Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Representing And Interpreting Data From Playfair, Diana White, River Bond, Joshua Eastes, Negar Janani

Statistics and Probability

No abstract provided.

Question 1: Plowing Snow; Question 2: Wasted Food, Larry Weinstein

Physics Faculty Publications

[Extracted from the article] How much snow is shoveled or plowed in the U.S. in a typical winter? How much food is wasted at school cafeterias every year in the U.S.? For more Fermi questions and answers, see Guesstimation 2.0: Solving Today's Problems on the Back of a Napkin, by Lawrence Weinstein (Princeton University Press, 2012).

The Effect Of Self-Reflection On Relative Student Success In Undergraduate Calculus 1, Kevin Shryock

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This thesis examines the effect of completion and self-reflection credit on multiple aspects of undergraduate student success in Calculus 1. Specifically, this study assessed the validity of a plug-and-play classroom framework utilizing a combination of a holistic rubric and corresponding worksheets to direct students’ attention towards their conceptual understanding of material and written work, all while removing the pressure of performance grades on all but four summative assessments. By comparing students’ relative performance on these summative assessments, as well as students’ responses on regular surveys, this study found that students who chose to forego performance grades in favor of completion …

Cybersecurity Education Through Technological And Engineering Literacy Standards, Philip A. Reed, Steven A. Barbato

STEMPS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Dna Detectives: Protecting Endangered Species, Samantha Askin

Reports

Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography

For this lesson, students will be U.S. Fish and Wildlife Biologists. They will be tasked with figuring out which endangered or threatened species they have by identifying a genetic sequence unique to their species. The students will then have to research why their species in endangered or threatened and write a formal report of their findings to the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Old Macdonald Had An Aquaculture Farm, Shantelle Landry

Reports

Grades: 6 Subjects: Earth Science | Natural Resources

With this activity, students will learn the importance of aquaculture and how it can be used to manage a resource.

Isotopes In The Estuary: Conception And Application Of Stable And Radioactive Carbon, Derek Detweiler

Reports

Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Chemistry | Environmental Science | Oceanography

In this interactive estuary-focused activity, students will examine stable and radioactive isotope data which provide information about the source and age of environmental samples such as plant and soil matter. Students will calculate average isotope ratios from five reference land types (forest, wetland, agriculture, industry, aquatic) and an unknown site within an estuary. Students will graph their calculated ratios and determine the land type that most impacts their estuary based on reference-to-unknown comparisons.

Tiny Killers, Sarah Pease

Reports

Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography

What different methods and new technologies are used to monitor harmful algae and the toxins that they produce?

Students will learn about how harmful algae threaten human health through the processes of bioaccumulation and biomagnification. In small groups, they will design a harmful algae monitoring program based on mock harmful algae data, and then they will test their monitoring program and discover some of the challenges and limitations of any monitoring plan that attempts to measure variable, natural events.

What's In The Muck? Benthic Sediment Characterization And Community Structure, Cristin Wright

Reports

Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography

Sediment classification and grain size can affect the types of organisms that live in the sediment. Some organisms prefer sandier sediment, while others love the fine-grained mud.

In this activity, students will classify sediment samples by grain size and plot their findings on a ternary plot. The students will then further investigate which benthic organisms live in the different sediments and which may be more resilient to a change in sediment classification.

Trees Of The Seas, Michelle Woods

Reports

Grades: 6-8 Subjects: Biology | Life Science

What are harmful algal blooms and why do they occur?

In this lesson plan, students will run their own experiments to investigate how eutrophication can cause harmful algal blooms and investigate strategies for preventing them.

Feeding Time: How Nutrients Drive Phytoplankton Growth, Brianna Stanley

Reports

Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography

This lesson plan helps students make the connection between the amount of nutrients present in an ecosystem and the resulting growth of phytoplankton in our coastal waters. This lesson takes this concept a step deeper, by exploring how the proportions of nitrogen and phosphorus in the environment create the ideal conditions for phytoplankton growth. Students will explore the concept of limiting factors and will work on both their graphing skills and their ability to compare ratios.

Wave Fever: The Climate Induced Range Expansion Of The Atlantic Marsh Fiddler Crab, Kayla Martinez-Soto

Reports

Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography

In 2014, scientists found that the Atlantic marsh fiddler crab had extended its northern limit by ~90 miles to New Hampshire, which is in the Gulf of Maine. Range expanding species can alter salt marsh characteristics such as biodiversity and food webs. In this lesson, students will combine sea surface temperature data from a federal database and fiddler burrow densities from field photos to determine the relationship between ocean warming and range expansions.

Designing Mobile Apps To Promote Numeracy And Statistical Reasoning, Ma. Louise Antonette N. De Las Peñas, Mark L. Loyola, Jumela F. Sarmiento, Mark Anthony C. Tolentino, Debbie Marie Versoza

Mathematics Faculty Publications

Developing countries typically do not perform well in international benchmarks of mathematics achievement. This may be partially explained by students’ immersion in classrooms characterized by superficial strategies or rote-learning methods. This paper reports on the design of mobile applications (apps) developed by the authors as part of an ongoing project funded by a national government agency and intended to promote structural thinking and statistical reasoning. It describes the general features of the apps, as well as the pedagogical principles upon which the apps’ designs were anchored on. These principles are grounded on research and established practices on number sense and …

College Of Engineering Senior Design Competition Fall 2019, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Fred and Harriet Cox Senior Design Competition Projects

Part of every UNLV engineering student’s academic experience, the senior design project stimulates engineering innovation and entrepreneurship. Each student in their senior year chooses, plans, designs, and prototypes a product in this required element of the curriculum. A capstone to the student’s educational career, the senior design project encourages the student to use everything learned in the engineering program to create a practical, real world solution to an engineering challenge. The senior design competition helps focus the senior students in increasing the quality and potential for commercial application for their design projects. Judges from local industry evaluate the projects on …

Digital Simulations For Grade 7 To 10 Mathematics, Ma. Louise Antonette N. De Las Peñas, Debbie Marie Verzosa, Maria Alva Q. Aberin, Len Patrick Dominic M. Garces, Flordeliza F. Francisco, Evangeline P. Bautista, Mark Anthony C. Tolentino, Winfer C. Tabares

Mathematics Faculty Publications

This article describes a Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology (DOST-PCIEERD) project aimed to facilitate the implementation of the mathematical objectives raised by the Department of Education’s (DepEd) K to 12 program in the Philippines through the use of innovative digital technologies. In particular, a selection of application software (“apps”) were created for Grade 7 to 10 mathematics that covered topics indicated in the five strands outlined in the K to 12 program – namely (1) number, (2) geometry, (3) measurement, (4) patterns and algebra, and (5) statistics and probability. The design …

Alignment Of Theoretically Grounded Constructs For The Measurement Of Science And Chemistry Identity, Kathryn Nicole Hosbein, Jack Barbera

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Identity has been theorized to aid in student persistence within STEM disciplines. In this study, science and chemistry identity were defined as being recognized as a science or chemistry person within the classroom. To generalize the effects that identity has on student persistence, a measurable construct must be defined, operationalized, and tested in multiple settings with different populations. This project addressed the first step in the process, defining the construct and grounding it in an established theoretical framework. This qualitative project utilized a previously described physics identity framework, with sub-constructs of performance/competence, recognition, and interest, as a starting point for …

Electronic Field Trips For Science Engagement: The Streaming Science Model, Jamie Loizzo, Mary J. Harner, Deborah J. Weitzenkamp, Kevin Kent

Journal of Applied Communications

While institutions of higher education work to engage PK-12 youth in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) concepts and careers via in-person programming, PK-12 teachers and students face many logistical and access constraints for physically traveling to sites off of school grounds during the school day. Throughout the years, electronic field trips (EFTs) have offered a digital way for schools to engage in meaningful ways with museums, parks, laboratories, and field research sites. In order for EFTs to be effective, they should be cost effective and created collaboratively with teachers, students, subject matter experts, and instructional design and communication professionals. …

Student Perceptions Of Learning Introductory Mathematics In An Online Environment In Higher Education, Jamie Lynn Brooks

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the essence of student perception of learning introductory mathematics courses in an online environment at the college level. The central research question was, “What are the lived experiences of students who have completed introductory college mathematics courses in the online learning environment?” The phenomenon described was that of the beliefs and attitudes of the students who participated in introductory mathematics courses on the college level. The ideas explored were if students believe they learn effectively in this environment and how they believe they can best learn. Student beliefs and attitudes …

Read And Publish: What Can Libraries Expect?, Josh Horowitz

Charleston Library Conference

The author provides a publisher's perspective on the challenges and opportunities faced by a mid-sized society in navigating the current transition to open access licensing models.

Across The Atlantic: Service-Learning In Spain And Morocco, Lauren Ward

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

Purdue provides many activities in service-learning each year, and though they are varied experiences, many of the same lessons can be learned. I had the opportunity to participate in two service-learning study abroad trips while at Purdue- the first to Spain and Morocco, and the second to Haiti. While on these trips, I was involved in projects that seemed very different. In Morocco, my group taught high school students about the history of mathematics during the Islamic Golden Age and how mathematics is utilized in Purdue research. In Haiti, I worked with my teammates to teach water sanitation and storage …

Weather Courtyard: Reflections On Interactive Stem Learning Spaces, Ryan Day

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

In this article, the author discusses his experiences in service-oriented engineering developing an interactive weather station for DCES students. Day details this process and the lessons learned over the course of the project development, as well as the project’s influence on his aspirations for a career in civil and environmental engineering. To provide substantive takeaways from the project, he concludes by reviewing the benefits of interactive STEM learning spaces in the instructional environment and links them to the impacts of the weather station project on the community.

Exploring Modeling By Programming: Insights From Numerical Experimentation, Sean Laverty, Brittany E. Bannish

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Integrating Mathematics And Biology In The Classroom: A Compendium Of Case Studies And Labs, Becky Sanft, Anne Walter

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Engaging Undergraduates In Research In Mathematical Biology With Limited Resources, Timothy Comar

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Mathematical Modeling In Precalculus, Calculus I, And Modeling Courses, Megan Buzby

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

A Model For Cross-Institutional Collaboration: Addressing Diminishing Resources In Academia, Claudia Kolakowski

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Multidisciplinary Education And Research In Biomathematics For Solving Global Challenges, Padmanabhan Seshaiyer

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Introductory Geoscience Courses In Preparing Teachers—And All Students—For The Future: Are We Making The Grade?, Anne E. Egger

Geological Sciences Faculty Scholarship

Introductory geoscience courses enroll hundreds of thousands of students a year, most of whom do not major in the geosciences. For many, including future K–12 teachers, an introductory course is the only place they will encounter Earth science at the college level. New standards for K–12 science education have profound implications for teacher preparation, particularly in Earth science. The new standards call for taking a systems approach, highlighting how humans interact with Earth, making use of science and engineering practices, and engaging students in discourse. Analysis of responses to the National Geoscience Faculty Survey (n = 813 in 2004; …

Organic Chemistry Ii Lab Manual, Caitlyn Bailey

Senior Honors Theses

This project aims to supply a full lab manual and grading key for Organic Chemistry II, a class often taken by sophomores in Liberty University’s science degree programs. Properly applied laboratory experiments create a beneficial learning environment for science students by using hands-on procedures to transform intangible lecture concepts into concrete demonstrations. Lab work also fosters the development of problem-solving and critical-thinking skills that students need in research and the workplace. Thus, having a comprehensive lab manual is critical to students’ success and understanding in this upper-level class. This project adds to the experiments of Organic Chemistry II lab through …

Seeing And Understanding Data, Beverly Wood, Charlotte Bolch

Publications

Visual displays of data are commonly used today in media reports online or in print. For example, data visualizations are sometimes used as a marketing tool to convince people to purchase a certain product, or they are displayed in articles or magazines as a way to graphically display data to emphasize a certain point. In general, it is hard to imagine the majority of disciplines in science and mathematics not using data visualizations. However, before standard data visualization techniques were developed (and accepted by the community), mathematicians and scientists very rarely used graphical displays or pictures to represent empirical data.