A First Course in Probability, Fifth Edition (reup)

The purpose of a first course in calculus is to teach the student the basic notions of derivative and integral, and the basic techniques and applica­ tions which accompany them. The very talented students, with an ob­ vious aptitude for mathematics, will rapidly require a course in functions of one real variable, more or less as it is understood by professional is not primarily addressed to them (although mathematicians.

The first course in Analysis, which follows calculus, along with other courses, such as differential equations and elementary linear algebra, in the curricu­ lum, presents special pedagogical challenges. There is a change of stress from computational manipulation to "proof. " Indeed, the course can become more a course in Logic than one in Analysis. Many students, caught short by a weak command of the means of mathematical discourse and unsure of what is expected of them, what "the game" is, suffer bouts of a kind of mental paralysis.

Welcome to new territory: A course in probability models and statistical inference. The concept of probability is not new to you of course. You've encountered it since childhood in games of chance-card games, for example, or games with dice or coins. And you know about the "90% chance of rain" from weather reports.