Category Archives: Mathematics in Society

The Evolution of Navigating the Sea

Guest Author: Tyler Padera Have you ever been asked to hang out with a new friend, but maybe you didn’t know where they lived? Maybe you were going to an interview for your new job but needed directions. The solution … Continue reading

Posted in Math History, Mathematics in Society, Technology & Math | Tagged | 1 Comment

The Winners Write the Textbook

 Guest Author: Dan Walls It is said that the winners write history. While usually this is reserved for the perspectives in history textbooks and other writings, it also finds true in the evolution of mathematical history as well. Beg to … Continue reading

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False Positive vs. False Negative

A guest post by Long Nguyen: Not all results of medical tests are absolutely correct. Scientists can make mistakes when they conclude that something is true when it is actually false or that something is false when it is actually … Continue reading

Posted in Mathematics in Society, Statistics | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Nate Silver and the Stylish Statistics of Predicting Elections

Guest Author: Michael Dimock Nate Silver is a statistics guru whose claim to fame has come from correctly predicting 49 of the 50 states in the 2008 presidential election as well as all 35 senate races. He then showed that … Continue reading

Posted in Mathematics in Society, Statistics | 1 Comment

Cost Functions in Ergonomics

This is a guest post by Sarah Dantino Cost functions are linear functions describing a relationship between an initiator and its results. They are often used in business and accounting to predict and minimize future costs.  A worked-out example of constructing … Continue reading

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