algebra

Google 3-D Grapher

Google 3-D Grapher

Just type in x^2-y^2 into Google’s search box and you get the saddle figure – and you can move it around as well!  With these types of  ready- to -go aids for graphing, anyone can incorporate serious graphics into teaching and learning math. Click on the image  to see a “live” version of the surface  \(z=x^2-y^2\).

Efficient Math Commands for Wolfram Alpha

Wolfram Alpha is a free, online, computational engine. It provides some of the power of a computational algebra system (CAS) such as Maple or Mathematica without having to learn the proper syntax. However, it takes a little bit of practice to get WA to give exactly what you want. Here, I’ll give a list of queries that are commonly used… Read more →

Free Multimedia Algebra Review

There are seemingly an infinite number of free math resources on the Internet. However, very few provide the comprehensive content that are usually found in textbooks. One of these rare sites is Hippocampus. It is part of the Monterey Institute for Technology and Education and provides free multimedia ebooks for a variety of high school subjects and introductory college level… Read more →

The formula that ate your 401(k)

There have been quite a few articles recently discussing the mathematical models of the valuation of mortgage backed securities, and the house of cards that fell as a result. One appeared on WIRED and another in The New York Times . So what’s the take-away for college math education? Most of our math students are not in math intensive majors…. Read more →