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ssp 2011
Shodor > SUCCEED > Workshops > Archive > ssp 2011

In the morning, the students introduced themselves and said what they wanted to get out of the program. Then the instructor, Jeff, laid out the overview of what they would be doing for the duration of the program. The class spent time looking at the rabbits and wolves model as well as changing the variables on the model to get the representation of the model that they wanted. Their challenge was to obtain a population equilibrium where all of the wolves, rabbits, and grass never completely died out.

For the afternoon portion of the SSP class, the students explored many different applications on the computer. The class started out with exploring the usefulness of Google, and how you can use Google for various tasks, not just for search results. One of these alternate uses was Google calculator; the class Googled 3 + 2*5, which turned up a Google calculator result of 13. This was an example of how we conventions are used. Next, the class explored how Google results differ and how to find out whether the result is legitimate or not.

The next activity involved going on the Shodor Interactivate site and exploring an applet called the Multi-Function Data Flyer. The instructor input different equations into the applet and changed variables to show the class how easy it is to explore mathematical equations using computers. After exploring different functions, the class moved on to another model, which simulated the movement of electrons in an environment with variables, which could be changed. Another model that the class looked at was the fire model that is also found on the Shodor Interactivate site. The fire model simulates a forest fire and has many variables, which can be changed by the user. Using the fire model, the students recorded the average number of trees burned and then used the Data Flyer to plot the data.