Original WebQuest by Lindsay Gale modified by Nancy Timson/Laura Calzadillas

            What would life be like without mathematical knowledge? Some might say, “A much happier place!!” However, consider for a moment how we, the human race, are so hopelessly dependent on math. Each day demands competence in basic mathematical concepts: for example, just imagine surviving a trip to the grocery store without the capabilities of performing simple addition and multiplication calculations. Additionally, our world would not function properly without the application of advanced mathematical concepts. Without the knowledge of acceleration and velocity from calculus, the Saturday night drag races downtown would be utterly dull. Stock market executives would have a dreadful time predicting sales without statistical analysis.

            We have enjoyed the luxury of mathematics for far too long without honoring the brave souls that got us where we are today. The president has decided a national holiday will be declared in honor of one particular mathematician. You have two weeks to convince the class that your person has made the most essential contribution to math.

You are responsible for thoroughly researching the life and accomplishments of one famous mathematician. No, this is not a history project. I want you to focus your research on the impact your mathematician’s work has had. You will address what contribution this individual made to the field of mathematics specifically, and our every day lives in general. Basically, your job is to find out the major accomplishments of the mathematician and convince the class why they should be grateful for the painstaking work of the individual.

The product of your findings will be a 3-5 minute PowerPoint presentation. This presentation should include:

A BRIEF OVERVIEW of the mathematician’s significant contributions. Include any formulas they derived, concepts they discovered, or questions they attempted to answer.

SPECIFIC EXAMPLES of how the mathematician’s contribution affects our daily lives today. Include one consideration of the inconveniences that might arise without the contribution as well as one advantage we enjoy as a result of their work.

A GENERAL ARGUMENT of why we should be grateful for the long nights and meticulous calculations these math heroes endured for our benefit.

A CONNECTION to at least one math standard.

The goal of your presentation is to convince your fellow classmates that your mathematician is the most significant co-contributor to the field of mathematics, and to their personal lives, and deserves a national holiday in their honor.

            For a successful presentation, you will want to research the life and accomplishments of one particular famous mathematician. I want you to learn about how the math community was impacted by their findings, as well as, how society today has benefited from the hard work they contributed years ago. The goal of your presentation is to educate your classmates that the work completed by your mathematician is of utmost significance to their everyday lives. Thus, you will want to think about the impact of their findings and results; try to come up with specific examples of how life would be different if they were never born.

            Your presentation is supposed to inform and convince so you will create a PowerPoint presentation that will present your findings most effectively. Your presentation will inform the President by giving specific reasons why the individual mathematician deserves to be honored by the “Matholiday”.

           Below the name of each individual is a list of helpful internet sites you may want to consult during the research phase of your project. Here is a list of the famous mathematicians you may chose to research:

v WorldBook

o Archimedes

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Fibonacci.html

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Archimedes.html

Ë http://www.math.utah.edu/~alfeld/Archimedes/Archimedes.html

Ë http://www.cs.drexel.edu/~crorres/Archimedes/contents.html

o Fibonacci

Ë http://www.mcs.surrey.ac.uk/Personal/R.Knott/Fibonacci/fibBio.html

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Fibonacci.html

Ë http://www.andrews.edu/~calkins/math/biograph/199899/biofibo.htm

Ë http://plus.maths.org/issue3/fibonacci/

o Newton

Ë http://www.maths.tcd.ie/pub/HistMath/People/Newton/RouseBall/RB_Newton.html

Ë http://mathforum.org/cgraph/history/newton.html

Ë http://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/newtlaws/

O Riemann

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Riemann.html

Ë http://www.utm.edu/research/primes/notes/rh.html

Ë http://www.claymath.org/Millennium_Prize_Problems/Riemann_Hypothesis/

Ë http://mathworld.wolfram.com/RiemannHypothesis.html

o Euclid

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Euclid.html

Ë http://aleph0.clarku.edu/~djoyce/java/elements/elements.html

o Eratosthenes

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Eratosthenes.html

Ë http://www.math.utah.edu/~alfeld/Eratosthenes.html

Ë http://www.juliantrubin.com/bigten/eratosthenes.html

Ë http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/Biographies/Eratosthenes.html

o Pascal

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Pascal.html

Ë http://www.maths.tcd.ie/pub/HistMath/People/Pascal/RouseBall/RB_Pascal.html

Ë http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Pascal.html

o Fermat

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Fermat.html

Ë http://www.maths.tcd.ie/pub/HistMath/People/Fermat/RouseBall/RB_Fermat.html

Ë http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Fermat.html

   o Cantor

Ë http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Cantor.html

Ë http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georg_Cantor

Ë http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/CantorGeorg.html

Notes Paper

Effective PowerPoint Guidelines

Sample PowerPoint

Okay, so I am not really going to contact the President. However, I hope that you have learned many new things about the world of math and the great people who have brought so many math ideas to us. Many math ideas exist whether or not we know about them. Through this project we hope you learn about the connection between math and our world. Many math concepts have helped human kind when they were applied. Many problems have been solved through mathematical thinking.

           You will be evaluated in the following areas of your presentation:

5 Point

10 Points

20 Points

25 Points

Total Score

50 points possible

Presentation Information

25 points

-Included basic information on history of mathematician

-Included basic information on history of mathematician

-included some detailed information about the mathematician

- math standards

-Included basic information on history of mathematician

- gave specific examples about the contributions made by the mathematician

- math standards

-Included basic information on history of mathematician

- gave specific examples about the contributions made by the mathematician

-provided an argument about why we should be grateful for the contribution

-1 math standard

Presentation Delivery

25 points

-Argument of presentation is weak

-PowerPoint is incomplete or did not follow PowerPoint guidelines

-Argument of presentation is fair

-PowerPoint skills for presentation could be improved

-Argument of presentation is good

 -Uses good PowerPoint skills

-Makes a convincing argument about why we should honor this mathematician with a holiday

-Uses great PowerPoint skills (follows the guidelines for creating an effective PowerPoint )