News Card 8

Top 10 Open Source Tools for learning and teaching Math

This article talks about open source softwares that can be used by students and teachers to study or teach math. What makes the following softwares great is that they are open source or free. Teaching math can be frustrating sometimes but with the help of software tools teaching math can be a lot easier.


SAGE – SAGE can be used for studying a wide variety of mathematics, including algebra, calculus, number theory, graph theory and more. It is used as an open source alternative to many commercial mathematics programs, including Magma, Maple, Mathematica and MATLAB.

Maxima – This popular computer algebra system puts an emphasis on symbolic computation. It can be used for advanced algebraic calculations and will plot functions and data in both two and three dimensions.

Octave – Octave is a high-level program that performs numerical computations. It is often used in conjunction with MATLAB. Octave is written in C++ and features its own interpreter that translates the Octave language.

Scilab – This advanced numerical computation package hails from France. Similar to MATLAB, this free program is a high-level programming language that can make large computations with just a few lines of code.

GAP – GAP is short for Groups, Algorithms, Programming. An algebraic computation system, its main focus is on computational group theory. GAP includes its own programming language, as well as large data libraries of algebraic objects.

OpenMath – This open source markup language is quickly becoming a standard for representing mathematical objects with their semantics. By using OpenMath, mathematical information can be easily stored, published and passed between computer programs.

OMDoc – Short for Open Mathematical Documents, OMDoc is a semantic markup language used for mathematic documents. OMDoc encompasses the entire range of written mathematic documents, unlike the aforementioned OpenMath.

Axiom – This general-purpose computer algebra system has been in development since 1971. Formerly known as Scratchpad, it was originally developed by IBM and has slowly evolved into a popular open source tool.

Macaulay 2 – This computer algebra system has a specific focus on polynomial computations. It was designed to support research in geometry and commutative algebra.

YACAS – YACAS, also known as Yet Another Computer Algebra System, is a general-purpose program for symbolic manipulation of mathematical computations. The purpose of this program is to make computer calculations easy for all.

Name: Mark Joseph Cabacang
ID: 551-9517

My WebQuest topic would be how to create a simple website using HTML.

News Card 7

Game Maker

http://gamemakerblog.com/2009/05/30/game-maker-in-schools/

Game maker is a computer software that is used to develop games. Game maker makes it easy for anyone to create games because of it's simple user interface and easy to understand tools, students don't even have to learn how to program to create a simple game. This software is a great introduction to the gaming industry which is a booming industry.

Game maker is currently being taught in many schools and children as young as 11-12 are learning how to use this software. I myself have used this software and is currently teaching my students how to create games with it, i find that my students love learning how to make games because most of them play computer games it is easy to capture there attention.

Mark Joseph Cabacang
ID: 551-9517

News Card 6

News Card 6

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20646933

The technology giant IBM said that it has developed a chip that can transfer data via light pulses instead of using electrical signals. This means data transfer can be transferred a lot faster compared to using electrical signals. This chip and technology does not only help with faster data transfer but it is also able to transfer bigger data compared to the other method.

So what does this mean for the public? It simply means faster internet speeds and higher data transfer rates.

Mark Joseph Bautista Cabacang

ID:551-9517

News Card 5

News Card 5

The company LearnSprout has announced two new apps that can be useful in schools. They have developed a software that teachers and administrators can use to identify at risk students. The software can get statistics from student attendance, grades and various demographic data and the data can be used by administrators and teachers to determine at risk students.

So that they are able to see the problem before it can happen. A very useful software in my opinion and a great tool for teachers to help students at risk.

Mark Joseph cabacang

ID:551-9517

http://markcabacang.blogspot.com/  

News Card 4

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20272810

US titan Supercomputer world’s fastest computer.

The computer named Titan, which is located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is the fastest computer in the world. The computer is used by companies to develop more energy-efficient engines for cars, model climate change and it is also used for researching alternative fuels.

The machine can also be rented by third-parties, and is operated as part of the US Department of Energy’s network of research labs.

Mark Joseph Bautista Cabacang

ID: 551-9517

News Card 2

New Card 2

The evoMouse

http://celluon.com/shop_evo_mouse.php

A new type of revolutionary pointing device has been created by Celluon, the company has named the new device evoMouse. With evoMouse, the fingers of the user will be the pointer and there will be no more pushing around of a physical mouse.

The evoMouse acts like a sensor and tracks the user’s fingers accordingly. Finger movements are then translated by the device as an input in the computer.

·         Works on nearly any flat surface

·         Use as a traditional mouse

·         Works as a multi-touch mouse

·         Uses your natural movements

·         Requires very little space

·         Less than half the size of a traditional mouse

·         May help reduce Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Mark Joseph Cabacang

ID: 551-9517

News Card 3

News Card 3 ICT

Smart Boards in the classroom

http://smarttech.com/us/Solutions/Education+Solutions/Products+for+education/Software/SMART+Notebook+collaborative+learning+software/SMART+Notebook+App+for+iPad

Now in Thailand and many other Asian countries they are integrating technology inside the classroom. One good example of this is the implementation of the Smart Board, which is an interactive whiteboard that uses touch for user input.  A projector is used to display a computer's video output on the interactive whiteboard, which then acts as a large touch screen

By using smart boards teachers are able to create an interactive learning atmosphere in the classroom for the students making learning fun and easy.  Thailand is also investing a lot of its resources to train teachers on how to use the smart board and how to incorporate it in their lessons.

http://markcabacang.blogspot.com/

Mark Joseph Cabacang ID: 551-9517

News Card Project Glass

 Project Glass

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Glass

 Project glass is a research and development program by Google which is developing a head mounted display. It is considered by many as the new great innovation by Google. It is capable of doing the same tasks of a smartphone but different in the way the user interacts with it. To interact with it users only need to use voice commands and it has all the functionalities you will get from a smartphone and more. Google glass is great if you want to capture memorable moments and in my opinion can be really helpful with everyday life.

Mark Joseph B. Cabacang             ID: 551-9517

ED6060 Assignment 1

ED6060 Assignment 1.

Mark Joseph Bautista Cabacang                ID: 551-9517      

1. How would you propose the plan to prepare students in your country to work in different culturally, technologically, and economically context?

There has always been a big gap between students in terms of technological and economical backgrounds. I believe that to minimize or lower this gap we must provide good quality education to everyone. To accomplish this we must make our education system free for all its citizens and there should be no divide between private and public schools. Usually students from private schools perform better compared to government students. What I mean by this is that the quality of education should be the same whether a student is in a private school or public school.

Educating students properly will equip them with the skills and tools they might use in the future and hopefully lower the gap between the rich and the poor.

To solve the technological divide we must first train our teachers to be able to teach ICT. Not everyone can afford to buy a computer so some students only get a chance to use one in school. I believe if we could provide students, computer labs around the city and let everyone use it for free it would be great help not only to the students but also to the community.

2. What has been done in your country in each context?  

The Philippines and every country in the world know how important and vital technology is for the future. To solve the digital divide The Philippine government has integrated ICT in their curriculum. The Curriculum Development Division of the Bureau of Elementary Education has focused on training teachers from all over the country to produce qualified teachers. The government has also focused on Assisted Instructional Materials in Math, Science and English subjects and have distributed nationwide. To solve the economical divide The Philippines has always offered to its citizens cheap education so solve the economical divide.