announced on 14 December 2016  11:40  p.m. by Arnold I Barnett

Review Interrupted

Hi Class,
Sorry that we had to evacuate E51 today as a result of a fire alarm. It must have been serious since 3 types of emergency response units quickly came to the building: The Cambridge Fire Department, the Cambridge Police Department and the MIT Campus Police. Interestingly, my first application of probability modeling – when I was an MIT grad student! – was to urban police, fire and emergency medical services! So, I have highest respect for these professionals, as they save many lives. When an alarm sounds, one never knows the extent of seriousness, so all must be treated seriously.

Within 24 hours, Prof. Barnett and I will send to you our plans for availability next week – to help answer any lingering questions you may have. For me, this is likely to be 3 hours in my office in Building E17, with one of those hours in a nearby classroom, going over what I was to go over today in class. I was thinking of Monday or Tuesday, 10:00AM to 1:00PM. The exact day will depend on Prof. Barnett’s schedule, as we would like to be available on different days --just in case several of you may want to meet with both of us.

More soon….

--Dick.

Announced on 14 December 2016  2:45  p.m. by Richard Charles Larson

Queues: A Thing of the Past?

Hi Class:

Yesterday we finished queueing theory and modeling. We have a couple of loose ends to complete on Monday, followed by the Psychology of Queues.

But, if you view the video on this new web site, you may see that retail queues are becoming a thing of the past: “Amazon Go – Shopping Technology with No Queues.”
http://www.michelleharris.social/amazon-go-shopping-technology-no-queues.html Enjoy!

Best,

- Dick

Announced on 08 December 2016  7:57  p.m. by Richard Charles Larson