Concord.org - Modeling w/ Objects Intro

........................................................................................................................................... Getting Started:

Building mathematical models is central to math and science. Modeling with objects--a new way of making models--has recently been made accessible to even very young learners. This Web page is a guide for educators and parents on how and why to make models of this kind.

The importance of modeling with objects comes from the fact that you can create an interesting model by giving some simple rules to mathematical objects. When lots of these objects interact, some surprising and unexpected behavior can result. Because the rules can be very simple, this approach to building models can be an excellent way for young learners to start model making. It would, however, be a mistake to assume that modeling with objects is only for beginners. Very sophisticated and important models can be made this way, too.

There are three new approaches to modeling with objects that everyone should learn about. All involve learning a programming language, but very simple approaches make it easy for even elementary-age kids to do this. And, at least for the time being, all are free:

AgentSheets [http://www.agentsheets.com] uses a graphical programming system that is easy to use. It generates very fast simulations as well as Java applets that can be shared on the Web.
More AgentSheets information and sample applets are available.

StarLogo [http://www.media.mit.edu/starlogo/index.html] is based on Logo language popularized by Seymour Papert and others at the legendary MIT Media Lab. StarLogo adds some new commands to Logo so that many turtles can now move and interact at the same time. Uri Wilenski at Tufts has continued to improve StarLogo, creating a fast and powerful version called StarLogo T1.5 [http://www.ccl.tufts.edu/cm/] available, at last, on both the Mac and Wintel systems.

Stagecast Creator [http://www.stagecast.com] is a simple but powerful system, previously known as Cocoa, that was spawned by research at Apple. It is now available in beta form for both Mac and Wintel systems. Designed for young kids, it is easy to learn.

...........................................................................................................................................

Helix Molecule Screenshot
This helix molecule was generated by the Molecular Workbench software. When you view it in the software, you can manipulate it by rotating and zooming.