Overview

Logistics

Preparation

You will succeed in this class if you (1) attend lecture, (2) attend section, and (3) do the problem sets.

Assignments

Weekly check-in

Every week, while you finish working through the content, I want to hear about what you learned and what questions you still have. To do this, you will fill out a short-response on Canvas that simply asks you what you:

  1. found interesting or compelling from the content so far
  2. found confusing or muddly from the content so far.

Problem sets

To practice working with data you will complete problem sets throughout the quarter. Feel free to work together on the problem sets but you must turn in your own answers to Canvas. You cannot work in groups of more than three people.

Coding challenges (extra credit)

From time to time, I will hold in-lecture 🔥🔥 coding challenges 🔥🔥 that the whole class will participate in. Students will have the opportunity to earn extra credit during these challenges.

Exams

We will hold midterm and final exams. The exams will be in-person. The format will either be multiple choice (scantrons) or written (blue books) or a combination of the two.

The rules

Honor Code

Be nice. Don’t cheat. The Code of Academic Conduct is in effect in this class and all others at the University. I will treat violations seriously. If you have doubts, it is your responsibility to ask about the Code’s application.

ChatGPT (and other LLMs)

The world is still figuring out how to deal with large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT. My view is that ChatGPT is not functionally different from searching through online forums, Google, etc., for how to complete coding tasks. This is good practice, and I don’t want to discourage that, but there are limits:

  • what is allowed. You are allowed to use ChatGPT to figure out how to complete coding tasks (e.g., how do I make a barplot?)
  • what is not allowed. You are not allowed to pass off ChatGPT’s writing as if it was your own (e.g., submitting ChatGPT’s interpretation of some graph or data pattern) or ChatGPT code as your own (e.g., mindlessly pasting ChatGPT code into your homework)
  • Be careful. In my experience, these tools can be unreliable. Plus, if you over rely on them and don’t develop an understanding of the mechanics, you’ll likely suffer during the in-class exams.

Grade disputes

If you believe that you received the wrong grade on an assignment or exam:

  • send an email specifying exactly which questions you believe were graded incorrectly, and provide specific justification for why your answer is the correct one. We will then regrade your entire assignment. Your grade may go up, down, or stay the same
  • I will only accept grade appeals up to three days after the posting of a grade

Extensions on assignments

You can turn in the problem set/weekly check-in one day late, no questions asked, though you will lose a full letter-grade. Beyond that I will not accept late assignments without a formal excuse (e.g., a doctor’s note), so don’t ask! The final project will not be accepted late.