38,213 research outputs found
On the integration of digital technologies into mathematics classrooms
Troucheâs (2003) presentation at the Third Computer Algebra in Mathematics Education Symposium focused on the notions of instrumental genesis and of orchestration: the former concerning the mutual transformation of learner and artefact in the course of constructing knowledge with technology; the latter concerning the problem of integrating technology into classroom practice. At the Symposium, there was considerable discussion of the idea of situated abstraction, which the current authors have been developing over the last decade. In this paper, we summarise the theory of instrumental genesis and attempt to link it with situated abstraction. We then seek to broaden Troucheâs discussion of orchestration to elaborate the role of artefacts in the process, and describe how the notion of situated abstraction could be used to make sense of the evolving mathematical knowledge of a community as well as an individual. We conclude by elaborating the ways in which technological artefacts can provide shared means of mathematical expression, and discuss the need to recognise the diversity of studentâs emergent meanings for mathematics, and the legitimacy of mathematical expression that may be initially divergent from institutionalised mathematics
Webbing and orchestration. Two interrelated views on digital tools in mathematics education
The integration of digital tools in mathematics education is considered both
promising and problematic. To deal with this issue, notions of webbing and
instrumental orchestration are developed. However, the two seemed to be
disconnected, and having different cultural and theoretical roots. In this
article, we investigate the distinct and joint journeys of these two
theoretical perspectives. Taking some key moments in recent history as points
of de- parture, we conclude that the two perspectives share an importance
attributed to digital tools, and that initial differences, such as different
views on the role of digital tools and the role of the teacher, have become
more nuances. The two approaches share future chal- lenges to the organization
of teachers'collaborative work and their use of digital resources.Comment: Teaching Mathematics and its Applications (2014) to be complete
Progress and Historical Reflection in Philosophy
What is the epistemic significance of reflecting on a disciplineâs past for making progress in that discipline? I assume that the answer to this question negatively correlates with that disciplineâs degree of progress over time. If and only if a science is progressive, then what people think or argue in that discipline ceases to be up-to-date. In this paper, I will distinguish different dimensions of disciplinary progress and consequently argue that veritic progress, i.e. collective convergence to truth, is the most important dimension for disciplines with scientific ambitions. I will then argue that, on the one hand, veritic progress in philosophy is more significant than many current philosophers believe, but that, on the other hand, it also has severe limitations. I will offer an explanation of these limitations that suggests that the history of philosophy should play some role, though only a minor one, in systematic philosophy
Human Computation and Convergence
Humans are the most effective integrators and producers of information,
directly and through the use of information-processing inventions. As these
inventions become increasingly sophisticated, the substantive role of humans in
processing information will tend toward capabilities that derive from our most
complex cognitive processes, e.g., abstraction, creativity, and applied world
knowledge. Through the advancement of human computation - methods that leverage
the respective strengths of humans and machines in distributed
information-processing systems - formerly discrete processes will combine
synergistically into increasingly integrated and complex information processing
systems. These new, collective systems will exhibit an unprecedented degree of
predictive accuracy in modeling physical and techno-social processes, and may
ultimately coalesce into a single unified predictive organism, with the
capacity to address societies most wicked problems and achieve planetary
homeostasis.Comment: Pre-publication draft of chapter. 24 pages, 3 figures; added
references to page 1 and 3, and corrected typ
Learning in evolutionary environments
Not availabl
Kinetic models of collective decision-making in the presence of equality bias
We introduce and discuss kinetic models describing the influence of the
competence in the evolution of decisions in a multi-agent system. The original
exchange mechanism, which is based on the human tendency to compromise and
change opinion through self-thinking, is here modified to include the role of
the agents' competence. In particular, we take into account the agents'
tendency to behave in the same way as if they were as good, or as bad, as their
partner: the so-called equality bias. This occurred in a situation where a wide
gap separated the competence of group members. We discuss the main properties
of the kinetic models and numerically investigate some examples of collective
decision under the influence of the equality bias. The results confirm that the
equality bias leads the group to suboptimal decisions
The undecided have the key: Interaction-driven opinion dynamics in a three state model
The effects of interpersonal interactions on individual's agreements result
in a social aggregation process which is reflected in the formation of
collective states, as for instance, groups of individuals with a similar
opinion about a given issue. This field, which has been a longstanding concern
of sociologists and psychologists, has been extended into an area of
experimental social psychology, and even has attracted the attention of
physicists and mathematicians. In this article, we present a novel model of
opinion formation in which agents may either have a strict preference for a
choice, or be undecided. The opinion shift emerges during interpersonal
communications, as a consequence of a cumulative process of conviction for one
of the two extremes opinions through repeated interactions. There are two main
ingredients which play key roles in determining the steady state: the initial
fraction of undecided agents and the conviction's sensitivity in each
interaction. As a function of these two parameters, the model presents a wide
range of possible solutions, as for instance, consensus of each opinion,
bi-polarisation or convergence of undecided individuals. We found that a
minimum fraction of undecided agents is crucial not only for reaching consensus
of a given opinion, but also to determine a dominant opinion in a polarised
situation. In order to gain a deeper comprehension of the dynamics, we also
present the theoretical master equations of the model.Comment: 21 pages, 6 figure
Reclaiming human machine nature
Extending and modifying his domain of life by artifact production is one of
the main characteristics of humankind. From the first hominid, who used a wood
stick or a stone for extending his upper limbs and augmenting his gesture
strength, to current systems engineers who used technologies for augmenting
human cognition, perception and action, extending human body capabilities
remains a big issue. From more than fifty years cybernetics, computer and
cognitive sciences have imposed only one reductionist model of human machine
systems: cognitive systems. Inspired by philosophy, behaviorist psychology and
the information treatment metaphor, the cognitive system paradigm requires a
function view and a functional analysis in human systems design process.
According that design approach, human have been reduced to his metaphysical and
functional properties in a new dualism. Human body requirements have been left
to physical ergonomics or "physiology". With multidisciplinary convergence, the
issues of "human-machine" systems and "human artifacts" evolve. The loss of
biological and social boundaries between human organisms and interactive and
informational physical artifact questions the current engineering methods and
ergonomic design of cognitive systems. New developpment of human machine
systems for intensive care, human space activities or bio-engineering sytems
requires grounding human systems design on a renewed epistemological framework
for future human systems model and evidence based "bio-engineering". In that
context, reclaiming human factors, augmented human and human machine nature is
a necessityComment: Published in HCI International 2014, Heraklion : Greece (2014
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