• Choose something that you could collect samples for at least 50 to 100 times over the next few weeks.
• You may already have data you can use in the form of historical data such as utility bills, telephone bills, bank statements, etc.
• If you have a job, you may be able to use data from work such as daily scrap figures, product sales, product returns, customer complaints, etc. You may be able to observe something at work to collect the data such as the number and types of pizzas ordered during peak hours or the type of merchandise returned by customers for credit.
• You may NOT use data collected by someone else, from a lab project or senior project, or already analyzed for some other project. This must be original data that applies to your personal or work life. Part of the value of the project is dealing with data collection issues.
• Also, please avoid anything to do with cars such as mileage or driving distance. Many students choose projects related to driving out of convenience and then end up short of data.
• If you can stratify the data in in any way, do so. For example, if your project is on study time, do not just record the hours you study. Also include the course, type of study (homework, preparing for a test, study group, etc.) and the location (library, home, lounge, etc.). If you choose meal cost, record the day of the week, location, food & beverage cost (any alcohol?), etc. That will give you a much richer data set to work with.
• You may already have the data available if you can get access to it. Don't forget to collect relevant other information with your samples that may become an important part of the analysis (e.g., time of day, person involved, machine used, shift, supplier, etc.).

Turn in a short project proposal on the date shown on the syllabus. The proposal should provide the following information and submitted using the "on-line" form:

1. Problem or issue you are interested in and how it applies to you.
2. Data source (e.g., phone bills, scrap log) and, if not already in your possession, how you plan to measure, make observations, or gather data. If you are going to use a spreadsheet or log to record data, what will the headings be?
3. What you hope to find out and maybe some idea of what you "expect" to find.

Analysis: Construct histograms, box plots, time series plots, and other visual displays of the data. Calculate averages, standard deviations, and other useful statistics. Make any other graphs or analyses that seem useful using either Mintab or EXCEL.

Present your findings in a PowerPoint Presentation. Grade will be based on thoughtfulness and thoroughness of your data collection and analysis. How you present your findings will be a major factor. Note: Just presenting pretty tables, charts and graphs without analyzing and interpreting them will not satisfy this requirement.

Keep in mind you will have only 5-6 minutes for your presentation. If you do not dwell on any slides too long, that means you can realistically present only about 6 slides total. I am putting a 8 slide maximum, including title slides (That will make two pages of handouts notes at 6/slides per page).

Please follow the following conventions for file names and subject lines when either emailing your presentation to me or uploading to Blackboard:

If your name was Brittany Spears then please name the file:
ime301spearsbrittany

In the subject field of your message, please put the course, your last name, and then a description:
IME 301 Spears - Project PowerPoint

Thank you!

Suggested outline for Powerpoint Presentation -

Slide 1: Title slide - Project Title, name, and quarter

Slide 2: Problem or issue and your hypotheses about the situation (what you expected to find) and brief description of data collected, sources, and methodology.

Slides 3-5: Findings(e.g., descriptive statistics, histograms, box plots, pie charts). Note: Do not include a data table unless there is a very good reason for doing so. They do not generally add to the presentation.

Slide 6 (note: could be slide 8 if maximum number are used): Analysis/Conclusions/Summary

Grading: It is recognized that each project will be different. How well you gathered relevant information and analyzed the problem you choose will be considered.

• Statistical Analysis: appropriate, thoughtful use of descriptive statistics
• Graphical Presentation: quality and completeness of graphical presentation
• Following instructions
• Oral Presentation: clear and well thought-out. Finished on time.
  

  Grade (Range)	Grading Criteria
  A (90-100)	Followed instructions well. Descriptive statistics were well-chosen and demostrated thoughtful consideration of options. Presentation was easy to follow. Graphics were nicely labelled and easy to see from anywhere in the room. Presentation was clear and understandable to the rest of the class. Did not exceed time limit.
  B (80-89)	Followed instructions well. Descriptive statistics were properly chosen and utilized. For the most part, presentation was easy to follow and graphics were nicely labelled. Most slides and easy to see from anywhere in the room. Presentation was mostly clear and understandable to the rest of the class. Did not exceed time limit.
  C (70-79)	Followed most instructions. Reasonable analysis. Meager analysis of available data. Graphics were not very easy to see or were poorly labeled. Mediocre presentation.
  D (60-69)	Instructions not followed well. Minimal effort with use of trivial or questionable numbers. Superficial or questionable analysis. Poor communication skills.
  F ( 0 -59)	Did not submit on time or did not follow instructions well. Missing major aspects of project. Poorly prepared or presented.