Archive for November, 2013
Leave Math out of the Equation?
For some different perspectives on Mathematics by Miss USA contestants…
Lightning and Lotteries – What are the odds?
The Mathematics of Probability is a fascinating one, and every day we take our chances in a variety of different situations (actually, some of our students take big chances every day, simply by running around corners without looking!). Impossible means a probability of 0; while certainty is a probability of 1.0 – that is, every […]
Build your own Koch Snowflake
The Koch snowflake is a mathematical curve and one of the earliest fractal designs to have been described. It is based on the Koch curve, which appeared in a 1904 paper titled “On a continuous curve without tangents, constructible from elementary geometry” by the Swedish mathematician Helge von Koch. (Source: Wikipedia). The Koch snowflake can be constructed by starting with an equilateral triangle, then recursively […]
Flipping out on Maths – with Pancakes!
Jacob E Goodman, a mathematician at the City College of New York, recently celebrated his 80th birthday. You probably don’t know him! Perhaps you also don’t know him by his pseudonym, Harry Dweighter. Confused? Wondering why a mathematician needs to disguise his identity? Here is the explanation from The Guardian: “Around 1975, Goodman was at […]
Mathematics Puzzles
I don’t know about you, but solving puzzles is great mathematical fun, including the logic ones. This site by Maths is Fun has a range of great puzzles for you to try in your spare time!
Getting Basic Algebra Skills with Dragon Box
“This app is absolutely fantastic at teaching the fundamentals of algebra. I was surprised at how quickly my 7 year old progressed from avatar like dragons to negative numbers and pro numerals. Now to get my class onto this great app.”
Learning Formulae is just Brain Clutter!
The student just wants to learn the formula and use this to get a correct solution and an “A” on their report. But, is this really learning? This article, from The University of Utah Math Department provides a compelling reason to NOT learn the formulae (or, “At least not rely only on learning the formula“- […]
How to improve in Math Class
Here are 7 golden rules for improving in your Mathematics at school. The most important one is to Pay attention in class. If you aren’t listening to the teacher, how will you possibly learn the math and pass the tests? Duh! That’s why it’s important to pay attention to the teacher when he or she […]
Mathematics helps design wind turbines
Mathematics contributes in many ways to the process of converting wind power into usable energy. For example, mathematical weather models are used to find suitable locations for wind farms, while other models specify how to place individual turbines within a farm. Finally, Mathematics (through the use of fluid dynamics) describes air flow and drag around […]