				--------------------------

				Self-Instructional Modules

				--------------------------





A challenge of addressing a multi-disciplinary audience is their 

diverse backgrounds. Consistent with the philosophy of this book, we 

strive to overcome this challenge by providing the fundamentals of 

analysis that cut across all disciplines. As a first step, this is 

accomplished by the following self-instructional modules. 



THE MODULES AND THEIR USE

************************* 



-- EMPIRICAL MODELING:  model construction based on empirical data

-- PROBABILITY:  the fundamental probability concepts that allow an 

understanding of what is information and imperfect information

-- PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTION AND QUEUING:  a continuation of the 

module on probability, illustrating how the technique could be used 

as a decision-making tool.

-- GRAPH OPTIMIZATION:  Illustrated by the Program Evaluation and 

Review Technique and Critical Path Method, these graphs serve as an 

excellent introduction to more formal optimization methods.

-- RISK ASSESSMENT:  a two-step procedure consisting of the 

determination of the short-term effects (such as costs and benefits) 

and the long-term effects (or secondary or higher-order effects)

-- LINEAR PROGRAMMING 1 ? MODELING: how the methodology is used to 

configure processes, programs, and plans

-- LINEAR PROGRAMMING 2 - ALGORITHM: The Simplex solution algorithm 

is illustrated in this module.



Each of the six modules is appended to a chapter with which the 

module becomes most relevant. However, some may wish to perform all 

six modules at the beginning of a semester, thus laying the 

foundation for what is to come.



Because of their ?work book? format, we have chosen to include these 

modules in the CD/DVD, with their complete solutions appended in the 

printed book. This way, students can work with the module in digital 

form, as well as in hard copies, and check their answers in a 

separate place. 



ACKNOWLEDGMENT

**************



As first drafted by Teaching Assistant Gary Hom, my faculty 

colleagues at Stony Brook University (State University of New York at 

Stony Brook), supervised the development of these modules. Trained in 

formal pedagogy, these colleagues include Robert Seidman and Thomas 

Liao, among others. 

