First Student GeoGebra Project

Brian H. has completed our first GeoGebra project. You can view his work here.

Congratulations Brian!

How many workers?

One-half of a road construction project was completed by 6 workers in 12 days. Working at the same rate, what is the smallest number of workers needed to finish the rest of the project in exactly four days?





Source: mathcounts.org

Solution to Sattellite Problem

To solve this question we will use the formula time = distance/rate. At the point that the two sattellites meet they will have traveled for the same length of time but the sattellite that started behind the first will have traveled 1000 miles further than the one that started in the front. We can use this information to set up two equations with the same variables.

T = d/17,000
T = (d + 2)/17,500


Since we established that they travel for the same length of time, we can set the two equations equal to each other.

d/17,000 = (d + 1000)/17,500

d = 34,000 miles


Source: mathcounts.org

Students of the Month: September

It is hard to believe that we are already finished with the first month and a half of school. Students have been working very hard, but there are a few students who have stood out amongst their peers. The following are the students of the month of September:

Period 2/3

Pranavi Yalamanchili

Period 4/5

Jose Palacios

Period 6/7

Austin Kittrell

Congratulations to Pranavi, Jose and Austin. You have been doing great. Keep up the good work.

Racing Satellites

Two satellites are following the same orbit path, one is 1000 miles behind the other. If the front satellite is traveling at a speed of 17,000 miles per hour and the other satellite is traveling 17,500 miles per hour, how many miles will the front satellite travel before the second one catches up to it?

Solution to circle problem.

It turns out that circle #3 will be the only one shaded. The shading on the top circle moves one space counterclockwise each time. The shading on circle #5 moves two spaces counterclockwise each time. By the time you get to figure 5, circle #3 is the only one that is shaded.

What will the next figure look like?

Let's call the top circle #1. Then moving in a clockwise manner, we have #2, #3, #4, etc. If you were to draw the next figure in the pattern, what would it look like?

There may be more than one solution. Just be sure to explain your reasoning.

What does infinitely close mean?

In the last post we discussed .999..... We must remember that the 9's repeat infinitely...which means that they never end. Since the 9's repeat, the number .999... must be infinitely close to 1. If a number is infinitely close to another, can we distinguish between them?

Does 1 = 1?

In our Geometry class, we have been discussing the concept of infinity. What does in mean when we say that numbers are infinite? Can we really understand that? And further, if numbers are infinitely large, does there exist a number that is infinitely small? How do we deal with this "infinite smallness?"

The question that has come up in class is this:

Is .9999... = 1?

Solution to Problem of the Week 9/1/08

Many of you left some pretty good answers. But it looks like the best two solutions and explanations go to Josh M. and Kathryn I. Nice job, to the both of you. Here is the solution and explanation:

In this sequence there are two “sub-sequences.”

A, 2, C, 3, F, 5, K, 7, ___, ___...

A, 2, C, 3, F, 5, K, 7, ___, ___...


The first sequence is just a list of prime numbers. This tells us that the second blank would be 11.

The second sequence is dependant on the first. If A equals 1, B equals 2, etc… you can add the number value of the letter to the number that follows it in the sequence to get the number value of the next letter.
A = 1
A + 2 = 3
3 = C
Since K corresponds to 11 the next letter blank should be R.
(11 + 7 = 18; 18 = R)

ANSWER: R, 11

Welcome Visitors!

If you are from out of the Porterville area, please take a moment to leave a comment. Let us know where you are from and how you stumbled upon this site. I am always looking for feedback on how to improve the website. Thanks again for visiting.

Problem of the Week 9/1/08

Be sure to check the solution to last week's problem below. When you submit an answer, be sure to include an explanation. Make sure to answer the question for the poll in the margin.

Problem:

What are the next two terms in the sequence below?


A, 2, C, 3, F, 5, K, 7, ___, ___...

Solution to Problem of the week #2 8/27/08

Good job to those of you who tried the problem. However, many of you didn't answer the question in the form that it asked for. You were asked to round your answer to the nearest tenth. You need to read the problem again after you submit your answer.

Be sure to explain your steps when you post an answer. I don't want answers alone!

Here is the solution:

First we have to find the difference between the number of voters seen in 2004 and the number of voters seen this year.

227,000 – 124,000 = 103,000 more voters in 2008

Now we divide the number of additional voters (103,000) by the number of voters seen in 2004 (124,000) and multiply by 100 to find the percent of increase.

(103,000 ÷ 124,000) × 100 = 83.1%, to the nearest tenth

Problem of the week #2 8/27/08

With the start of 2008 comes a rash of caucuses and primaries to determine who each party will choose to run in the national presidential election. In light of this, here are a few questions surrounding voting, percentages, etc.

On January 3rd, both the democratic and republican parties in Iowa saw a record number of voters turn out for the caucus. In 2004, the Democratic Party had 124,000 at the caucus. This year, the Democratic Party had a turn out of 227,000 voters. By what percent did this year’s democratic voter participation beat 2004 democratic voter participation? Express your answer to the nearest tenth.

Problem of the Week 8/25/08

A watered circular field is inscribed in a square plot of land. The square plot has sides of length 500 meters. What is the area of the land that is not watered? Express your answer to the nearest thousand square meters.

Welcome Back!

The school year is under way and we will be doing many exciting things. I have set up this blog as a way to encourage students to continue their math dialogue outside of the classroom. I will periodically check the blog in the evenings and jump into conversations when needed. However, this first post is simply to say, "Welcome Back!" I am looking forward to a great year with all of you.

Students: Encourage your parents to check the blog as I will be using it to post updates!

Answer the following question in the comment box. You can do this using your Google account...if you don't have a Google account, just post as an anonymous visitor, but be sure to identify yourself in your comments.

Question:

As far as your math class is concerned, what are you most looking forward to this year?

What did you learn?

Every year students come into class with a bunch of goals. Some goals are met and some are not. Often times it takes a while for the "light to come on." I would like to hear from you all regarding your goals that you had for yourselves and how you feel you did in achieving those goals. In what way did the light come on for you? What are some things that you wish you had done differently? Click on the comment button below to submit a comment. Have a great summer.