Dataset1/D1T2S3n

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Moderator works on continuity

 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:37:19 PM EDT: I was curious about your formula for the number of shortest paths
 bob123 5/17/05 7:37:36 PM EDT: it's pascal's triangle
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:37:53 PM EDT: Oh!
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:38:22 PM EDT: why would that be the number of shortest paths?
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:41:31 PM EDT: It did seem to work for the examples you tried
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:41:48 PM EDT: But I did not understand how you thought it up
 bob123 5/17/05 7:43:03 PM EDT: draw a rectangle
 bob123 5/17/05 7:43:07 PM EDT: and label it with numbers
 bob123 5/17/05 7:43:27 PM EDT: for the number of ways to get there
 bob123 5/17/05 7:43:46 PM EDT: starting from the top right corner and ending at the lower left corner
 bob123 5/17/05 7:43:49 PM EDT: the top right corner is 1
 bob123 5/17/05 7:44:53 PM EDT: then the rest, you just add the numbers of the two vertices that are next to it 
                                (the one on the right of it and the one on top of it)
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:46:14 PM EDT: Whoa, Bob. You are going too fast for me. Let's wait for the others to show up.
 bob123 5/17/05 7:47:09 PM EDT: ok
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:52:10 PM EDT: Bob, Where did you learn about Pascal's triangle?
 ...
 qwer 5/17/05 7:55:57 PM EDT: hi
 bob123 5/17/05 7:56:13 PM EDT: hi
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:56:42 PM EDT: Hi everyone
 qwer 5/17/05 7:56:54 PM EDT: What's Pascal's triangle?
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:57:30 PM EDT: Bob and I started talking about his formula last time.
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 7:57:47 PM EDT: Can you see our messages?
 qwer 5/17/05 7:57:54 PM EDT: Yes
 ...
  qwer 5/17/05 8:03:54 PM EDT: I just found a description of the triangle at http://mathworld.wolfram.com/PascalsTriangle.html

The problem is, I don't remember my formula

 bob123 5/17/05 8:04:07 PM EDT: the problem is
 bob123 5/17/05 8:04:17 PM EDT: i'm not too sure what the formula i made up last week is
 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:04:34 PM EDT: then how u get it?
 bob123 5/17/05 8:04:51 PM EDT: i got it
 bob123 5/17/05 8:04:55 PM EDT: but then i forgot it
 bob123 5/17/05 8:05:00 PM EDT: give me 5 minutes to reget it
 bob123 5/17/05 8:05:14 PM EDT: i have short term memory loss
 bob123 5/17/05 8:06:09 PM EDT: ok
 bob123 5/17/05 8:06:10 PM EDT: there
 bob123 5/17/05 8:06:14 PM EDT: i remember how i got it now
 bob123 5/17/05 8:06:43 PM EDT: or do i...
 bob123 5/17/05 8:07:21 PM EDT: there we go
 
 on the whiteboard:
 
  In an n by m rectangle (n>m), the number of ways to get from the top left corner to the bottom right corner 
  without retracing steps or going backwards (where going backwards is defined as making a move 
  such that it would result in making the distance between the point and the top left corner shorter) is:
 
  (m+n) choose (m) or (m+n) choose (n) or
  (m+n)!/(m!n!)

Where is the other guy?

 bob123 5/17/05 8:08:35 PM EDT: where's the other guy?
 bob123 5/17/05 8:08:45 PM EDT: the SithLordVader or something guy

Summarize to a newcommer

 Moderator_G 5/17/05 8:16:47 PM EDT: Can someone explain to theyypu234 what you found about the grid?
 qwer 5/17/05 8:17:56 PM EDT: In the yellow box bellow the grid is a formula for how many shortest distances 
                              there are from one point on a grid to another, staying on the lines of the grid.

Moderator's questions...

 Moderator_G 5/17/05 8:19:36 PM EDT: During the first two sessions of this program the groups have at times 
                                     explored a math where points only exist at the intersections of a grid (this one is 12 lines by 12
                                     lines), evenly spaced one unit apart as in the image on the whiteboard. There are no "diagonal" 
                                     lines, at least not in the way we usually think of them.
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 8:19:53 PM EDT: Distance between any two points in this grid world is defined as the length of the shortest path 
                                     along the grid lines connecting the points. Several groups showed there may be several shortest 
                                     paths, but the distance is well-defined. This is a system of math that you are inventing, just as 
                                     the Greeks invented geometry.
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 8:20:09 PM EDT: Did anyone think of any other questions after the last session?  
 bob123 5/17/05 8:20:14 PM EDT: oh, i only got a 3 on my AIME, my index was like 25.7 (barely made B, :))
 bob123 5/17/05 8:20:20 PM EDT: umm
 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:20:32 PM EDT: still thinking about the last question...
 qwer 5/17/05 8:20:35 PM EDT: Yes, but I forgot it.
 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:20:54 PM EDT: the one about the cylinder or a flat surface one
 bob123 5/17/05 8:20:58 PM EDT: oh
 bob123 5/17/05 8:21:37 PM EDT: i think i get that one now
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 8:21:53 PM EDT: I put  some questionsin the yellow box  that come up when looking at your work. 
                                    You don't need to pay any attention to these if you don't want to. Again, your goal is to identify 
                                    or invent new math questions that are interesting to you and pursue them. 
 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:21:55 PM EDT: so do u still think it is a cylinder?]

There was a question last time, on Thursday

 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:21:55 PM EDT: so do u still think it is a cylinder?]
 qwer 5/17/05 8:22:10 PM EDT: think what is?
 bob123 5/17/05 8:22:21 PM EDT: i know it's a cylinder
 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:22:30 PM EDT: there wsa a question last time on Thursday remember?
 qwer 5/17/05 8:23:19 PM EDT: Which one?
 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:23:41 PM EDT: the one where the paper wsa folded and then we find the distance
 qwer 5/17/05 8:23:51 PM EDT: Yes.
 bob123 5/17/05 8:23:54 PM EDT: yep, i get it now
 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:23:57 PM EDT: (the paper was folded in half)
 mathisfun 5/17/05 8:24:04 PM EDT: K i'll make a cylinder
 bob123 5/17/05 8:24:07 PM EDT: think right triangles
 bob123 5/17/05 8:24:15 PM EDT: and circumference of base circle
 bob123 5/17/05 8:24:51 PM EDT: finding the distance would involve the law of cosines, but that's ok

Plans and Reflections?

 Moderator_G 5/17/05 9:03:21 PM EDT: What did you conclude about the cylinder?
 mathisfun 5/17/05 9:04:00 PM EDT: it was an interesting problem
 mathisfun 5/17/05 9:04:17 PM EDT: thinking about it really helped
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 9:04:40 PM EDT: did talking about it with others help?
 mathisfun 5/17/05 9:04:53 PM EDT: yeah
 qwer 5/17/05 9:04:58 PM EDT: yes
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 9:05:22 PM EDT: what do you want to do next time?
 qwer 5/17/05 9:05:53 PM EDT: mabey use points on another shape
 mathisfun 5/17/05 9:06:18 PM EDT: fold the shape into thirds...
 mathisfun 5/17/05 9:06:37 PM EDT: or we can work on the new problems given
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 9:07:20 PM EDT: Anything else?
 Moderator_G 5/17/05 9:07:44 PM EDT: Think about what you want to do between now and Thursday
 mathisfun 5/17/05 9:07:52 PM EDT: alright
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