[AT] Blizzard of '78

Cecil Bearden crbearden at copper.net
Sun Jan 30 08:24:58 PST 2011 

Al:
Like my Dad used to say:  Figures lie and Liars Figure!
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Al Jones" <farmallsupera at earthlink.net>
To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Sent: Sunday, January 30, 2011 9:41 AM
Subject: Re: [AT] Blizzard of '78


>
> Cecil,
>
> I can't understand why any semi-rational person couldn't see that 
> statistics is a pure "junk" science!  Everything except the actual 
> mathematical computations is MADE UP!!  All it really tells you is what 
> MIGHT happen.
>
> I officially became a Ed.D. student in ag. education last spring.  Before, 
> I had taken online classes as a Post-Bacculeaurate (probably misspelled 
> but too lazy to spell-check) student for a couple years to get a 6th year 
> certificate.  Like Forrest Gump, I decided to keep on run-ning.  Anyway 
> the semester before I officially applied, I decided to take the first of 
> two statistics courses I have to take.  It was a struggle.  What really 
> got me was I took the tests in the evenings with the on-campus class, to 
> avoid having to miss school, arrange a sub for my classes, etc.  So I 
> would finish school, meet my wife, drive 2hrs. to Raleigh, take the test, 
> eat at Olive Garden, and come home.  That "got" me.  Anyway I finished the 
> course with a B-.  Then I read the fine print.  As a PBS student at NCSU, 
> any course you want to apply towards a real degree program must at least 
> be a "B!"  I emailed the professor and told him about it and was there any 
> extra work I could do, (I didn't ask !
> for a freebie) and he told me to "double check that, he wasn't sure that 
> was correct."  In other words, I think that was his way of saying I was 
> "screwed."
>
> The sad thing is, everything I will need to do with my data can easily be 
> done with a computer.  The interpretation part is what you really need to 
> know, and that part is easy.  I don't see myself ever picking up a 
> calculator to do any of those rediculous calculations again once I finish 
> this last course.
>
> Al
>
> -----Original Message-----
>>From: Cecil Bearden <crbearden at copper.net>
>>Sent: Jan 30, 2011 8:10 AM
>>To: Antique tractor email discussion group <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
>>Subject: Re: [AT] Blizzard of '78
>>
>>Al:
>>You are the first person to echo my sentiments of statistics.  I was in OK
>>state in 1973-75 I was told by my advisor that statistics would be an easy
>>course.  Every time he said something would be easy, I had problems.  I 
>>have
>>always been a black & white sort of person.  Right or wrong, it is or it
>>isn't.  Those random number tables at the back of the book were so foreign
>>to me.  I could nto believe that you coupld just open to any page and drop
>>your pencil and start getting numbers!!!!!!!!!   Later on in the course I
>>lost my random number book, and just made up the numbers.  I got the same
>>results....
>>That statistics course and the Agronomy 2124 (rocks & clods) were the 2
>>courses that ruined my 4.0 average.  I was working at a tractor shop and
>>hauling and trading used farm machinery while going to college, so I was
>>gone a lot.  The statistics prof was a real good guy, he was a young from
>>Australia, been here only 3 years..  I talked to him a lot after classes.
>>He had some great stories and I was the only one who wanted to listen to
>>them..  I told him I needed the credit to graduate since it was in my 
>>senior
>>year, and he said do not worry.  He gave me a C, and I mean Gave.....  I 
>>was
>>not so lucky with the Agronomy course.  I had to take a couple of
>>engineering courses at the local junior college in OKC to graduate.  Only 
>>F
>>that I ever had.
>>
>>Cecil in OKla
>>
>>
>>----- Original Message ----- 
>>From: "Al Jones" <farmallsupera at earthlink.net>
>>To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" 
>><at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
>>Sent: Saturday, January 29, 2011 11:56 AM
>>Subject: Re: [AT] Blizzard of '78
>>
>>
>>>I would have been PROUD of a Thursday night exam.  Ours were Saturday
>>>morning.  I went home almost every weekend to do farm work and doggone 
>>>sure
>>>had better things to do than set in Raleigh and take a exam on a 
>>>Saturday.
>>>The only thing was, in ag. education we were still at that time in the
>>>college of education, (we moved over to College of Ag & Life Sciences in 
>>>94
>>>or 95)and the requirement for us for chemistry was Chem 100!  No lab, 
>>>just
>>>3 hrs. of lecture a week.  The exams were still no push-over but I knew I
>>>was lucky to be where I was.
>>>
>>> I'm in the second statistics class I have to have for my doctorial 
>>> program
>>> right now.  All my other online courses have had take home, open book
>>> exams.  Not statistics.  You either have ot show up and take the exam 
>>> with
>>> the on-campus class, or make an appointment thru the NCSU proctoring
>>> center. I have managed to learn enough to know that the old saying about
>>> lies, damn lies, and statistics is 100% true!  There is truly no more
>>> made-up, pull-stuff-out-of-the-air discipline than statistics!
>>>
>>> Al
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>>From: David Bruce <davidbruce at yadtel.net>
>>>>Sent: Jan 29, 2011 9:39 AM
>>>>To: Antique tractor email discussion group 
>>>><at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
>>>>Subject: Re: [AT] Blizzard of '78
>>>>
>>>>In my days it was calculators rather than slide rules but the rest held
>>>>true.  Thursday night lemmings to the slaughter then lots of campus
>>>>unrest afterward (mostly water fights and drunks).
>>>>
>>>>David
>>>>NW NC
>>>>
>>>>On 1/29/2011 9:10 AM, charlie hill wrote:
>>>>> Al, ours were Thursday night exams.  90 minutes to work 30 problems in
>>>>> Harrelson Hall on those itty bitty swing up desks with a test booklet, 
>>>>> a
>>>>> work booklet an answer sheet and a slide rule.  You think things like
>>>>> Avogadro's Number or the Molar Gas Constant are tough on a calculator?
>>>>> Try
>>>>> them on a 23 scale K E or Post slide rule.   The answer sheet was
>>>>> multiple
>>>>> choice.  5 possible answers to each question.  The possibilities were
>>>>> the
>>>>> correct answer and the 4 most probably mistake answers.  You didn't 
>>>>> have
>>>>> time to check your work.  You pretty much had to go with the first
>>>>> answer
>>>>> you came up with and believe me it was on the answer sheet.
>>>>>
>>>>> Charlie
>>>>_______________________________________________
>>>>AT mailing list
>>>>http://www.antique-tractor.com/mailman/listinfo/at
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> AT mailing list
>>> http://www.antique-tractor.com/mailman/listinfo/at
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> =======
>>> Email scanned by PC Tools - No viruses or spyware found.
>>> (Email Guard: 7.0.0.21, Virus/Spyware Database: 6.16530)
>>> http://www.pctools.com/
>>> =======
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>=======
>>Email scanned by PC Tools - No viruses or spyware found.
>>(Email Guard: 7.0.0.21, Virus/Spyware Database: 6.16530)
>>http://www.pctools.com/
>>=======
>>_______________________________________________
>>AT mailing list
>>http://www.antique-tractor.com/mailman/listinfo/at
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> AT mailing list
> http://www.antique-tractor.com/mailman/listinfo/at
>
>
>
>
> =======
> Email scanned by PC Tools - No viruses or spyware found.
> (Email Guard: 7.0.0.21, Virus/Spyware Database: 6.16530)
> http://www.pctools.com/
> ======= 





=======
Email scanned by PC Tools - No viruses or spyware found.
(Email Guard: 7.0.0.21, Virus/Spyware Database: 6.16530)
http://www.pctools.com/
=======

More information about the AT mailing list