Addis Ababa University

College of Natural and Computational Sciences

Department of Statistics
Course Title: Probability and Statistics for Engineers
Course Code: Stat 2171
Credit hour: 5 ECTS
Instructor(s):
Contact hours: Lecture 3 hours per week, Tutorial 2 hours per week

Rationale of the Course: Although in areas like engineering the thinking and arguments
rely heavily on deterministic models engineering students must acquire basic knowledge and
skills about probability models by way of introductory statistics and probability theory so that
they will be able to make statistical inference.

Course description:
The course is designed for non-statistics major students. and covers the topics: Meaning of
statistics; methods of data collection; methods of data presentation; measures of central
tendency; measures of variation; elementary probability; random variables; probability
distributions, cumulative distribution function; common discrete probability distributions:
Binomial, Poisson and Geometric; common continuous distributions: uniform, Normal and
exponential; one and two dimensional random variables and their distributions, expectation,
covariance and correlation; moments and moment generating functions: simple linear
regression and correlation.

Objectives:
 To introduce students the basic statistical knowledge on data collection and presentation
methods, Measures of Central Tendency and Variation, probability and probability
distributions, one sample inference, regression and correlation;
 To enable students apply the methods of statistics in scientific research, decision making
and future career;
 To demonstrate the importance and practical usefulness of probability in real life;
 To show how probability is a necessary foundation for understanding statistics;
 To demonstrate the importance and usefulness of statistics in real life and on real data;
 To equip students to apply probability and statistical methods to solve standard problems
from a wide range of disciplines;
 To give students an appreciation of the limitations of these standard techniques;
 To enable students to communicate the results of their analyses in clear non-technical
language;
Learning outcomes:
At the end of the course students are expected to:
Upon completion of the module, students will be able to:
 demonstrate statistical techniques through principles of data collection, descriptive
statistics, present data and give interpretations;
 make statistical inferences using the knowledge they have acquired about probability
and distributions.
 We may add on this part
Course Outline

1. Basic Concepts, methods of data collection and presentation

1.1 Introduction
1.1.1 Definition and classification of Statistics
1.1.2 Stages in statistical investigation
1.1.3 Definition of Some Basic terms
1.1.4 Applications, uses and limitations of statistics
1.1.5 Types of variables and measurement scales
1.2 Methods of data collection and presentation
1.2.1 Methods of data collection
1.2.2 Sources and types of data
1.2.3 Methods of data presentation
1.2.3.1 Frequency distributions
1.2.3.2 Diagrammatic and/or graphical presentation of data: bar charts, pie-
chart, pictogram, histogram, frequency polygon, ogive, Stem and
leaf plot
2. Summarizing of Data
2.1 Measures of central tendency: objectives of measuring central tendency
2.2 Types of measures of central tendency
2.2.1 mean (arithmetic, weighted, geometric and harmonic), mode, median
2.3 Measures of location: quantiles (quartiles, deciles and percentiles)
2.4 Measures of dispersion/variation
2.4.1 range, variance, standard deviation and coefficient of variation
2.5 Standard scores
3. Elementary Probability
3.1 Deterministic and non-deterministic models
3.2 Review of set theory: sets, union, intersection, complementation, De Morgan’s
rules
3.3 Random experiments, sample space and events
3.4 Finite sample spaces and equally likely outcomes
3.5 Counting techniques
3.6 Definitions of probability
3.7 Derived theorems of probability
4. Conditional Probability and Independence
4.1 Conditional probability
4.2 Multiplication theorem, Bayes’ Theorem, total probability theorem
4.3 Independent events
5. One-dimensional Random Variables
3.1 Random variable: definition and distribution function
3.2 Discrete random variables
3.3 Continuous random variables
3.4 Cumulative distribution function and its properties

6. Functions of Random Variables

6.1 Equivalent events
6.2 Functions of discrete random variables and their distributions
6.3 Functions of continuous random variables and their distributions
7. Two dimensional Random Variables
7.1 Two dimensional random variables
7.2 Joint distributions for discrete and continuous random variables
7.3 Marginal and conditional distributions
7.4 Independent random variables
7.5 Distributions of functions of two dimensional random variables
8. Expectation
8.1 Expectation of a random variable
8.2 Expectation of a function of a random variable
8.3 Properties of expectation
8.4 Variance of a random variable and its properties
8.5 Moments and moment generating function
8.6 Chebychev’s Inequality
8.7 Covariance, correlation Coefficient
9. Common Probability distributions
9.1 Common Discrete Distributions and their Properties
9.1.1 Binomial distribution
9.1.2 Poisson distribution
9.1.3 Geometric distribution
9.2 Common Continuous Distributions and their Properties
9.2.1 Uniform distribution
9.2.2 Normal distribution
9.2.3 Exponential distribution
10. Simple Linear Regression and Correlation
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Fitting simple linear regression
9.3 Covariance and the correlation coefficient
9.4 Rank correlation coefficient

Suggested textbooks
Ross, S. (2018). A First Course in Probability (10th Ed.). Prentice-Hall, New Jersey.

Meyer L. P. (1970). Introductory Probability and Statistical Applications (2nd Ed.). Addison-
Wesley Publ. Co., Massachusetts.

References
Cheaffer, R.L. and McClave, J.T (2010). Probability and Statistics for Engineers (5th Ed.).
Duxbury Press, New York.

Lipschutz, S. and Schiller, J. (1998). Introduction to Probability and Statistics.

Mendenhall, W., Beaver, R.J. and Bearer, B.M. (2013). Introduction to Probability and
Statistics (14th Ed.). Duxbury Press, New York.

Walpole, R. E., Myers, S.L. and Ye, K. (2017). Probability and Statistics for
Engineers and Scientists (9th Ed.). Prentice-Hall, New Jersey.

Suhov, Y. and Kelbert, M. (2014). Probability and Statistics by Examples (2nd Ed.).
Cambridge University Press.

Teaching and learning methods

Lectures, tutorials and assignments

Mode of Assessment
Tests and/or assignments 50%
Final Examination 50%
Total 100%