Mathematica Teacher's Edition.MATHEMATICA TEACHER'S EDITION. Wolfram Research Wolfram Research is an international company that summarizes its aim as "Pushing the Envelope of Technical Computing". The main product of Wolfram Research is Mathematica, an environment for technical computing. (100 Trade Center Dr., Champaign, IL 61820-7237; www.wolfram wolfram: see tungsten. .com; 800-WOLFRAM). Windows 95/98/Me/ NT/2000/XP, Mac OS or OS X; 165MB disk space, 32MB RAM, CD-ROM drive A device that holds and reads CD-ROM discs. CD-ROM drives generally also play audio CD discs by sending analog sound to the sound card via a 4-pin cable. For specifications of 10x, 20x, etc. drives, see CD-ROM drives. See CD-ROM, CD-ROM changer, CD-ROM server and CD-ROM audio cable. . 2 CD-ROM CD-ROM: see compact disc. CD-ROM in full compact disc read-only memory Type of computer storage medium that is read optically (e.g., by a laser). disks, user's guide. $195.00. A This is the latest in a series of products based on Mathematica, the well-known computer mathematics software from Wolfram Research. It bundles the Mathematica software with three additional capabilities: 1) a tool for generating problems and quizzes, 2) some demo material, and 3) some secondary school courseware. For those unfamiliar with Mathematica, it provides extensive support for doing mathematics on a computer, including graphing, computer algebra, symbolic calculus calculus, branch of mathematics that studies continuously changing quantities. The calculus is characterized by the use of infinite processes, involving passage to a limit—the notion of tending toward, or approaching, an ultimate value. and an extremely extensive library of functions and add-on packages. It also provides its own programming language, enabling users to extend the systems capabilities. Like other powerful mathematics software systems, there is a fairly steep learning curve for new users, but once over this hurdle there is little that can't be done in Mathematica. The Teacher's Edition includes a problem generator with an easy-to-use interface. I was able to generate a worksheet of simple linear equation problems (such as would be suitable for a high school algebra class) without learning the full Mathematica command language. The problem generator can vary the parameters of problems on a sheet and can also generate an answer key. The downside is that the problems included in this release are quite limited in scope, and there is no way to extend the types of problems that also make use of the varying parameters and answer key generation capabilities. The Algebra, Trigonometry trigonometry [Gr.,=measurement of triangles], a specialized area of geometry concerned with the properties of and relations among the parts of a triangle. Spherical trigonometry is concerned with the study of triangles on the surface of a sphere rather than in the , and Mathematics (AT&M) courseware included with the Teacher's Edition (and also available separately from Wolfram Research) is much more interesting. This courseware was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF NSF - National Science Foundation ) and Western Kentucky University Student Body Profile WKU had a total enrollment in the Fall Semester of 2002 (the latest published figures) of 17,818 students. Out of this total, 73% were full-time and 85% were undergraduates. Ethnic and racial minority enrollment was just under 13% at 2,097. and is part of the Interactive Mathematics Text Project. Some teachers may be familiar with Calculus & Mathematica, one of the early interactive texts initially developed by Jerry Uhl and Horacio Porta, and AT&M follows in its footsteps. In a traditional text (either a book or electronic form), the student reads the text and then works problems separately. In an interactive text, there are examples embedded Inserted into. See embedded system. in the electronic text for the student to experiment with, and the student uses the capabilities of Mathematica to solve problems in-line. This enables and encourages the students to "do math" while they are studying the text and is suitable for individual or small group work. AT&M lets students explore mathematical concepts, but in such a way that thinking is a must (i.e., the computer doesn't do all the work for the students, just some of the tedious work). Of course, skill development is still a critical part of any secondary school mathematics curriculum, but AT&M provides an interesting new approach to increase deeper understanding of mathematics. The Teacher's Edition also includes a selection of demonstrations on a variety of secondary school mathematics topics, from pre-algebra to calculus, developed by high school teachers. These provide useful insights into the possibilities of using Mathematica in the classroom and may be directly useful as classroom demonstrations (projected on a screen) or for students to work through in groups. There is also a wide variety of Mathematica material available on the Web and from Wolfram Research. In summary, Mathematica is one of the premier mathematics software packages available, and Wolfram has made versions that are much more affordable for schools than the full-priced product. While the problem generator in Mathematica Teacher's Edition is not yet as useful as it could be, the AT&M courseware that is bundled in is quite interesting and is definitely worth looking at for schools considering the purchase of software like Mathematica. Thomas Downey Thomas Downey could refer to:
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