Purpose: The purpose of the Mathematical Software Course is to:
- expose the students to technical tools that professional mathematicians use,
- aid students in developing their mathematical abilities,
- provide a means of mathematical communication in an online environment,
- separate the requirement of mastering the use of mathematical software tools from the core course content,
- increase each student's understanding of her or his future course material.
Content:
The software presented in the Mathematical Software course will enhance each student's communication, presentation, visualization, and problem-solving skills. Proposed software will include, but will not be limited to:
GeoGebra:
GeoGebra is an interactive geometry software package which enables geometric constructions and algebraic manipulations. Constructions can be made with points, vectors, segments, lines, polygons, conic sections, and functions. All elements can be changed dynamically afterwards. GeoGebra has the ability to use numerical values or variables in designating, vectors and points. It can be used to make conjectures and prove algebraic and geometric theorems. Examples of this type of activity will be included.
Maple:
Maple is a powerful computer algebra system. It is a general-purpose program that can be used fro most mathematical work. There is extensive support for numerical computations, to specified precision, as well as symbolic computation and visualization. Maple is programmable. Custom user interfaces can also be created.
Students will be introduced to Maple using examples that will be similar in nature and scope to those that they will expect to see in later courses.
LaTeX:
LaTeX is a document markup language that can be used for creating sophisticated typeset mathematical documents. LaTeX is widely used by professional mathematicians, scientists and engineers. More recently, LaTeX has been used as the language of online scientific communication for individuals in a variety of disciplines.
LaTeX will be integrated with both Maple and GeoGebra to produce documents that include both static and dynamic mathematical diagrams. The course will also take a brief look at the history of mathematical communication and its impact on the development of the subject. |