A bachelor's degree program in chemistry typically starts with basic concepts in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. Those principles are very important because they pave the ground for future advanced studies and, therefore, one needs to present them in a clear but rigorous way. One example is provided by the mathematical notion of an iterative…

A series of Microsoft Excel spreadsheets were developed to simulate the process of separation optimization under isocratic and simple gradient conditions. The optimization procedure is performed in a stepwise fashion using simple macros for an automatic application of this approach. The proposed optimization approach involves modeling of the peak…

This article is written to share teaching ideas about using commonly available computer applications--a spreadsheet, "The Geometer's Sketchpad", and "Wolfram Alpha"--to explore three classic and historically significant problems from the probability theory. These ideas stem from the authors' work with prospective economists,…

Capstone courses in accounting programs bring students experiences integrating across the curriculum (University of Washington, 2005) and offer unique (Sanyal, 2003) and transformative experiences (Sill, Harward, & Cooper, 2009). Students take many accounting courses without preparing complete sets of financial statements. Accountants not only…

Each year our physical science class for pre-service elementary teachers launches water-powered rockets based on the activity from NASA. We analyze the rocket flight using data from frame-by-frame video analysis of the launches. Before developing the methods presented in this paper, we noticed our students were mired in calculation details while…

Discrete Mathematics instructors and students have long been struggling with various labelling and scanning algorithms for solving many important problems. This paper shows how to solve a wide variety of Discrete Mathematics and OR problems using assignment matrices and linear programming, specifically using Excel Solvers although the same…

This article was motivated by the authors' work on a project with a group of 2nd-grade students in a computer lab of a rural school in upstate New York. From this project, one goal of which was to provide a capstone experience for a teacher candidate in teaching application-oriented mathematics with technology, the ideas about parallel structures…

Simulation is an important learning tool that allows students to grasp probability concepts, especially when the actual scenario does not need to be replicated entirely. In the cases of tossing coins and rolling dice, gathering the data before analyzing them can be laborious and might be a waste of precious class time--time that might be better…

Lean manufacturing, an outgrowth of the Toyota Production System, has spread far beyond the automobile industry and is seen by many leaders as a key management philosophy in the battle to compete on an international scale. Successful implementation of lean requires that managers and employees be educated in the proper application of lean tools and…

In this article, the author explores how to use "PowerPoint" to support the mathematics itself, not just to "present" but actually to "enhance" learning. For the purposes of this article, she has explored three tools: colour, animation and hyperlinks. (Contains 1 note.)

This paper explores the use of spreadsheets to develop an exploratory environment where mathematics students can develop their own understanding of the parameters of commonly encountered families of functions: linear, logarithmic, exponential and power. The key to this understanding involves opening up the definition of rate of change from the…

Chemical process simulation is one of the most fundamental skills that is expected from chemical engineers, yet relatively few graduates have the opportunity to learn, in depth, how a process simulator works, from programming the unit operations to the sequencing. The University of Calgary offers a "hands-on" postgraduate course in…

We present an iterative procedure that does not rely on calculus to model heat flow through a uniform bar of metal and thus avoids the use of the partial differential equation typically needed to describe heat diffusion. The procedure is based on first principles and can be done with students at the blackboard. It results in a plot that…

Standard spreadsheet functions cannot compute bond yields if both the settlement and maturity dates fall on other than an interest payment date. Using reciprocal cell references, the RATE function is enhanced to overcome this limitation. An appendix extends the enhancement procedure to the IRR function. The procedure demonstrated has applications…

Developing personalized fitness programs to meet individual needs of students can be an overwhelming task for the physical educator. The National Standards for Physical Education (NASPE) indicate that students should achieve and maintain appropriate levels of physical fitness. To effectively meet standards with the growing diversity of curricular…