RealWorldMath

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 * //Finding math in the real world is a habit of mind. Good math teachers see math in all things and are always thinking how they can bring math from the real world into their classroom . . . how can you make math come alive? My wish for you is that your life will be "cursed with math" (like the story [|The Math Curse]) and not only will you realize that everything in life is a math problem, but that you will inspire your students to do likewise.//**

=The One Week Challenge= //This collection is a list I put together in a week's period in 2011 where I thought I would just start documenting the math I noticed (I seem to always notice it, but I don't always note it.) Real world math often involves news stories and manipulatives and conversations that may not be captured electronically. Do not limit your imagination of real world math to just this collection.//

Fascinating [|New York Times blogger, Steven Strogatz,] who finds math in the real world and explains it in layman's terms.

[|13 year old copies Nature to Improve Solar Performance]

"Thirteen year old Aidan Dwyer was walking in the woods in Upstate New York in the winter and noticed a spiral pattern to tree branches. Aidan realized the tree branches and leaves had a mathematical spiral pattern that could be shown as a fraction. After some research he also realized the mathematical fractions were the same numbers as the Fibonacci sequence. 'On the oak tree, the Fibonacci fraction is 2/5, which means that the spiral takes five branches to spiral two times around the trunk to complete one pattern. Other trees with the Fibonacci leaf arrangement are the elm tree (1/2); the beech (1/3); the willow (3/8) and the almond tree (5/13).'

"The 7th grader next wondered why nature used such a pattern? He concluded trees do so to collect maximum sunlight. So, he constructed two side by side solar arrays - one a typical flat-panel array that was mounted at 45 degrees, and the second, a solar array based on the Fibonacci pattern of an oak tree. He put both outside facing south. To his amazement, during the month of December, the tree design made 50% more electricity, and the collection time of sunlight was up to 50% longer than the flat panel array!"



Remember this from geometry class? Why did we do it? How does it relate? What's the math? Photo by Theresa Overall. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

1. Ratio of an igloo's circumference to its diameter = Eskimo Pi 2. 2000 pounds of Chinese soup = Won ton 3. 1 millionth of a mouthwash = 1 microscope 4. Time between slipping on a peel and smacking the pavement = 1 bananosecond 5. Weight an evangelist carries with God = 1 billigram 6. Time it takes to sail 220 yards at 1 nautical mile per hour = Knotfurlong 7. 6.5 feet in the Twilight Zone = 1 Rod Serling 8. Half of a large intestine = 1 semicolon 9. 1,000,000 aches = 1 megahurtz 10. Basic unit of laryngitis = 1 hoarsepower 11. Shortest distance between two jokes = A straight line 12. 453.6 graham crackers = 1 pound cake 13. 1 million-million microphones = 1 megaphone 14. 2 million bicycles = 2 megacycles 15. 365.25 days = 1 unicycle 16. 2000 mockingbirds = 2 kilomockingbirds 17. 52 cards = 1 decacards 18. 1 kilogram of falling figs = 1 FigNewton 19. 1000 milliliters of wet socks = 1 literhosen 20. 1 millionth of a fish = 1 microfiche 21. 1 trillion pins = 1 terrapin 22. 10 rations = 1 decoration 23. 100 rations = 1 C-ration 24. 2 monograms = 1 diagram 25. 4 nickels = 2 paradigms 26. 2.4 statute miles of intravenous surgical tubing at Yale University Hospital = 1 IV League

Check out this infographic about the area of Indy 500 that starts to give you a "real world" feel for how big it really is. What can you let your students do along those lines that would let them explore area and come to understand it in ways not experienced/understood before? from July 2011 TIME magazine

=A few more since 2011= (a brief and rather random collection)

How could you use this infographic (which is actually a satellite photo) in your math class? How could you meet standard 2 using this?

[|The Batman Equation] -- real or faux?

Developing Proof Readiness with New Logic Puzzles (from a conference Dr. Grace and Dr. Theresa attended in August 2011--we did not attend this session, just heard about it--these are the handout and the PowerPoint from that session)

Found on Facebook:

-Artist Grant Snider created this awesome [|graphic that shows functions as they apply to an awesome part of real life: amusement park rides.]

What's the math behind mapping?

By the Capital Weather Gang at The Washington Post. August 27, 2017.

[|The Devil’s Bridge (Rakotzbrücke) in Germany] was built almost 150 years ago, back in 1860. Because of the unique construction accuracy, the bridge and its reflection merge into a perfect circle, regardless of the point of observation. Photo by A. Landgraf. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rakotzbr%C3%BCcke.jpg Used under the [|Creative Commons] [|Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International] license.

=Slope= >
 * [|Alpine skiing -- using slope percentage to measure difficulty of the ski slope or "piste"]
 * [|Bike trails (Elliot Gore's bike trip blog)]
 * [|Surface Water Drainage and Slope (thank you Nate P. Fall 2017)]
 * [|Wheelchair ramp]and [|Incline Calculator]
 * [[image:IMG_5334.jpg width="411" height="310"]] [[image:IMG_5335.jpg width="243" height="314"]]
 * Photos of Farmington's Community Center by Theresa Overall. Copyright 2017. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
 * Seen on a friend's Facebook feed 9/13/17 which was on the feed of Darryl Keith Tait. Photo by Darryl Keith Tait. Used with permission. This in Elfin Cove, Alaska. It's a ramp from the dock to the fishing crates.
 * [[image:IMG_5415.JPG width="312" height="415"]]
 * And in the comments section of this post was the photo below from Ryan Yeadon. I asked for permission and his reply was, "It's just some random pic I found online - it cracked me up so I posted it." Photographer unknown.
 * [[image:IMG_5416.JPG width="320" height="470"]]

=Resources=
 * [|Real World Examples]"Living Mathematics...//Plus// magazine opens a door to the world of maths, with all its beauty and applications, by providing [|articles] from the top mathematicians."
 * [|Real World Math]"Is a collection of free math activities for Google Earth designed for students and educators. Mathematics is much more that a set of problems in a textbook."
 * [|New York Times "What's going on in this graph"]
 * [|Travelmath] is a site whose motto is "Planning a trip? Let us do the math!" What are the algorithms behind this? How do they do that?! Travelmath is an online trip calculator that helps you find answers quickly. If you're planning a trip, you can measure things like [|travel distance] and [|travel time]. To keep your budget under control, use the [|travel cost] tools. You can also browse information on [|flights] including the distance and flight time. Or use the section on [|driving] to compare the distance by car, or the length of your road trip. Type in any location to search for your exact [|destination].
 * [|Fantasy Sports and Mathematics]"Fantasy sports are playing a significant role in student achievement in mathematics."