Friday's Fact

What is the sum of the numbers (integers) from 1 through 100? Quick…don’t use Excel or a calculator. Think about it and see the pattern. There is a VERY easy way to do it. A 5 year old can and did in seconds. You can too, if you see the pattern.

Last week’s fact: Modern earth moving equipment make extremely accurate cuts in the ground…how is this possible? Modern equipment tracks position data from satellites, lasers and other integrated topographical information to make exact cuts in the ground. (More)

R. L. Moore on teaching Math

This post is from Las Vegas on a Blackberry so forgive typos etc.

One of the items we discussed with Jim Lemke was the disgraceful state of affairs that students find themselves in when faced with their lack of math skills. This is not the fault of the student. It is however a result of the way math is taught. Jim is working on changing the way students are exposed to the concepts of math and he has adopted the teaching methods of R. L. Moore. Jim is working with five universities, including Harvard, to spread the word about the best way to learn anything!

Imagine learning in an environment that prohibits lectures, textbooks, and collaboration with other students. The method requires students to solve problems on their own. You should look into Moores' work and concepts.

Learning and Lemke

Jim Lemke joined Howard, Mona and me for lunch at National University today and we had an enjoyable conversation about learning. I later found this letter posted on the net and thought I would share it here.

Date: 20 May 96
From: James Lemke
To: William Mahavier
Subject: Re: discovery

I think we are viewing the learning process the same way, but I can see where my last missive might have concerned you.

The finest formal learning process I ever experienced was after you and John accepted me and a few others as undergraduate students with the admonition that we were not to read any mathematic texts for two years. You stated plausible propositions, and if we accepted them, you told us to prove them. As we struggled with our "almost" proofs that were usually shot down by one of the other students finding a pathological set that blew it, you patiently stated ever-new propositions that were seemingly irrelevant at the time but which knit what we were doing into more sophisticated things to come. I'll never forget the thrill of reading Courant and Hilbert's Calculus when you released us to read. Some of the set proofs that I had created very clumsily were done in such elegance and apparent simplicity that it was stunning. I would not have appreciated the subtleties of their short proofs without having experienced every other possible way to tackle the proposition, myself.

The proofs we did in learning what turned out to be the Picard method of successive approximations were very illuminating for later work with differential equations.

Learning about the Stieltjes integral made it possible for me to accept the Dirac Delta function, which obviously couldn't exist, because I could get the same pick-out effect with the Stieltjes integral. What did bother me, though, was that none of my undergraduate physics teachers had even heard of the Stieltjes integral. The general tenor was, "If it's good enough for Dirac, it's good enough for you."

I seldom had similar learning experiences from others after you and John. Most of my physics teachers just shovelled out the facts and the derivations with almost no perspective or attempt at heuristic approaches. Doing the assigned problems, but more importantly, doing additional problems that the problems themselves suggested, was where I learned physics.

You mentioned the physics lab as a directed discovery. If you mean the school lab, I couldn't disagree more. I hated all of the physics labs. They were canned experiments of known and expected results and were terribly sterile.

I was forced to teach an optics lab one year over my strenuous objections, but I got the concession that I could teach it my way. I told the students that were going to design the experiment themselves. I gave each one a different lens from the physics storeroom. Their task was to measure everything there was to know about that lens; index, nodal planes, focal length, distortions, spectral effect on the other properties, diffraction limit, etc. I then lectured during half of the lab time about experimental design techniques and had office hours daily to help them in the designs. I was amazed and very pleased how some of them caught fire and proposed some very clever experiments. After a while, everybody got into it and had a good time.

The best learning experiences I had in physics prior to the qualifier were while doing homework problems. There were some brilliant lectures that literally stunned me such as the first time I realized that the special theory of relativity was a natural consequence of accepting the Michelson-Morley experiment as correct and asking what were the consequences of that assumption--the main results just fell out. But it wasn't until many problems later that I felt I had started to understand some of the implications of that very simple theory. The principle was simply stated, "Accept the experimental facts, even if implausible, and see what the consequences are." Owning he results took a lot of private study.

How much better that experience could have been if the results had not been stated but, rather, the problem assigned to explore the seemingly impossible M-M results by assuming that the speed of light is the same in any inertial frame of reference and let us explore the consequences. Would we have found E=mc² ourselves?

One of my graduate professors, Max Dresden, was a great lecturer because, like Pauling, he always stepped back and asked what did all of the formalism mean. I took a seminar from him on magnetism and we spent two days going through the Anderson theory of antiferromagnetism where the spins are anti-aligned through interaction with the oxygen atom. After great angst, sure enough, the wave functions inverted at the second 3-d site and antiferromagnetism resulted. He then said, "Now I'll show you how Linus Pauling gets the same results in about four lines using the Pauli Exclusion Principle, but, of course, we don't do it that way in theoretical physics to keep the shoe clerks out of the business."

I guess what I was trying to say was that the method you and John used on us, and I assumed it was the Moore method, is applicable to many disciplines, but I rarely encountered it again after IIT. All of my learning I did myself (that may be the only way one can learn) but I never got any spark from my teachers until graduate research time. My advisor, Hal Lewis, accepted a problem I proposed after discussing it with Elliot Montroll. He then met with me when I wanted to talk things over. I remember him asking me if I was aware of the Bethe-Peierls-Weiss approximation--I wasn't. When I looked into it, it suggested several very fruitful avenues. That was good mentoring.

I'm still very active theoretically and experimentally and get a big kick out of learning something new. It's a lot of fun to tackle problems that have been around for a long time with new insights and get valuable results. I owe a lot of that ability to you and John; I certainly didn't get it from most of my physics teachers.

My apologies for this long note. Hope all is well with you and Jean. Any motorcycle adventures planned for this summer? Ann and I will be going to Munich mid June for some business on one of my patents, and then on to Salzburg, Linz, Vienna, Budapest, Prague, and maybe Warsaw. All by train and foot. We'll be in Montana after July 18th--same email address.

Cheers

Jim & Ann

The Zipper

If you read this blog than you know that my wife recently attended the Grammy Awards. You also know that this blog is mostly about engineering and technology. So, you ask, what does the Grammys have to do with engineering? Before we get into that issue let’s point out that from an engineering perspective it is always important to design things, whatever they may be, with intelligence and build them with good quality materials. Especially, when it comes to a critical design point where a failure is not a good thing. We could be talking about something like the O-ring on a shuttle booster tank but I don’t want to get that complex right now. I am talking about a simple little zipper. My wife went shopping and came home with a new dress by Chloe. Now, I ask you, would you make a $2000.00 dress and put in a $0.10 zipper? Well, Chloe does just that. Apparently, Chloe uses zippers that are so cheap they break taking the garment off the hanger. Imagine someone taking a new dress out of its bag only to find that the zipper is broken. Not good. The funny part is that at the Grammys my wife saw Paul McCartney whose daughter Stella McCartney trained Phoebe Philo the current designer at Chloe. My wife was wearing Gucci.

Friday's Fact

Today’s fact comes from Bob Loomis, Publisher & CEO and Sean Gallagher, Web Director, both of The Daily Transcript. They came over for lunch today with Dr. Evans.

Modern earth moving equipment make extremely accurate cuts in the ground…how is this possible?

Last week’s fact: Could a revolving house spin through 360 degrees? Could it continue turning in one direction…forever? (Before you jump to a quick and possibly wrong conclusion, consider plumbing, gas, and electric.) The answer is yes but you need the ‘Swivel’. Ahamed answered correctly.

Blackberry Patent Suit - - Cont.

A while back I was asked about the Blackberry patent suit and what specific technologies are involved? I said I would find out and although there are many articles about the on-going battle between RIM and NTP they don’t mention much about specifics. I did find one article that says, “The patents in question cover the usage of radio frequencies for wireless e-mail communications.” I am still digging however.

Maglev Cont

This evening I stopped by for a drink with a friend that I recently met on the jet ride back from Spanish Fork and the first flight of Spectrum. Sandy Shapery is a driving force behind Maglev, the high speed train system that is evolving as the transportation solution for southern California. In addition to Maglev, Sandy built the Emerald Plaza (see photo) which is a major part of the San Diego downtown skyline and one of my favorite buildings.

NASA, National Geographic and Me

I had lunch at The Lodge at Torrey Pines today with my friend Dan Goldin and what a beautiful day it was. (Dan on left with his lucky hat that saw 63 successful shuttle launches and Spectrum’s maiden flight) The sun, the blue sky, the view overlooking the Pacific Ocean, it was great. Aside from the glorious day, Dan is wonderful to have a conversation with no matter the weather. You see, Dan was the head of NASA from 1992 to 2001 and truly rescued the agency from the brink of disaster. After his appointment by Bill Clinton he went on to shake up the agency and do more with less. I think Dan saved the taxpayers something in the neighborhood of 40 billion dollars. He is just a ton of fun to be around and always has some exciting story to share. Dan also is on the board of trustees of National Geographic. One of the projects that I am rather interested in is sponsored by The Waitt Family Foundation and National Geographic and seeks to more deeply understand the history of humans. It’s called The Genographic Project. I recently sent in my wife’s, two daughters, one son and my DNA samples to trace our ancestry as a favor to a friend’s science project. I confirmed today that the lab has received our samples, batched them and is in the process of analyzing our DNA. As soon as I receive the results I will post at least mine. According to the lead geneticist, Dr. Spencer Wells, we all originated from a tribe in Africa.

Friday's Fact

Could a revolving house spin through 360 degrees? Could it continue turning in one direction…forever? (Before you jump to a quick and possibly wrong conclusion, consider plumbing, gas, and electric.)

Last week’s fact: It’s called Cantharidin, it comes from a beetle…a ‘blister beetle’ and it causes a nasty little blister on contact with human skin. It does a nice job on certain warts however by forming a blister around the entire wart and sort of lifting it up by the roots. It burns like hell though.

The Grammys, The Masai, and the Internet

Well, my wife made it back from the Grammy Awards and reported that she had a ‘marvelous time’. What should I make of that? Maybe I should ask RockyJay for some advice or something.

Anyway, I arrived early for my breakfast meeting this morning and was reading an email from a friend who lives in Tanzania, East Africa while waiting for my appointment to arrive. When we sat down I broke the ice, I don’t know him all that well and he wants me to sit on a board, by talking about my email. What surprised me was that he had no reaction upon hearing that someone who lives in the bush with the Masai has ready access to the internet. My friend who sent the email was born to missionary parents in the Congo, now Zaire, he speaks Swahili and understands the culture so well that the Masai tribe has him sit in on their council meetings. He has even been able to convince the macho elders to listen to female council. Wow! The internet has really helped make this a small world.

Grammy Awards 2006

As you know, my wife is attending the Grammys tonight with 3 of her girlfriends. Imagine you are on stage looking at the audience; she would be sitting on the right on the riser. Nice seats!!

Naturally, she will be looking for National University alumnus Nancy Fish Liburd (M.Ed., 1999) - AKA Anna Fisher.

According to Hoyt Smith, “Ms. Fisher will represent Third World Band, the longest running self-contained group in Jamaican music history. Their album, "Black Gold & Green," is in the running for Album of the Year in the Reggae category. This is the group's tenth Grammy Award nomination.”

“In addition to being a first grade teacher at Wilton Place Elementary School in Los Angeles, Ms. Fisher is also an accomplished oboe player, who has also performed this year with recording artists such as the Alpha Blondy Band, Marcia Griffiths, Maxi Priest, Linda Hopkins, Louis Taylor, Quentin Dennard, Sweet Baby Jai, Ralph Penland, John Hammond, Pete Christlieb, Buddy Childers and John Bolivar.”

“A versatile musician, whose styles include, Classical, Jazz, Reggae, R&B, Pop, Latin and Hip Hop, Ms. Fisher finds time between her teaching duties and international tours to sit in with some of her favorite Jazz artists, including Hubert Laws, Barbara Morrison, John B. Williams, and Ndugu Chancler, or to play at many of the local clubs in Los Angeles.”

“On the Grammy nominated album, "Black Gold & Green,” she played oboe solos on the song, "There's A Reward". Pretty cool, huh?”

Thanks Hoyt.

Blackberry Patent Suit

Someone who reads this blog asked me about the Blackberry issue. He specifically wanted to know what the technical issues are in the patent suit. I didn’t know but I intend to find out. If anyone cares to share their knowledge on the Blackberry suit please do so. When I find out the answer I will let you know.

Spectrum 33 Continued

For those of you who have been following the development of the advanced composite aircraft called Spectrum, I received great news over the weekend. Had you been in Spanish Fork over the weekend you would have witnessed two perfect flights totaling just under an hour. According to a report I received from Spectrum, “The pilots concluded all items on their ‘test cards’ and were delighted with the responsiveness and controllability of the airplane.” The report went on to say, “What we know about the airplane now is that our weight projections appear to be valid and our projected docile handling characteristics, including normal landing approach speeds of about 85 knots, appear realistic. We also know it takes off short and wants to climb and fly much faster than we are letting it – for the moment. The airplane rotates easily and now has plenty of nose down control authority.”

As you know I was present at the maiden flight of Spectrum and I can tell you it was a thrill. I look forward to the ever expanding flight envelope on Spectrum 33.

Just curious but anyone out there interested in buying one? (After FAA airworthiness certification of course)

Friday's Fact

It’s called “bug juice” and it is used by doctors to remove warts. What is the name of the substance and where does it come from?

Last week’s fact: An earlier post described maglev or magnetic levitation as applied to high speed trains. The concept of using electro-magnets to propel objects is being applied in another unique area. Can you name it?

Ahamed correctly identified using electro magnets for defense issues (guns/canons) or what is known as a rail gun which propels an object at extremely high speeds.

Another application is known as EMALS or electro-magnetic aircraft launching system for aircraft carriers. The beauty of this type of propulsion system is the precise acceleration control that is inherent in the technology.

The GRAMMYs

Well the reason I haven’t posted in a few days is that I have been busy with 5 birthdays, including my wife’s, and I have been helping my wife get ready to attend the GRAMMY Awards next Wednesday. This is no small task either. In fact I think I need a math degree just to figure out the cost of this event. My cost that is! We are talking about a new dress, new shoes, new purse, new sunglasses…the list goes on. We are not yet at the hair/make-up sequence either or the two days and nights in Los Angeles.

While all this was going on I couldn’t help but think about a few of the enormous engineering tasks and talent that goes into pulling off an event like the GRAMMYs. Just looking at what it takes to get my wife ready which is comparatively nothing to the work required to broadcast the awards to the public or the technical equipment deployed I see that my job is really quite simple. It is fitting that since 2000 the Academy recognizes the engineers behind the scene.

In late 2000, the Recording Academy initiated the Producers & Engineers Wing, a national membership division of the Academy established for producers, engineers, remixers, manufacturers, and other related creative and technical professionals in our community. The P&E Wing provides the Academy with a vehicle to reach a specific constituency, to craft advocacy positions, and to better address the daily concerns of these professionals.

More than 6,000 professional producers, engineer, remixers, manufacturers and technologists — from across the United States and around the world — comprise the Producers & Engineers Wing.