Friday, March 7, 2008
Mid term project summary
Use this Post to write a summary of the project that you want to do as a final presentation to the class at the end of the semester. You can relate it to your passions and dreams or create a new dream that you want to pursue. I want you to include some details and not just a general description. Maybe 500 words all together but really do not be strict about it. The number is just a very rough guideline. Include specific details. Once you invoke your imagination and thoughts you will be positively surprised as to the rich math/reasoing content. Think and feel in broad terms and outside the box. If you are confused do not worry, this is part of the process.
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27 comments:
When I first read the description of the assignment, which was a little vague, I was rather puzzled. I have never really considered math something that I enjoyed a lot, so there was never really a subject of math that I would enjoy to learn about. It took me some time to realize that maybe I should give math a second shot. I wanted to learn, or perhaps relearn, something that I would be able to use practically and on a frequent basis. I took Statistics in Psychology my freshman year here and did pretty terrible. What I intend to do is write a paper explaining the uses and showing examples of single, independent and dependent samples t-tests. I will also talk about how statistics in general apply to my daily life, and how they are particularly important as an applied psychology student.
So recently I've been very confused as to what direction my life will take. I've made the decision that for better or for worse I will concentrate my efforts into exploring my passion, rather than trying to ensure stability. After decided to concentrate my art, I realized I wanted to take a year off after undergraduate school and go traveling all around Europe, South America, Australia, and Asia, studying all the various local and historical art I can find. However I unfortunately will be limited by seriously tight funds. So for my project I want to research every place I want to go, and find the cheapest and most efficient way to travel. I may not be able to actually get to all the places, but I'll think out of the box, and find the best way possible. In addition, though maybe I won't present this, I intend to research local customs and behaviors, and to try and develop friends and contacts there. I'll present everything I discover colorfully and creatively, with some sort of display, and I'll hand something in with some of the more serious calculations
peace
Have a good break
Often, people turn to a faith in something grand--like religion--in order to contextualize and help explain the purposes and opportunities in life.
I look to the physiological processes of neurology to explain my psychology.
Because these feelings and perceptions build what I view as "reality", it's their presence--that results from the exact proportions of certain neurological chemicals--that is responsible for my view of the world and my place in it.
The abstracts of existentialism are analytical though not inherently mathematical.
However, the emission of chemicals in the brain that manifest into a certain emotion or thought is very much based on mathematical principles and proportions.
Therefore, in the synapses of the brain where energies are generated to be expressed as thoughts and moods, Math—not God—may be seen as the guiding force of perceived reality.
I plan on editing a film according to the fibonacci sequence of numbers. Each number will represent a frame of film...more to come later, I still have to figure out how this will work, but I'm excited either way.
I want to do my project on Sacred Geometry. I'm not exactly sure yet where I want to go with this, but I want to ultimately be able to show how math and geometry are intrinsic to universal existence. Sacred geometry is incredible because it shows that no matter how blind one is to synchronicities. we are all connected in this world through nature, as living examples of nature. I know that I want to start with collecting a series of geometrical patterns next to pictures and photos that exemplify the realities of sacred geometry in the universe. I also want to show how sacred geometry is truly an artistic example of the human condition as it can be found in all cultures dating back to the very beginning of civilization. I want to really find a way to show and reveal to each and every person just how deep the way of the universe runs through our being. When this is realized, all of a sudden it seems very difficult to look at "coincidences" as meaningless. All of a sudden everything has meaning.
For my project, i am going to investigate the correlation between sight and sound. Since there are 7 primary notes in music A-G, and 7 colors of the rainbow, ROYGBIV, that there must be some sort of connection, even if it is a human construct. I am going to research the origin of the western separation of notes as compared to let's say the Indian separation, which recognizes many more splits in the scale. If this leads to a dead end, i will still learn more about the mathematics and physics behind sight and sound
I am going to do mine on the math of black holes. I think black holes are incredably interesting. Im toying with the idea not really sure where it will take me, but I think its gonna be very interesting.
For my project I am going to explore the ways that children first begin to learn and understand math. My mother teaches preschool and kindergarden, and I have seen how differently a child's mind appraches abstract and concrete math than an adult mind. There are a variety of games and activities that teachers use to introduce mathematical ideas like counting, sorting, grouping, etc, as well as books and suggestions as to how begin teaching such strange concepts to kids.
I am going to be doing my project on people with autism and how they view numbers in math. Not all autistic children are good with number but many can solve long hard ecuations. I am going to talk about the thought process when solving these large calculations.
I wish to look at the Number 108 and what it means in Hinduism and Buddhism. I read a National Geographic article and in it there was this women who pushes 108 little beans (I think it was beans) everyday. The article said the 108 was a sacred number in their faith and so I want to learn more about this number and present it to the class. I am interested in “sacred” numbers because it is a really interesting idea to have a number considered “sacred”. What makes them be important, why do these numbers make people feel special toward 108. I will probably learn more about faith than math, but it is interesting to think that faith and math can be blended.
Ok. I am just reading your comments folks and am enchanted by the richness and diversity. Here are some specific comments:
A.J: Let us meet. I would like to learn about it also. I am very excited about your idea and I think that many students will benefit. Please start working on it.
Rachel: I think it is a wonderful project and maybe some other students in the class have experience and suggestions. It may be possible to connect you travels with volunteer work. For example the college nurse is going to Malawi to help orphans in the summer and by helping in such a situation you can learn a lot. Just an idea. Start exploring and manifesting your dream.
Leah, I would like to know more about your philosophy. In particular the sentence: "Math—not God—may be seen as the guiding force of perceived reality." Feel free to view math in a broad sense.
Brian. There is something interesting about timing and Fibonacci and the golden ratio. for example:
Imagine that you can make 2 kinds of sounds: short (1 beat) and long (2 beats).
Start cataloguing the sounds according to the total number of beats and alphabetize the results. You can also make the sounds to "feel" the answer.
(1,1) => {(1)}
(2,2) => {(1,1),2}
(3,3)=>{(1,1,1),(1,2),(2,1)}
(4,5)=>{(1,1,1,1),(1,1,2),(1,2,1),(2,1,1),(2,2)}
(5,__)=>?
(6,__)=>?
(7,__)=>?
This can be a start for you
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Ryan: We can make it into interesting class activities also with marshmallows and toothpicks. Do you know what I mean? Your idea is very interesting and many students will like to learn about it. It is also connected to what Dallas wrote.
Booke: I am personally very interested in your idea. It is connected to Ryan's also and I am very excited.
Julie: Black Holes... Let us go for it. I hope we will get back... Connect it to more ideas in astronomy and possibly with the power of ten movie.
Amanda and Melissa: Your projects are connected and you can consider working together. Also please write several dates: 4/26 (Saturday Math day 10:00 - 1:00) 4/6 (Sunday Library 1:00 - 2:30 math for kids)
This is also very deep interest of mine and I would like to know how you progress
Dallas: This is a wonderful idea and can tie with other sacred numbers also. I am looking forward to share and learn.
What I would like to do is show how Math operates in the world of Filmaking, and vice versa. My plan is to show how Math literally is used in film, as well as show a few examples of films that have scenes that involve math.
For example, one way that math is part of filmmaking is how the aperture functions on the lens of the camera, allowing in certain amounts of light.
My goal is to help show our class how Math is everywhere and is in all aspects of our lives. I also want to show the class how math is in our every day lives, and professions, as well as pop culture.
Heyo, just like Steve I am dealing with film... I am going to focus on all the math I have had to do to make my senior thesis. How math goes in to budgeting, technical aspects of film and even sound and editing. A little overview of it all with examples from my own senior thesis!
when looking at the description for this project, I was a little confused, and it took me a while to figure out what it is I wanted to focus on. While I was home over break, my younger sister was looking into what College she would like to attend. This sparked an interest in investigating the costs of different schools, and how they compare. For example, I would like to compare the costs of ithaca vs a commuter school, state school, etc, and see which would be the most cost efficient for my family. This involves statistics, as well as comparing. I think that this would be an eye opening experience not only for me, but for my family as well.
I have always been fascinated by the number three as a magical number in history. There are very direct religious connotations associated with the number, especially in terms of Christian belief (the Holy Trinity), and the number three appears very often in life. You often hear of the saying "everything happens in threes", and Shakespeare used the number three within the context of many of his plays, ie. the three witches in Macbeth. Three is also my lucky number, and I'm interested to do even more research on it in order to get closer to the origins of its frequented use throughout history.
I intend to demonstrate mathematical concepts in Indian classical music. Both South Indian and North Indian music uses mathematical concepts in their rhythmic forms.
I will first demonstrate the divisions and subdivisions of beats in Konakol, a South Indian rhythmic training system.
I will then play a clip of South Indian Konakol rhythms to give the class a sense of the beauty and complexity that emerges from these rhythmic structures.
Finally, I will briefly outline the use of mathematical concepts in rhythmic cycles in North Indian music and play a short clip of the music.
I have grown up always in the presence of many flowers, and I am intrigued by them. When I was younger I would take great pride in helping my parents plant elaborate gardens in our backyard. During the summer I work in a gardening center where I am in charge of taking care of and undertsanding the environmental necessities of many different types of flowers. As such, I decided that I would like to further investigate the relationship between the Fibonacci number sequence and the number and arrangement of different species of flowers' petals, leaf arrangements about different flowers' stems, and also sprials and sepals about the center of certain flowers (ie. sunflowers).
Im going to do one on the golden ratio, because, it has so many applications in so many fields, and people are finding more all of the time.
I have always been confused by math. But sometimes a mathematical concept would just occur to me out of nowhere, or I would work hard to understand it. Either way, I felt empowered when I understood math. However, this rarely occurred. And even more rare was associating math with fun. So for my final project I want to make a board game and incorporate mathematical elements in it. I'm not quite sure if it will be more of a children's game or one that has more difficult mathematical concepts for older players. But either way, this might be a good opportunity to bring math and a fun challenge together.
I would like to combine my love for poetry with my confusion for math. I'm wondering if I would be able to do this for my project by constricting myself with number values in writing poems--structuring the poems with different number values for things like meter, form, syllable count, rhyme, line breaks, etc. I thought about using some of the numbers I use most often in my life, or the numbers most important to me to provide the structure-my birthday, my family's birthdays, my phone number, my student id number, social security number, etc. I could also incorporate the fibonacci sequence into this-I could structure a poem around this number sequence. I think it would be interesting to see the result of the poems and the difference it makes in the reading of the poems, etc. I would also like to analyze some of my favorite poets' works to see if I can find some mathematical patterns in their poems (Sylvia Plath, E.E. Cummings, Adrienne Rich, Anne Sexton, and some published Slam poets). I will still have to work out the specifics, but I really hope we can work something out. :)
I would like to explore the relationship between math and music. Music has
always been a staple in my life and math has always been placed on the
back burner. Through my project, I would like to see how one of my
passions relates to one of my less than favorite subjects. Hopefully this
will bring more balance to my life and I will be able to apply this unity
to other subjects I like and dislike.
I will probably have some for of presentation that involves examples of
how math is involved in music. This will include- time signatures, tempo,
tuning and the circle of fifths. The circle of fifths seems very similar
to the Fibonacci sequence. Finally, I would like to play a solo for the
class on my clarinet or play some type of classical music.
In general I would just like to explore the universal languages of music
and math. These are two subjects that unite cultures rather than cause
conflict.
When I think about math now, my immediate thought is, "I'm horrible at it." But I remember when I was younger there were a number of years where I was an advanced math student and really enjoyed the subject. As I got older though, I suddenly started questioning my math skills, and began to think that I couldn't possibly continue to do well because I just didn't get it. So for many years now, I've just always assumed that I'm bad at math. But this class and another course I'm taking this semester have made me question if this is an actual fact, or a product of my initial self-doubt and surroundings. For my final project I want to delve into society's views on men, women and mathematics. I want to incorporate "Overcoming Math Anxiety" by Sheila Tobias and see how different approaches and mindsets taken may help young women in overcoming math anxieties or any notion that they just might not be as good at it.
I would like to do a mid-term project based on a book I recently read by Mark Haddon. The book is called The Curious Incident of the Dog In the Night Time, the main character in the book is autistic but he is brilliant with math and understands his life through it. I would like to prepare several passages to read to the class in order to demonstrate how math can help us understand the world when emotions are not available to us. Through this project we will uncover another language available to us in numbers and solutions in mathematics.
Obviously this assignment is very open ended. Several times in class Dani has talked about including our own passions and dreams in our project. This semester I am taking creative writing and have spent a significant amount of time exploring poetry. Although the genre is still very new to me, I have begun to fall in loving with reading and writing poems. In our creative writing class we spend much of our time exploring how the size, length of lines and number of syllables contribute to the rhythm of a particular poem. We have explored the various techniques poets use to produce a certain rhythm, and how the rhythm, often subconsciously, contributes to the effectiveness of the writing. In our own class Dani has shown us how these mathematical rhythms exist everywhere, and are the foundation for all sorts of creative skills and ideas. We have learned about how the Fibonacci numbers add up to produce a specific number of bars, or note lengths in music. I would like to illustrate the various patterns that produce rhythm in written language. I plan on writing a few poems with different syllable and line patterns. I would also like to read the work of some other poets, and with the class, decipher what techniques the poet uses to produce certain rhythms, and in turn evoke certain emotions.
One of the main points I feel Dani has been trying to get across all year is that math is everywhere, whether you are aware of it or not. Math can be found and/or applied to every situation that occurs in life, from the complex to the mundane.
One of my favorite parts of math is fractals. They are cool to look at and cool to think about (because they're everywhere!) So for my project, I plan on explaining fractals and their function in the world of math and the world we live in. I will focus specifically on the famous "Mandelbrot Set" as a visual guide.
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