MathNotations

[Updated using folders to reduce amount of visible text. Click on the arrow next to the Folder icon to see the frames below. Thanks to Desmos team for this helpful hint!]

CLICK ON GRAPH TO ACTIVATE DESMOS...

The Desmos activity above is both an investigation of parametric representation and a tutorial for more advanced use of this remarkable WebApp. The The text in the side frames begins with a detailed background of the activity for the instructor and how Desmos can be used to demonstrate projectile motion using both parametric and rectangular coordinates. Some of the uses of slider 'variables' are demonstrated including animation, a powerful feature of Desmos.

In addition to showing how to use parameters in Desmos, the activity itself asks students to compare two different trajectories, representing an object dropped from some initial height, then a 2nd object two seconds later. The horizontal translation of the first graph is juxtaposed against the algebraic representations of these graphs using both system of coordinates.

The student activity starts about halfway down. There is a series of questions and actions the student needs to take in Desmos.

I'm hoping this will prove useful for both the instructor and the student. Desmos is powerful but, in my opinion, some of the illustrative examples provided by Desmos do not flesh out the ideas behind the various uses of slider 'variables'. I'm hoping this will fill in some of those gaps. I'm still a novice here so I'm sure more advanced users will be able to improve upon this...

Your comments and reactions are very helpful to me...







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Posted by Dave Marain at 7:01 PM 0 comments

Labels: activities, algebra 2, Common Core, Desmos, investigations, parametric, precalculus, projectile motion

OVERVIEW
Intersecting circle problems are always interesting and often challenging whether you find them in the text, on SATs or on math contests. The general case involves trig and formulas can be found online.

The objectives of the problem below include:

• Drawing a diagram from verbal description
• Dissecting or subdividing an unknown region into more common parts
• Applying circle theorems and area formulas
• Solving a multistep problem (developing organizational skills, attention to detail)

THE PROBLEM
Two circles of radius r intersect in two points in such a way that the overlap is bounded by two 90° arcs. If the area of the common region is kr^2, determine the value of k.

Answer: (Pi-2)/2
Note: Please verify!

REFLECTIONS FOR MATH TEACHERS
[Note: These are discussion points --- not short answer questions with simple answers!]

• Should the diagram have been given to eliminate confusion?
• Does this problem appear to have any practical application?
• Have you seen a similar problem in your geometry texts? On standardized tests like SATs?
• In similar problems, were the arcs 60° or 90°?
• How would you introduce this problem? Is it worth the time to have students cut out congruent paper or cardboard circular disks, keep one fixed and move the other until it approximates 90° arcs?
Better to use geometry software?
• Assign this for homework? As a group activity in or out of class? As a demo problem with a detailed explanation provided by you?
• How much time would be needed for classroom discussion of this problem?
• Would you plan on providing extensions/generalizations?
• Too ambitious for "regular" classes? Appropriate only for Honors?
• So what makes this a Common Core activity? Are you guided by the Mathematical Practice Standards?

Posted by Dave Marain at 7:10 PM 2 comments

Labels: activities, circle problems, Common Core, geometry, mathematical practices, overlapping circles

Since pi day fell on a Sunday this year, we should still be celebrating it today. Besides, March should be declared pi-Month!


It is always fascinating to see how readership (or should I say one-time viewership) always picks up around March 14th every year! I feel obligated to add another pi Day activity or exploration in addition to those I've posted the past three years. By the way, the pi Day Scavenger Hunt is the most popular post by far and I'm not even the one who thought of that idea!


Despite the title of this post, I did not upload a video for this activity. However, there is another video on the MathNotationsVids Channel on YouTube.

Here is an investigation/exploration/activity for middle and secondary:

Part (A)
(i) List all ordered pairs of positive integers (m,n) such that
(1) 1 ≤ m ≤ 10 and 1 ≤ n ≤ 10
(2) m and n are divisible by the same prime p

For example, (m,n) could be (6,9) since 6 and 9 are each divisible by the prime 3.

(ii) Should (9,6) also be counted?

(iii) Another way of expressing Condition (2) is:
The _______________ of m and n is ________ one.
Answer: gcf; not equal to or greater than

(iv) If you listed and counted correctly, you should have found there are 37 ordered pairs which satisfy both conditions. If not, have a partner check your list. Each of you should be checking each other's lists routinely.

Part (B)
(i) Explain, using the multiplication principle, why there are 100 ordered pairs which satisfy Condition (1) above.

(ii) ) What % of all the possible ordered pairs from Condition (1) are relatively prime. If you have immediate access to the internet, research this term before asking your teacher what it means!

(iii) In probability terms, you could say:

If one of the 100 ordered pairs (m,n) from Part (A) is selected at random, the probability that
m and n are relatively prime is ____%.

Part (C) (more advanced)

If you have access to a graphing calculator, such as the TI-84 or TI-Inspire, enter the following program into memory (call it RELPRIME):

:ClrHome
:Prompt N
:0 → K
:For (X,1,N)
:For (Y,1,N)
:If gcd(X,Y) ≠ 1
:K+1 → K
:End
:End
:Disp K
:Stop

Using this program, complete the following table:

N..........Total # ord. prs..........# of not rel prime prs........% rel prime prs

10.........100.............................37....................................63%

20.........400............................ 145.................................

30

40

50

100

Notes:
K represents the count of ordered pairs which are not relatively prime
N represents the greatest value for the integers
gcd is found by going to MATH, then NUM, then 9:gcd(
The program slows down considerably as N increases. For N = 10, it checks 100 ordered pairs which may take only 2-3 seconds. For N = 100, it checks 100^2 pairs, which could take up to 4-5 minutes. Be patient!!

Conclusion: So what does all of this have to do with π ?
Well, as N increases without bound in the program, the probability that a randomly chosen ordered pair of positive integers (with values up to an including N) will be relatively prime approaches 60.7% rounded.

From out of the blue, compute 6/π²...
Want to know why? Well, that requires some advanced machinery involving infinite products, infinite series, and the Riemann Zeta Function! Perhaps, I'll do an informal development in a video. I love this stuff...


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"All Truth passes through Three Stages: First, it is Ridiculed...
Second, it is Violently Opposed...
Third, it is Accepted as being Self-Evident."
- Arthur Schopenhauer (1778-1860)


You've got to be taught
To hate and fear,
You've got to be taught
From year to year,
It's got to be drummed
In your dear little ear
You've got to be carefully taught.
--from South Pacific

Posted by Dave Marain at 9:07 AM 6 comments

Labels: activities, explorations, investigations, middle school, pi, pi day, probability, relatively prime