21-325 Probability
Spring 2024
Instructor: Dr. Andrew Newman
Email: anewman@[Link]
Location: Wean Hall (WEH) 8220
Time: MWF 1:00 - 1:50 pm
Course catalog description: “This course focuses on the understanding of basic concepts in probability
theory and illustrates how these concepts can be applied to develop and analyze a variety of models arising
in computational biology, finance, engineering and computer science. The firm grounding in the fundamentals
is aimed at providing students the flexibility to build and analyze models from diverse applications as well as
preparing the interested student for advanced work in these areas. The course will cover core concepts such
as probability spaces, random variables, random vectors, multivariate densities, distributions, expectations,
sampling and simulation; independence, conditioning, conditional distributions and expectations; limit theorems
such as the strong law of large numbers and the central limit theorem; as well as additional topics such as large
deviations, random walks and Markov chains, as time permits.”
Course objectives For a student to be successful in this class they should
master standard concepts in probability theory.
be able to compute probabilities of events arising in real-world settings modeled by common distributions.
develop their ability to write mathematical proofs.
Course Page: [Link] Here you will find the Canvas page for our course. You’ll
find the syllabus, schedule of topics, and check your grades on Canvas. Through Canvas you can also access
Piazza and Gradescope. You’ll find the homework assignments on Gradescope and that’s also where you will
turn in homework and review graded work.
Instructor Office: WEH 7128
Instructor Office Hours: Office hours are MWF 2-3pm or by appointment.
TA/Grader: Licheng Zhang; office hours are TR 2-3 pm in Wean 8209.
Textbook: G. Grimmet & D. Welsh, Probability: An Introduction, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press (2014).
The book is available as a pdf for free from the university library page
Piazza: The messaging platform Piazza will be required for this class. I will use Piazza to send messages to
the whole class, and I’ve found that having student questions on Piazza generally works better for me than
having student questions in my regular email (though you can email questions to me without using Piazza).
When using Piazza to ask questions about the mathematical content of the course please make these posts
public (even if you do so anonymously) as often several students will have the same question. Other questions
(such as about your own solutions to a homework problem) can be asked privately. You should automatically
be signed up for Piazza through Canvas, but check during the first week and let me know if you have problems
with access.
1
Prerequisite: The official prerequisite is 21256 or 21259 or 21268 or 21269; 21127 is strongly recommended as
a prerequisite as well.
Technology requirements: Should the university have to switch to remote modality, you are required to
have a device with a webcam that can run Zoom and a stable internet connection. If we are required to still be
in remote modality during a scheduled quiz or exam, it is required that your webcam be on while taking the
quiz or exam.
Policy for lecture recordings: Any lectures may be recorded. The recordings of the lectures can be made
available to students who must miss class for a valid reason such as an illness. They will not be made available
routinely as a substitute for attending class at the scheduled meeting time. Recordings of class sessions are
covered under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA); under this federal law recordings of
this course must NOT be shared with anyone outside of the instructor, TA, and students of the course.
Grading Policy: Grades will be determined according to the following breakdown:
40% Homework
15% Lower of two midterm exam scores
20% Higher of two midterm exam scores
25% Final Exam
Homework: Graded homework will be assigned weekly, typically on Wednesday and due the following Wednesday
at 9 pm. Homework problems will generally be a mix of proofs and probability computations. The list of
problems will always be found on Gradescope; only the due date will be posted on Canvas. For homework
assignments, you are allowed to work with other students in the class, however each student must submit their
own solutions to the problems. Homework solutions are to be uploaded to Gradescope by the due date either
as a pdf scan of handwritten solutions or the solutions may be written in LATEX and uploaded as a pdf. When
uploading problems to Gradescope please match up problems with the pages on which they appear; this saves
time on grading. You may receive a 10% penalty on the assignment if you don’t match up your problems to
each page.
Late Homework Policy: I realize that sometimes life circumstances can have an impact on being able to
complete homework assignments on time. The way that I prefer to account for this is to impose only a small
penalty for late work. In general if you need up to two extra days you do not need to ask for an extension
instead homework will be accepted up to two days after the due date, however a 5% penalty of the assignment
total will be assessed for each day or part of a day an assignment is turned in late. There are some rare
circumstances where it may make sense to waive this penalty or to provide more of an extension and if you
think you fall into one of those cases you can email me to ask for an exception, but late homework submitted
due to having to prioritize work in other classes, travel, or a minor illness will be subject to the late penalty.
Homework will not be accepted beyond 48 hours after it is due.
Midterm Exams: We will have two midterm exams each covering roughly a third of the course content. These
exams are tenatively scheduled for
Wednesday February 21st and Wednesday, April 3rd
The midterms will take place during the regular class time. You will be allowed a page of notes (more details
provided later), but otherwise closed book and no calculators. There is a small chance that the exam dates
could change slightly.
Final Exam: The final exam will be scheduled by the university. It will be a two-hour exam. Roughly 50
percent of the final exam will cover material from after the second midterm and the remaining 50 percent or so
from earlier in the semester. For the final you will also be allowed a page of notes but no books or calculators.
Regrade requests: Everything will be graded on Gradescope. Regrade requests for an assignment should be
made within 7 days of when the grades for that assignment are published; after that regrade requests will be
closed. Don’t worry if you don’t see your grade on Canvas updated immediately following a regrade request.
Canvas and Gradescope grades will be resynced to reflect regrade requests all at once immediately before the
midsemester grade deadline and again immediately before the final grade deadline.
Grading Scale: 90% and above: A, 80% to 90% B, 70% to 80% C, 60% to 70% D, Below 60% R
Academic Integrity: You will be held to the standards set out by the university on issues of academic integrity.
Full details may be found at [Link]
In this course, all instances of suspected cheating will be reported to the university’s Office of Community
Standards & Integrity according to the established university policy. Cheating on an assignment, exam, or quiz
will also result in a grade of zero for that assignment, exam, or quiz AND a lowering of the final course grade by
a full letter grade. University policy includes severe penalties for a second offense up to and including expulsion
from the university.
Accommodations: Students may apply for accommodations at any time while enrolled at CMU. More infor-
mation may be found at [Link]
If a student is entitled to accommodations, they will provide their Summary of Accommodations Memorandum
to the instructor as early in the semester as possible.
Wellness Statement: We all experience a range of challenges in our lives that can interfere with day-to-day
responsibilities. Challenging life situations together with the demands of university life can cause a great deal
of stress and mental health concerns. CMU has many resources for handling such stresses to stay mentally
healthy. You can learn more about confidential mental health services at [Link]
Support from Counseling and Psychological Services is available 24/7 at 412-268-2922.