THE
MATHWRIGHT LIBRARY NEWSLETTER, October
2001, VOL 3, #6
A publication of Bluejay Lispware
James E. White, Editor
The official publication of the New Mathwright Library and Café:
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In this issue:
1]
Math@Home
2] What's New at the Library?
3] New for Teachers!
4] Your Vote Counts.
1] Math@Home
It
has never been a secret to teachers of mathematics that very little actual learning
takes place in a classroom. Learning is a spontaneous and unpredictable occurrence
that does not happen where we plan for it to happen, nor when
we plan for it to happen. But like a Quantum Event, it does happen often enough
to assure us that something is happening.
This
is not to say that the role of classroom teaching is in any way diminished by
this observation. Like
any process, learning must be prepared; and classes, courses, and even textbooks,
all contribute to the preparation of students' minds, so that they can take
the next steps. But it does mean that there are other forms of preparation that
can be equally effective in helping learning to happen, either within the context
of a classroom course, or outside of it.
At
the Mathwright Library we are, as you know, experimenting with some of these
alternative modes of preparation. We are particularly interested in supporting
home schooling and independent study. Library members may choose to learn a
new concept at the level, and at the pace that is comfortable for them. While
a virtual environment (a WorkBook or a Microworld) is no substitute for a teacher,
it can (in the best circumstances) give motivated learners the challenges and
the feedback that can help them take next steps.
And
we do not believe that there are any formulas for learning. A student can learn
logic by playing Mastermind, and can learn Calculus by placing a satellite in
geosynchronous orbit around the Earth. The most enduring source of new understandings
is play, not work. That is the function of play: to prepare learning.
And at the Library, we are an open learning environment. That is to say, we
are a Learning Playground. We salute independent learners of Mathematics
of all ages, and we will continue to support your efforts with our ever-expanding
collection (13 new Microworlds last month) and with the variety of formats in
which you may Play the Math!
2] What's New at the Library?
A
Library is no better than its cataloging system. With over 170 books, spread
over 72 rooms, it is especially important to make it easy for you to find quickly
what you are looking for. We have made several improvements that will be obvious
on your next visit to the Library and we hope they will simplify your search
for materials.
Interested
in LISP? Our free Mathwright32 Reader (discussed in the previous Newsletter)
has a free, fully functional LISP Language environment on the Objects Menu,
along with full online documentation for LISP. This includes a LISP Tutorial,
a listing and description of our over 350 primitive functions, and several large
LISP programs (Mastermind Game, a Prolog interpreter, Production System, and
many others). You may write and save your programs, and, if you open a Microworld,
your programs may interact with the objects on that page. Try it yourself with
MathScript Author Toolkit . Here
you may do interactive graphics and symbolic algebra on its Command Line page,
work with Access Data Tables, and so on. Along these lines, among the Microworlds
already available at the Library to be viewed in your browser are:
3] New for Teachers!
We
are pleased to announce Mathwright32 Author, our new 32-bit Microworld
builder. Mathwright32 Author finally brings to web authors a point-and-click
WYSIWYG interface that, together with our object-oriented mathematical scripting
language, reduces the time required to design interactive mathematical web pages
from months to days, and with experience, sometimes to a few hours.
A
Mathwright Microworld is like an Applet, with three differences. First, while
it is runs in Java in the reader's ActiveX enabled browser, it is generally
faster than a mathematical Applet because it uses a mathematics engine that
is housed in the MathwrightWeb Control -- running on the user machine.
Second, its object-oriented design and colloquial interface generally present
a more versatile and expressive learning environment to the reader than applets
can. Microworlds often span several web pages, and they can unify and integrate
ideas by illustrating them from several points of view, often with colorful
and dynamic simulations. And third, authors create these Microworlds with a
simple point-and-click interface that is much easier than Java to learn.
We
invite you to visit the MathwrightWeb Page
and download our free MathwrightWeb Control to see for yourself what we mean.
You will find in our Microworlds how easy it is to create and place on your
own web pages versatile and expressive mathematical stories, full of interactive
opportunities for your readers to experiment and explore the ideas you develop.
4] Your Vote Counts.
We
can use your suggestions as we translate our collection of WorkBooks into Browser
Microworlds. If there is a WorkBook that you would like us to make available
in your Browser as a Microworld, please let us know what that is. Your vote
counts, and we will create those Microworlds most in demand first. Also, if
there is a topic that you would like to see in the Library that is not already
represented (either as a WorkBook or Microworld) please let us know. You may
vote for these projects at our Contact Us
page.
James E. White, Ph.D.
Library Director