Math Modeling is taught by Mrs. Burns. We are exposed to challenging math problems that requires thinking outside of the box, as well as real life scenarios where we must create a mathematical model. The problems that we encounter incorporate a variety of math concepts, such as pre-calculus, geometry, algebra, trigonometry, and statistics. A lot of presentations take place during class, allowing for us to learn from each other, and to practice effective presentation skills. We also participate in math competitions throughout the school year, such as NEML, HiMCM, etc. Below are some of my works!
The High School Mathematical Contest in Modeling (HiMCM) is an international competition that allows for an opportunity to solve a math modeling problem with team members. It was around 48 hours long, and each team had to pick one out of two problems and write up a solution to the problem. After reading both given problems, my group decided to do the problem that involves bees. The bee problem stood out to us the most, and it seemed interesting. The problem requirements include developing a model to determine the population of a honeybee colony over time, conduct a sensitivity analysis to determine factors that affect the bee population, determine how many hives are needed to support a parcel of land, and lastly create some sort of blog or infographic for a website that encompasses all our information along with a write up of our solution. My group’s approach was to do a model on one common species of honeybees called Apis Mellifera, since there were too many honeybee species to consider in our model. We also spend a lot of time researching information about the bee species and any online databases. Our solution was a set of equations that combined knowledge from AP Biology, Statistics, and research papers. The experience was memorable and help create stronger bonds between team members! Attached is the paper that encompasses my group’s solution to the given problem.
The problem of the week (POW) is a math modeling problem that we do occasionally, where we split into groups and come up with a mathematical model to the problem within our groups. We would write up our solutions, and then present them in front of the class. This allows for enhancement of our presentation skills and being able to come up with a model for a given situation. Attached is one of the POWs that my group has done where we came up with a model that will determine what day of the week people were born on.