Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

An Analysis Of Differences In Approaches To Systems Of Linear Equations Problems Given Multiple Choice Answers, Amber Lagasse

Honors Theses and Capstones

This descriptive study focuses on the approaches college students (ages 20 -24) use when solving systems of linear equations problems that have multiple choice answers. Participants were from a midsize public university in the northeast. Four approaches were considered – three forwards approaches: 1) substitution, 2) elimination, and 3) graphing, and one backwards approach: plugging in the x and y values from each multiple choice option. Participants solved systems of linear equations problems and answered questions based on their methods in a structured clinical interview. Each participant also filled out a questionnaire. It was shown from the results of this …

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 …

Some Aspects Of Toric Topology., Soumen Sarkar Dr.

Doctoral Theses

The main goal of this thesis is to study the topology of torus actions on manifolds and orbifolds. In algebraic geometry actions of the torus (C * ) n on algebraic varieties with nice properties produce bridges between geometry and combinatorics see [Dan78], [Oda88] and [Ful93]. We see a similar bridge called moment map for Hamiltonian action of compact torus on symplectic manifolds see [Aud91] and [Gui94]. In particular whenever the manifold is compact the image of moment map is a simple polytope, the orbit space of the action. A topological counterpart called quasitoric manifolds, a class of topological manifolds …