Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

Physics Faculty Use Of Example Solutions In Teaching Introductory Physics, William O. Mamudi

Masters Theses

This study investigates how physics faculty perceive and use features of example problem solutions. Thirty physics instructors from diverse institutions participated in semi-structured interviews. In addition to open-ended questions, three example problem solution artifacts were used to focus on specific solution features. Data were analyzed to identify instructors’ goals for the use of example solutions and whether their goals were consistent with the solution features that they valued and used. The study concludes that many faculty have three major goals: keeping students cognitively involved, helping students become better problem solvers, and supporting students in learning physics. The study also found …

The Measure And Instruction Of Scale In Introductory Chemistry, Karrie Linn Gerlach

Theses and Dissertations

As a student, it is fundamental to comprehend how small an atom or molecule is in order to truly understand how the world works. The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has determined that scale is a critical theme that pervades through all areas of science and is critical to a deep understanding. This project determined that students, which are more proficient with scale and moving between the macroscopic and particle worlds, were better performers in chemistry classes. Interviews were used to determine what the students understood and what common misconceptions were present. These lead to the development …

Color Models As Tools In Teaching Mathematics, Ma. Louise Antonette N. De Las Peñas

Mathematics Faculty Publications

In this paper we discuss various situations how color models and patterns can be used to simplify the study of abstract mathematics and serve as tools in understanding mathematical ideas. We illustrate the realization of such models through the development of advanced computer technology. In particular, we present how a computer algebra software such as Mathematica, or a dynamic geometry environment, can be utilized to facilitate the study of transformation geometry and group theory.

Controlling Nanoparticle Dispersion For Nanoscopic Self-Assembly, Nathan S. Starkweather

Master's Theses

Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter and devices on the nanometer scale. Below the critical dimension length of 100nm, materials begin to display vastly different properties than their macro- or micro- scale counterparts. The exotic properties of nanomaterials may trigger the start of a new technological revolution, similar to the electronics revolution of the late 20^th century. Current applications of nanotechnology primarily make use of nanoparticles in bulk, often being made into composites or mixtures. While these materials have fantastic properties, organization of nano and microstructures of nanoparticles may allow the development of novel devices with many unique properties. …

Using The Taylor Center To Teach Odes, Alexander Gofen

CODEE Journal

This article introduces a powerful ODE solver called the Taylor Center for PCs (http://taylorcenter.org/Gofen/) as a tool for teaching and performing numeric experiments with ODEs. The Taylor Center is an All-in-One GUI-style application for integrating ODEs by applying the modern Taylor Method (Automatic Differentiation). The Taylor Center also offers dynamic graphics (including 3D stereo vision). After a brief review of the features of the Taylor Center, we consider instructive examples of ODEs in various applications and also several particular examples illustrating intricacies of numeric integration. The article therefore continues the thesis of Borrelli and Coleman (CODEE Journal, http://www.codee.org/ref/CJ09-0157) that awareness …

Iowa Academy Of Science: The New Bulletin, V08n3, Fall 2012, Iowa Academy Of Science

New Bulletin

Inside This Issue:

--Message from the Executive Director

--Congratulations Jody Stone

--ISTS Fall Conference

--Sneak Peek at Academy’s new web design

--Getting More Science Teachers to Model “Doing” Science

--Iowa needs the Iowa Academy of Science

--Announcements, Events & Deadlines

The Awards Project: Promoting Good Practices In Award Selection, Betty Mayfield, Francis Su

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

Every year the MAA honors many members of our community with a wide variety of prizes, awards, and certificates for excellence in teaching, writing, scholarship, and service (see maa.org/awards). The winners exemplify our ideals as an association; consequently, they are often viewed as role models and leaders. So it is important to ask: Do these awards, as a whole, reflect the outstanding contributions of the breadth of association membership?

Collaborative Research: Linking Researchers And Graduate Students Through Cosee Tools & Services, Annette V. Decharon

University of Maine Office of Research Administration: Grant Reports

This proposal will be awarded using funds made available by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).

This award provides funds to conduct workshops aimed at improving the broader impacts efforts of scientists. Through professional development workshops, scientist-graduate student teams will produce interactive materials based on the ?Ocean Literacy? and ?Climate Literacy? principles that can be specifically designed for a variety of audiences. The primary target audiences for this project are the research scientists and graduate students who participate in the project workshops. Through team-building and COSEE-facilitated long-term contact, the project will provide sustained professional development …

General Aviation Weather Encounter Case Studies, John M. Lanicci, Massoud Bazargan, Daniel Halperin, Scott Shappell, Jaclyn Baron, Rebecca Iden, Carla Hackworth, Kali Holcomb

School of Graduate Studies - Daytona Beach

This study presents a compilation of 24 cases involving general aviation (GA) pilots’ weather encounters over the continental U.S. The project team interviewed pilots who had experienced a weather encounter, and we examined their backgrounds, flight experience, and weather encounter details. Results from meteorological data analysis for each weather encounter were consistent with findings of larger GA weather accident studies in terms of the types of hazards encountered and flight phase during which the encounters occurred. Investigation of pilot weather products and the sources from which they were obtained revealed a lack of uniformity of pre-flight data sources and underutilization …

An Item Response Curves Analysis Of The Force Concept Inventory, Gary A. Morris, Nathan Harshman, Lee Branum-Martin, Eric Mazur, Taha Mzoughi, Stephen D. Baker

Faculty and Research Publications

Several years ago, we introduced the idea of item response curves (IRC), a simplistic form of item response theory (IRT), to the physics education research community as a way to examine item performance on diagnostic instruments such as the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). We noted that a full-blown analysis using IRT would be a next logical step, which several authors have since taken. In this paper, we show that our simple approach not only yields similar conclusions in the analysis of the performance of items on the FCI to the more sophisticated and complex IRT analyses but also permits additional …

Sketchmate: A Computer-Aided Sketching And Simulation Tool For Teaching Graph Algorithms, Kristy Sue Van Hornweder

Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, we developed and tested a sketching, visualization, and simulation tool called Sketchmate for demonstrating graph algorithms commonly taught in undergraduate computer science courses. For this research, we chose to focus on shortest path and network flow algorithms. Two versions of this tool have been implemented: 1) an instructor tool that supports computer-aided manual simulations of algorithms that augment traditional whiteboard presentations, allowing lectures to be more dynamic and interactive, and 2) a student tool that supports computer-aided manual practice of algorithms that enables students to work through homework problems more quickly while providing detailed incremental feedback about …

The Abundance And Distribution Of Gelatinous Zooplankton In The San Francisco Estuary, Amalia Borson, Lindsay Sullivan, Wim Kimmerer

STAR Program Research Presentations

Until recently, gelatinous zooplankton were not considered important components of the San Francisco Estuary (SFE) foodweb. However, anecdotal evidence, ongoing research, and a few published reports and papers suggest an increase in their abundance over the last 10 to 20 years. Of particular interests are three species of introduced hydromedusae (Blackfordia virginica, Maeotias marginata, and Moerisia lyonsi). All three inhabit the fresh to brackish regions of the estuary, including Suisun Bay, the channels of Suisun Marsh, and the western Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and are seasonally abundant throughout late summer and fall. As a result, they overlap …

Characterizing And Supporting Change In Algebra Students' Representational Fluency In A Cas/Paper-And-Pencil Environment, Nicole L. Fonger

Dissertations

Representational fluency (RF) includes an ability to interpret, create, move within and among, and connect tool-based representations of mathematical objects. Taken as an indicator of conceptual understanding, there is a need to better support school algebra students’ RF in learning environments that utilize both computer algebra systems (CAS) and paper-and-pencil. The purpose of this research was to: (a) characterize change in ninth-grade algebra students’ RF in solving problems involving linear equations, and (b) determine conditions of a CAS and paper-and-pencil learning environment in which those students changed their RF.

Change in RF was measured by comparing results from initial to …

The Relationship Between Middle Level School Science Programs And A Residential Environmental Learning Center, Ryan Mathew Walker

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A multiple case study investigation examines the relationship between a residential environmental learning center and six schools that attend their program. Pre-experience interviews were conducted with teachers to gain understanding of how they integrate the residential experience with formal classroom instruction. On-site observations of teacher participation during the program provided insight into how they foster student learning during the experience. A student questionnaire was used to reveal students' perceptions of three areas of interest: 1) most meaningful aspects of the experience, 2) most confusing aspects of the experience and 3) topics they would like to know more about. These data …

Prime Ideals In Two-Dimensional Noetherian Domains And Fiber Products And Connected Sums, Ela Celikbas

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This thesis concerns three topics in commutative algebra:

1) The projective line over the integers (Chapter 2),

2) Prime ideals in two-dimensional quotients of mixed power series-polynomial rings (Chapter 3),

3) Fiber products and connected sums of local rings (Chapter 4),

In the first chapter we introduce basic terminology used in this thesis for all three topics.

In the second chapter we consider the partially ordered set (poset) of prime ideals of the projective line Proj(Z[h,k]) over the integers Z, and we interpret this poset as Spec(Z[x]) U Spec(Z[1/x]) with an appropriate identification. …

An Analysis Of Nonlocal Boundary Value Problems Of Fractional And Integer Order, Christopher Steven Goodrich

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In this work we provide an analysis of both fractional- and integer-order boundary value problems, certain of which contain explicit nonlocal terms. In the discrete fractional case we consider several different types of boundary value problems including the well-known right-focal problem. Attendant to our analysis of discrete fractional boundary value problems, we also provide an analysis of the continuity properties of solutions to discrete fractional initial value problems. Finally, we conclude by providing new techniques for analyzing integer-order nonlocal boundary value problems.

Adviser: Lynn Erbe and Allan Peterson

Commutative Rings Graded By Abelian Groups, Brian P. Johnson

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Rings graded by Z and Z^d play a central role in algebraic geometry and commutative algebra, and the purpose of this thesis is to consider rings graded by any abelian group. A commutative ring is graded by an abelian group if the ring has a direct sum decomposition by additive subgroups of the ring indexed over the group, with the additional condition that multiplication in the ring is compatible with the group operation. In this thesis, we develop a theory of graded rings by defining analogues of familiar properties---such as chain conditions, dimension, and Cohen-Macaulayness. We then study the …

Joanne Growney's Poetry-With-Mathematics Blog -- An Appreciation, Gregory E. Coxson

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

Now is a good time to work on the boundaries of practice and theory, of art and science. We are seeing a rising tide of interest in these boundaries. Witness the growing Bridges movement, which has been exploring the connections between mathematics and the arts. Similarly, JoAnne Growney's blog, Intersections -- Poetry with Mathematics, explores the connections between mathematics and poetry. Through this review, I aim to give readers a taste of what can be found in Intersections as a way of encouraging others, be they mathematicians, poets, or neither, to visit the blog.

Introducing Geoscience Students To Numerical Modeling Of Volcanic Hazards: The Example Of Tephra2 On Vhub.Org, Leah M. Courtland, Charles Connor, Laura Connor, Costanza Bonadonna

Numeracy

The Tephra2 numerical model for tephra fallout from explosive volcanic eruptions is specifically designed to enable students to probe ideas in model literacy, including code validation and verification, the role of simplifying assumptions, and the concepts of uncertainty and forecasting. This numerical model is implemented on the VHub.org website, a venture in cyberinfrastructure that brings together volcanological models and educational materials. The VHub.org resource provides students with the ability to explore and execute sophisticated numerical models like Tephra2. We present a strategy for using this model to introduce university students to key concepts in the use and evaluation of Tephra2 …

Spreadsheets Across The Curriculum, 4: Evidence Of Student Learning And Attitudes About Spreadsheets In A Physical Geology Course, Heather L. Lehto, H. L. Vacher

Numeracy

Spreadsheets have been used in education for teaching math concepts for years. However, when faculty at the University of South Florida began using a new set of spreadsheet-based modules to help teach students math and geology concepts the students were not receptive. The complaint most often heard was that students spent more time learning how to use Excel than they did learning the concepts presented in the modules. We began to wonder if the learning curve for Excel was so great that it prevented our students from attaining the level of learning for the math and geology concepts that we …

Quantitative Reasoning And Sustainability, Corrine H. Taylor

Numeracy

Quantitative Reasoning and Sustainability have much in common. Both are complex, nuanced concepts with rather long definitions that have evolved over time. Both subjects are “everybody’s business” on college campuses, and must be approached in courses across the curriculum, not merely in one course on QR or in one course on Sustainability. The growing, wider presence of both QR and Sustainability on college campuses is due to their applicability in individuals’ personal, professional, and public lives. Moreover, QR and Sustainability support and enhance each other in and out of the classroom. Sustainability is an important, authentic, relevant context for lessons …

Iowa Academy Of Science: The New Bulletin, V08n2, Summer 2012, Iowa Academy Of Science

New Bulletin

Inside This Issue:

--Message from the Executive Director

--Iowa Science Teaching Section Elections

--Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science

--Announcements, Events & Deadlines

--Iowa Academy of Science Saylorville Lake Summer Speakers Series

--REAP-CEP Funds Project WET Preservice Workshops

The Double Pendulum: Construction And Exploration, Benjamin J. Knudson

Physics

The exploration of a nonlinear mechanical system, the Double Pendulum, a physical pendulum on the end of a physical pendulum, using analytic and experimental approaches. Also included discussion of the design and construction of the Double Pendulum apparatus to work with Vernier LabPro and LoggerPro. The apparatus outputs live data of the angles to a LoggerPro which collects and produces time evolution graphs as well as a corresponding animation lending itself to comparison with theoretical models. Normal mode frequencies are found both analytically and experimentally for the the general (real) double pendulum. Examples of both simple (periodic) and complex (chaotic) …

The Weak Discrepancy And Linear Extension Diameter Of Grids And Other Posets, Katherine Victoria Johnson

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A linear extension of a partially ordered set is simply a total ordering of the poset that is consistent with the original ordering. The linear extension diameter is a measure of how different two linear extensions could be, that is, the number of pairs of elements that are ordered differently by the two extensions. In this dissertation, we calculate the linear extension diameter of grids. This also gives us a nice characterization of the linear extensions that are the farthest from each other, and allows us to conclude that grids are diametrally reversing.

A linear extension of a poset might …

Serious Game Design Principles: The Impact Of Game Design On Learning Outcomes, Michael W. Martin

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines the research question "How do video game design principles affect learning outcomes in serious games?" This research first develops a theoretical foundation concerning the meaning of the terms "game" and "serious game". This conceptual clarification is broken down into analytic propositions, which state that games have participants, rules, goals and challenges, and synthetic propositions, which state that the games should be intrinsically compelling, provide meaningful choices, and be self encapsulated. Based on these synthetic propositions, three hypotheses were developed. The hypotheses are that games with an enhanced aesthetic presentation, more meaningful choices, or provide player competition will …

Modeling And Mathematical Analysis Of Plant Models In Ecology, Eric A. Eager

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Population dynamics tries to explain in a simple mechanistic way the variations of the size and structure of biological populations. In this dissertation we use mathematical modeling and analysis to study the various aspects of the dynamics of plant populations and their seed banks.

In Chapter 2 we investigate the impact of structural model uncertainty by considering different nonlinear recruitment functions in an integral projection model for Cirsium canescens. We show that, while having identical equilibrium populations, these two models can elicit drastically different transient dynamics. We then derive a formula for the sensitivity of the equilibrium population to …

Formalizing Mission Analysis And Design Techniques For High Altitude Ballooning, Jeremy Straub, Ronald Fevig

Jeremy Straub

High altitude balloon (HAB) missions can be and are used to teach concepts related to spacecraft and satellite design. A HAB mission, however, presents unique characteristics, which must be understood and respected to produce a desirable outcome. Because of this, flying an unaltered satellite design as a HAB payload would be as undesirable as utilizing an unaltered HAB design as a satellite. A well-defined process for HAB mission design is thus needed. The process presented mirrors commonly used space mission design processes to facilitate easy transition between the two. It is also comparatively simple, due to the smaller scale of …

Une Histoire De La Formation Mathématique En France: Les Réformes Et Les Philosophies De L’Enseignement Primaire Et Secondaire De 1420 Jusqu'À Aujourd’Hui, Rebecca Robinson

Honors Theses

France has produced many illustrious mathematicians who have profoundly impacted mathematics as they are today. While Descartes, Cauchy, and Borel (among others) viewed math as a lifelong pursuit, they began their education in an elementary school classroom with everybody else. In this study, I explore mathematical reforms and governmental documents throughout history to show how the education system has grown to emphasize a strong mathematical curriculum for all students and have consulted many philosophical articles on both the importance of math in a student’s education as well as different views on the manner in which mathematics should be taught to …

Teaching Introductory Programming Concepts: A Comparison Of Scratch And Arduino, Anne Beug

Master's Theses

Computing has become an integral part of modern America. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that between 2008 and 2018, the United States will have 1.4 million job openings in computing fields [1]. Since the early 2000's (just after the "dot com bust"), the number of students enrolled in computing majors (Computer Science, Computer Engineering, etc.) dropped precipitously by over 50%, only starting to rise again in 2009 [2]. One way to rectify to this gap between demand and supply is to start training students in computational thinking during high school. While the Computer Science Advanced Placement AB test has …

College Of Engineering Senior Design Competition Spring 2018, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Fred and Harriet Cox Senior Design Competition Projects

Part of every UNLV engineering student’s academic experience, the senior design project stimulates engineering innovation and entrepreneurship. Each student in their senior year chooses, plans, designs, and prototypes a product in this required element of the curriculum. A capstone to the student’s educational career, the senior design project encourages the student to use everything learned in the engineering program to create a practical, real world solution to an engineering challenge. The senior design competition helps focus the senior students in increasing the quality and potential for commercial application for their design projects. Judges from local industry evaluate the projects on …