2023

Peter Taborek

Professor of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Irvine

Areas: Computer-Aided Education, Education, Engineering, Physics

Peter Taborek’s research is in experimental condensed matter physics, and he teaches mathematical methods for the physical sciences to undergraduate and graduate students in physics, chemistry and engineering. Most of the standard textbooks for this subject were written before the era of personal computers and do not equip students with the tools of modern technical problem solving. To remedy this situation, Taborek has developed his own e-textbook, MathematicaHandbook, which is written entirely in Wolfram Notebooks.

The text covers traditional topics, such as complex analysis, linear algebra and ordinary and partial differential equations, but explains and illustrates concepts using computer algebra, graphics and numerics. This text has been used for over a decade and includes many figures, animations and live code so students can perform computations while learning course concepts. Student learning requires numerous practice problems with grading and feedback. For a large undergraduate class, this is labor-intensive, so Taborek has developed a web-based platform to deliver homework problems, which are graded using calls to Wolfram Cloud APIs.

2023

Australian Christian College

Accepted by: Jeremy Kwok, Director of Technology

Areas: Computer-Aided Education, Education

Australian Christian College (ACC) is Australia’s largest non-government distance education provider, with four schools equipped to provide a hybrid of in-house and fully remote learning. Covering K–12 education, its mission is to have all students flourish to their full potential and be a positive influence on the world. Rather than rely on traditional publishers, ACC wanted more consistent content for online and in-person assessment that showcases the ingenuity of their instructors.

ACC is now rolling out a Wolfram eLearning environment integration in their current Canvas environment. This integration will initially be used for assessments with 1,500 high-school students, which will quickly grow to 3,000 students and beyond as they implement the system for grades 7–12. With ACC’s announcement of a new STEM-focused campus in Western Sydney, this automated assessment system will be even more important in the future as enrollment continues to grow.

2022

The Geva Research Group, Compute-to-Learn Project

University of Michigan Ann Arbor, accepted by Ellen Mulvihill

Areas: Chemistry, Computational Thinking, Computer-Aided Education, Courseware Development, Education

The Compute-to-Learn project provides students with the opportunity to engage in creative forms of active learning. Compute-to-Learn activities stem from evidence-based, student-centered learning approaches, such as emphasis on real-world applications to promote students’ integration of new ideas, as well as authentic, collaborative environments that apprentice students as members of a scientific discipline (via practices such as explanatory writing and peer review). Students participate in tutorials and training related to Mathematica; research and propose an original Demonstration idea; workshop the idea during design and production stages; and, finally, submit the final product to external review prior to publication and dissemination on the Wolfram Demonstrations Project website. The Compute-to-Learn pedagogy is implemented within a peer-led honors studio environment. It has been offered in the University of Michigan chemistry department since 2015.

2022

William A. Sethares

Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Wisconsin–Madison

Areas: Computational Humanities, Computational Thinking, Computer-Aided Education, Courseware Development, Engineering, Image and Signal Processing, Image Processing, Signal Processing

Bill Sethares is a researcher and professor of electrical and computer engineering at the College of Engineering at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, focusing on signal processing with applications in acoustics, image processing, communications and optimization.

At the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Sethares attracts students from majors beyond engineering with his computationally rich image processing course material and project-based learning (all Wolfram Language–based, of course!). Sethares is a founding member of the LEOcode project and brings computation to art historians in the form of applications used to find patterns in watermarks and canvases. These can help to identify and date historical papers and paintings.

2014

Prof. Richard J. Gaylord

University of Illinois

Areas: Authoring and Publishing, Authoring in Mathematica, Biology, Computer Science, Computer-Aided Education, Education, Physics

Richard Gaylord is one of Mathematica’s earliest users and is a self-described evangelist for the Wolfram Language. He taught computer programming in the Wolfram Language at many universities, companies, government agencies, and scientific conferences for more than 25 years. He has co-authored several texts, including An Introduction to Programming with Mathematica, and three other books on programming computer simulations in a wide variety of fields using the Wolfram Language. Gaylord has made a three-part video explaining the fundamentals of the Wolfram Language.

2014

Dr. János Karsai

Bolyai Institute, University of Szeged

Areas: Authoring in Mathematica, Computer-Aided Education, Impulsive Systems, Modeling Dynamical Systems with Mathematica, Nonlinear Oscillations, Population Dynamics

János Karsai has been using Mathematica since 1994 in teaching and research. He teaches mathematics and Mathematica-aided modeling to math, pharmacy, biology, and engineering students in Szeged and Berlin, and has given several Mathematica trainings of different levels and topics in Hungary, Czech Republic, Serbia, and Romania. He has supervised several outstanding students in Mathematica-related research. Karsai applies Mathematica experiments in his research; works on modernizing mathematical education, especially in applied sciences; and manages several projects in these fields. He developed a package and wrote a book on impulsive systems with Mathematica in 2002 and has prepared several dynamic teaching materials in Mathematica for his courses. Karsai manages the website www.model.u-szeged.hu.

2014

Bruce Torrence

Randolph-Macon College

Areas: Authoring and Publishing, Authoring in Mathematica, Computer Graphics and Visual Arts, Computer-Aided Education, Education, Mathematics

Bruce Torrence is the author of numerous Mathematica books and articles including The Student’s Introduction to Mathematica, a popular general reference book for students and educators. In addition to publishing dozens of articles on the use of Mathematica in education and research, Torrence recently completed a five-year editorship at Math Horizons and is a Wolfram Science Summer School alumni.