MaplePrimes - Maplesoft Blog - Posts by Stephanie Rozek

Your Daily Distraction: Velociraptor Math

Stephanie Rozek — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:11:34 Z

A favorite diversion of mine (and of many around the Maplesoft office) is xkcd. Its author, Randall Munroe, bills it as “a webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language.” Since 2005, he’s been entertaining many self-proclaimed geeks with his unique and slightly skewed jokes on technology, computer science, mathematics, and relationships.

I really like the post in which a substitute teacher – hm, Mr. Munroe......

We are all Connected

Stephanie Rozek — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:23:50 Z

Unless you’ve spent the past five years on an isolated island in the middle of the Pacific, you’ll have heard of Facebook and Twitter and LinkedIn and MySpace and Flickr. Social media sites: whether you love them, hate them, or just don’t get them, they’re going to be here for a while. If you’re like many of us, you may have a few accounts on these sites, whether you’re a power user or occasional dabbler. Social media allow us to re-connect with old friends and colleagues, share our thoughts – and photos, advertise, network... and generally waste time. :)

Which Way Is Up? - Thoughts on Orientation

Stephanie Rozek — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:10:09 Z

It’s been nearly ten years since I first walked onto the University of Waterloo campus as a freshly minted undergraduate, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and eager to learn all about electrical engineering. I guess it’s hard to believe the speed with which time passes. It’s actually a bit astonishing how much I can still remember about orientation, or “frosh” week, like 4 a.m. fire drills, a very messy obstacle course, sitting with 800 other young engineering students in a lecture hall, and above all, meeting new friends.

An “Animated” Conversation

Stephanie Rozek — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 20:09:03 Z

This week I decided to do some research and find out the details of how to make model animations with MapleSim, by adding in CAD drawing files of the component parts. To see what I mean, take a look at this quick animated movie that shows a robot arm with five degrees of freedom:

The Calculus of Teaching

Stephanie Rozek — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:20:15 Z

A few weeks ago I made a short trip down to Lincroft, New Jersey, to deliver a Maple training course to a group of math professors at Brookdale Community College. I’d been to Manhattan before, but never New Jersey, and didn’t really know what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised to fly in over a lush and verdant landscape, with temperatures hovering in the mid-70s. My host, Barbara, had graciously invited me to her home for dinner, and we had a great conversation about teaching math, the Verrazano Bridge, dealing with deer in the backyard (Barbara was originally a Brooklyn girl, used to the concrete jungle!), and of course, what to expect the next day at the college.

The changing face of technology

Stephanie Rozek — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 17:20:04 Z

Ever since I filled out my university application papers, I’ve been faced with the cocktail party question, “So, why did you decide to study engineering?” It’s not surprising, of course, given the low number of women who choose to enter the fields of math or engineering. I’ve actually been asked this question so often that I have a stock answer which I can pull out without having to think about it: When I was considering my field of study, I was equally drawn to the arts and the sciences, but it made more sense to prepare myself to work
in a field where the jobs were. Engineering seemed a good fit, and still provided a sort of outlet for my creative impulses. Plus, it would be easier to pursue art and music as a hobby, rather than anything scientific; it would be much harder to find the resources to pursue any scientific interests on my own. Why electrical engineering? I’d heard it involved more math, something I was drawn to.