Fun Stuff

NPR Fibonacci Podcast

July 18, 2011

NPR put up a nice podcast on Weekend Edition this past Saturday about Leonardo da Pisa’s (aka Fibonacci) “Book of Calculation.” Most of us are familiar with Fibonacci’s famous sequence of numbers that became known as the Fibonacci numbers, where any number in the sequence after the first two is found by adding the previous two: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, … I have to admit, I wasn’t aware until I heard this podcast what an impact Fibonacci had on the ability of regular people to do arithmetic.

“SchoolTab,” the Tablet the College Board Won’t Let Kids Have

By Tech Powered Dad in fun stuff

July 7, 2011

Listen to what tech savvy consumers, students, teachers, and even graphing calculator designers are saying about today’s graphing calculators and there’s a common theme: Why are we buying graphing calculators when “there’s an app for that”? The iPad was just the start as we now have the HP Touchpad, Galaxy Tab, and Motorola Xoom just to name a few. There are already great calculators for Android and iOS, so why are we buying dedicated devices that can only do math?

LeapFrog LeapPad Tablet for Math

By Tech Powered Dad in Apps

July 6, 2011

Buy the LeapPad Tablet at Leapfrog.com. LeapFrog LeapPad Tablet Apparently, it’s tablet day here at TPM. While the HP TouchPad may be a toy for older kids, the LeapFrog LeapPad Tablet is one for the younger kiddos. I’ve been impressed by the reputation LeapFrog products have built in the past. They consistently put out electronic learning devices that have the video game or gadget feel, so they appeal to kids. On the other hand, the learning that goes on continues to earn LeapFrog top marks from educators.

HP TouchPad Released and Calculator App

By Tech Powered Dad in Apps

July 6, 2011

HP Touchpad Buy the HP TouchPad on Amazon. HP has finally released their new tablet, the HP TouchPad. With Android and iOS dominating, WebOS (the OS of the HP TouchPad) has become for the forgotten mobile OS, and that’s unfortunate. I had a Palm Pre for about a week at the end of 2009 and enjoyed WebOS immensely. Unfortunately, the phone itself seemed flimsy and I returned it. HP bought out Palm in large part to get its hands on WebOS.

TI-83 and TI-86 Emulators for Android

By Tech Powered Dad in fun stuff

April 28, 2011

UPDATE (4/27/11) Doug contacted me to let me know has released a new version of his popular emulator app. To keep the app legal, it does not actually contain the calculators. You’ll need to find the download the ROM files separately if you want to use the calculators (kind of like the NES and other game emulators). The new app, called Andie Graph, will run ROMS for the TI-82, TI-83, TI-85, and TI-86.

NCTM Day Four: Math Books on iPad and 3D Printing

By Tech Powered Dad in fun stuff

April 17, 2011

The 2011 NCTM annual meeting is over, and I have arrived back home in Illinois. Sorry it took me a while to get this post up, but the return trip took most of Saturday. Indianapolis was a great choice for the convention. It’s so easy to move around downtown via their system of skybridges that allow you to walk for blocks at a time without ever being exposed to bad weather.

NCTM Day Three: Mario Dies, Casio Booth Hot, Nspire CX Interview

By Tech Powered Dad in fun stuff

April 16, 2011

Another day has come and gone at NCTM, and frankly, I’m beat. I’ve been on my feet for the better part of two days. I’m looking forward to a little shut eye tonight. Tomorrow is a short day, so I’m planning to sleep in a little later. Today, TI talks to me about the CX, Super Mario Bros disappointments, a search for geometry books, and the Casio booth is hot.

NCTM Day Two: Battle of the Booths

By Tech Powered Dad in fun stuff

April 15, 2011

Day two of the NCTM conference in Indianapolis has come and gone. For me, day two was marked by the incredible battle of the Prizm and TI-Nspire CX displays as well as learning about geometry software for the classroom and a number of cool new websites. Battle of the Booths Well if you had any doubt that Casio and Texas Instruments were taking this whole Prizm vs. Nspire CX thing seriously, one look at their booths in the exhibition hall would remove it.

NCTM Day One: Mythbusters and Flatland 3D

By Tech Powered Dad in fun stuff

April 14, 2011

Day one at the annual NCTM meeting in Indianapolis is in the books. It was definitely challenging to get here as all roads leading to Indy are apparently ripped to shreds right now. It seemed like no matter what Google Maps tried to get me here, I ran into another closed road or on ramp. At one point, I even managed to end up at the Indianapolis airport, which is nowhere near the convention.

Facebook-Ally in math education?

in Featured

September 10, 2010

The Hill is reporting that on Thursday math students and educators gained a new ally in the quest for better math education in America–Facebook. On Thursday, the popular social networking site sent a letter to Congressional leaders asking for more funding for math, science, and technology education, expressing concerns that if action isn’t taken, America will fall behind its competitors in these key areas. Excerpts from the letter follow: The shortage of students entering STEM careers has long been recognized in Washington, Silicon Valley, and beyond.

NPR Fibonacci Podcast

“SchoolTab,” the Tablet the College Board Won’t Let Kids Have

LeapFrog LeapPad Tablet for Math

HP TouchPad Released and Calculator App

TI-83 and TI-86 Emulators for Android

NCTM Day Four: Math Books on iPad and 3D Printing

NCTM Day Three: Mario Dies, Casio Booth Hot, Nspire CX Interview

NCTM Day Two: Battle of the Booths

NCTM Day One: Mythbusters and Flatland 3D

Facebook-Ally in math education?

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