Month:

What’s the Scale Factor used in the Blueprint for the Welcome Center?

• September 9

Students from St. Philip's School & Community Center on a math walk stop at the newly constructed Welcome Center at their school. They wonder what the scale factor was that was used to build the space as the builders went from blueprint to real space? This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant DRL 2115393. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily refle... CONTINUE READING

What is the weight of an ice rink?

• September 9

Ronald Kirk Bridge is a pedestrian bridge over the Trinity River in Dallas, connecting downtown Dallas and West Dallas. It is over 2,000 feet long and 60 feet wide. What would happen if water froze on the middle of the Ron Kirk Bridge? Could we create an ice rink on this bridge? talkSTEM members explore this question and estimate how much weight an ice rink would add to the bridge.... CONTINUE READING

How is the artwork different from a water tower? – This Land Is Your Land

• September 9

This video is part 1 of 3 visiting the artwork, This Land is Your Land in NorthPark Center. Artist reference the real world all the time when creating artwork. Can your brain determine the differences between a sculpture and the real object? Join Dr. Glen Whitney, Founder of the National Museum of Mathematics, as you discover how to determine the differences between artwork and objects in the real world. You can try this at home with any artwork! What differences do you see? This video was suppo... CONTINUE READING

What are Color Equations?

• September 9

Join Dr. Glen Whitney, Founder of the National Museum of Mathematics, on a math walk. As you walk throughout NorthPark Center, you may notice a pattern of artwork that reoccurs. There are several panels that appear like addition equations with color. Can you add colors like numbers? Dr.Glen Whitney explores the concept of adding colors using a color wheel. On a color wheel, you can calculate the angle bisector of two colors to find the resulting color if the two were mixed. We discuss how there... CONTINUE READING

What is the golden ratio?

• September 9

A high school student at Hockaday School created a campus STEM walk for elementary students to enjoy. In this walk stop she explores the golden ratio that she sees in the dance studio on campus.... CONTINUE READING

How Far Can We See?

• September 9

The Texas Star is a ferris wheel that has delighted many families from 1985 onward. As one of the tallest such structures in North America, we wonder, exactly how far can you see from the top? Students and faculty from Greenhill School created this walk stop and contributed this content for all to enjoy! Supplementary Activity Guides for this video to extend student learning for K-12 grade levels are freely available here:... CONTINUE READING

How Fast Can You Go?

• September 9

Whether you’re at Fair Park or even driving around certain parts of Dallas, it’s hard to miss the towering site of the Texas Star Ferris Wheel! After all, it’s the largest Ferris wheel in the United States. As you’re watching it turn, there are lots of things you might wonder about, but if you’re like us, one of the first that comes to mind is: How fast is your gondola whisking through the air when you ride it? Join students and faculty from Greenhill School in exploring this question.... CONTINUE READING

What Can You Measure in Bamboo Plants?

• September 9

Dr. Glen Whitney, founder of the National Museum of Mathematics in New York and walkSTEM advisor, wonders what we can measure in the bamboo plants located at the entry to the Nasher Sculpture Center. Suggestions include length of nodes, distance between leaves, circumference of stalks, and more. Dr. Whitney then explores the possibility of a mathematical relationship between some of these measurements and age of the bamboo. How would we figure out if there was a relationship and also what type o... CONTINUE READING

Why is There a Gap in the Building’s Facade?

• September 9

This building has a unique design element – there is a gap in the facade of the building. Why would there be one? In this video, which is geared for high school students and older, Dr. Glen Whitney, founder of the National Museum of Mathematics in New York and walkSTEM advisor, discusses temperature changes that we are used to, here in Dallas. He goes on to explore the mathematical relationship between change in temperature and the expansion factor of aluminum. Supplementary Activity Guides fo... CONTINUE READING

How Did the Architects Play with Numbers?

• September 9

Dr. Glen Whitney, founder of the National Museum of Mathematics in New York and walkSTEM advisor admires the unique grid up high above this space. Some questions that you get to explore are: What are louvers, and why are they useful?Can you identify other natural or man-made items which perform the same function or purpose as the louvers at the Winspear Opera House? What are the attributes of a quadrilateral, of a parallelogram? How could you measure the length of an object that is a far away fr... CONTINUE READING