BOWDOIN COLLEGE Department of Mathematics Brunswick, Maine 04011 Project CALC and Mathematica Distribution Network Mailing #3--June, 1992 DISSEMINATION NETWORK MELTDOWN AND REORGANIZATION. Presentations at a number of conferences, plus a widely circulated letter from D. C. Heath publishers, generated a volume of requests for our materials that we were unprepared to handle. We apologize to those of you who have waited many weeks for a reply. Our administrative procedures have been improved and we will be able to respond quickly to all future requests. CURRENT MATERIALS. We have produced a total of 36 Mathematica laboratory notebooks for the Macintosh for the three semesters of Project CALC. All are now fully compatible with version 2.0 of Mathematica. Most of the notebooks are based on their MathCAD counterparts originally designed and produced by the Project CALC team at Duke University; some, however, are original to the Bowdoin program. Although keyed to the Project CALC curriculum, the notebooks could be used in non-Project CALC courses. The first and second semester notebooks have all been class tested twice and are in reasonably polished form. The third semester materials have been class-tested just once--we still consider them to be in preliminary form. REVISED MATERIALS SINCE MAILING #2. During the winter and spring, all thirteen of the second semester labs were totally revised and class tested. Earlier versions of these thirteen labs should be discarded and replaced by the revisions. In addition, all the first and third semester notebooks were upgraded to Mathematica Version 2.0. Except for these compatibility changes (which were greater in number than expected), the first and third semester materials remain essentially unchanged from Release 4. RELEASE FIVE. Al the current Project CALC Mathematica materials-- laboratories and supporting items, fully compatible with Mathematica Version 2.0--will be distributed in Release 5. All thirty-seven notebooks will be included, in both blank and completed form--the blank form is as the student receives the notebook, while a completed notebook includes solutions for instructor convenience. In addition, versions of the notebooks designed for printing (as opposed to screen viewing) are available for the first two semesters. If you wish to receive Release 5, please complete and return the enclosed order form. Release 5 is also available via electronic FTP transfer--see the FTP paragraph below. RELEASE FOUR. Most of the notebooks in Release 5 will not run under Mathematica Version 1.2. For that reason we continue to supply the earlier editions of the notebooks, written for Mathematica Version 1.2, in Release 4. If you are still using Mathematica Version 1.2, you will need to use the notebooks in Release 4. Note, however, that the Release 4 materials for the second semester course are more primitive than the current notebooks. SAMPLER. If you wish to receive just one disk with a collection of examples of our Release 5 notebooks, please request the Sampler. This is also available via electronic FTP transfer. COSTS. Given the number of requests for our materials, we can no longer afford to send disks for free. Our costs for the disks, mailers, and postage are closely approximated by the formula $(2n + 1), where n is the number of disks requested. Checks should accompany orders and be made out to Bowdoin College. ELECTRONIC FTP TRANSFER. It is now possible to obtain the Mathematica laboratory notebooks via anonymous FTP. This method of transfer has the advantages of being both free and quick. Both the old Release 4 (Mathematica v 1.2) and the new Release 5 are available in this fashion. The Sampler has also been placed in the FTP directory. If you are interested in obtaining the notebooks via anonymous FTP, send an e-mail message requesting the necessary instructions to wbarker@bowdoin.edu . DEMONSTRATION NOTEBOOKS. In earlier releases we included notebooks specifically designed for classroom demonstrations. We have not yet upgraded these notebooks to Mathematica Version 2.0, not have we extensively class tested them even under Mathematica Version 1.2. For these reasons we have temporarily removed the demonstrations from the materials which we distribute. Note, however, that most of the packages that drive the demonstration notebooks are now incorporated into various laboratory notebooks (in revised form) and can be used for classroom demonstrations directly from these notebooks. FUTURE DIRECTIONS. During the summer (1992) we will make modest revisions to the first and second semester laboratories, and major revisions to the third semester laboratories. The notebooks so produced will be distributed in Release 6 this fall. Our notebooks are currently available only for the Macintosh (in particular, for systems using a 13" color monitor). However, we have been loaned a NeXT computer and intend to transport the notebooks to that platform this summer. We hope in the future to also have versions of the notebooks for Windows on MS-DOS machines. DISTRIBUTION NETWORK. The network is a collection of individuals who receive regular mailings concerning the Mathematica notebooks produced at Bowdoin. If you are not already listed but wish to be included, please contact me. In particular, please supply your preferred mailing address. Phone numbers, FAX-numbers, and e-mail addresses are also appreciated. I am a regular user of e-mail, so that is an excellent method for communication. Prof. William H. Barker, (207) 725-3571 Department of Mathematics (207) 725-3123 (FAX) Bowdoin College wbarker@bowdoin.edu Brunswick, ME 04011 PROJECT CALC. The Project CALC curriculum and text materials are under development by a team at Duke University under the direction of David Smith and Lawrence Moore--questions concerned primarily with curriculum issues are best directed to them. A semi-regular newsletter is produced at Duke which summarizes the progress of the Project CALC program at both Duke and the various test sites across the country. You can reach the Duke Project CALC team at: Project CALC (919) 660-2825 Department of Mathematics (919) 660-2821 (FAX) Duke University das@math.duke.edu Durham, NC 27706 lang@math.duke.edu Should you find the philosophy of Project CALC appealing, consider becoming a test site for the program. Mathematica based test sites are supplied with all the necessary materials from both Duke and Bowdoin, while MS-DOS/MathCAD test sites are supported solely out of Duke. PUBLICATION. The Calculus Reader, the textbook for Project CALC> will be available this fall in a preliminary edition from D. C. Heath. Along with the text, preliminary editions of various laboratory manuals will also be produced, including a manual for the Mathematica labs constructed at Bowdoin. This volume will contain printed copies of the Mathematica notebooks for the first and second semesters of Project CALC; the third semester labs will not be available in published form until 1993. For information on ordering these items, contact College Mathematics Department D. C. Heath and Company 125 Spring Street Lexington, MA 02173 (617)862-6650 SUPPORT ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. The Project CALC program at Bowdoin College has been supported in part by NSF Grants USE- 9053397 and USE-9052224, and by a grant from the George I. Alden Trust of Worcester, Massachusetts.