Course Descriptions

Teaching Creative Problem Solving
SIDNEY J. PARNES, Buffalo State College, Creative Problem Solving Institute and BEATRICE PARNES, San Diego College
July 7-9, 2005 in Seattle, WA
Apply: UWA

          Undergraduate students who will become professional physical or social scientists, engineers, mathematicians or teachers must learn how to actualize goals, visions and dreams into reality. In this short course, instructors of these students learn and practice strategies to train their students to do this by using creative and critical thinking skills. Participants will be guided in preparing plans for helping students attain a creative outlook as they develop and use more of their thinking abilities.
          The course focuses on opportunity-making with respect to wishes and desires of individuals, their organizations, and the society in which they live. It helps participants uncover productive new ways to view, define and approach challenges, desires, or dilemmas in order to achieve effective implementable resolutions.
          Too often a problem solver examines what exists and chooses the least of available evils without much satisfaction. Ultimately the Osborn/Parnes model results in creative decision-making in which one speculates on what "might be," then chooses and develops the best alternative with satisfaction.
          Participants will be introduced to creative innovative processes that have been applied successfully in every academic discipline. These processes have also been applied by business executives desiring more creativity and innovation from their managers and employees. The short course provides participants the opportunity to experience the processes themselves and this helps enable them to effectively integrate these methods into their courses.
          Participants will learn a new version of the Osborn/Parnes model. Many other proven techniques for stimulating both imagination and judgment are incorporated eclectically within the Osborn/Parnes model. The principles and processes presented have been derived from more than fifty years of research and practice in improving both imagination and judgment.

For college teachers of: all disciplines. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. ParnesOPTIMIZE The Magic of your Mind. It will be provided to each participant. Among a number of his other books on creativity are Visioning: State-of-the-Art Processes for Encouraging Innovative Excellence (1988) and Source Book For Creative Problem-Solving (1992). The Source Book is a 50 year anthology of creative problem-solving techniques and processes. Dr. Parnes is a Lifetime Trustee on the Board of the Creative Education Foundation, which presented him its highest award for "Outstanding Creative Achievement" in 1990. He also serves on the Foundations Advisory Board of the Journal of Creative Behavior. Beatrice Parnes has devoted 30 years to facilitating creative problem-solving programs and visionizing programs for adults. She is with San Diego College and has taught in special education creative approaches to learning, using methods in her co-authored book Success Oriented Instruction.

Changing Science Courses to Promote Critical Thinking
CRAIG E. NELSON, Indiana University
May 2-4, 2005 in Dayton, OH
Apply: DAY

          Mature critical thinking is a prerequisite to understanding science and to applying it appropriately. We will examine two major frameworks for fostering critical thinking: cognitive science (mental models and misconceptions, novice v. expert distinctions, models for thinking about thinking) and intellectual and ethical development (Piaget, Perry and others) and explore the implications of each for classroom practices. An underlying theme will be that, often, critical thinking can be fostered best by increasing the ratio of support offered for a given level of challenge. Our considerations will include both the ways particular topics are presented and the use of techniques such as structured small group discussion to increase comprehension, synthesis and application. Processes: Mini-lectures alternating with writing and small- and whole-group discussions of applications to your own teaching.
          Participants should bring with them lecture notes and other teaching materials for some course segments where critical thinking seems especially desirable. A summary of Dr. Nelsons approach is given in his On the Persistence of Unicorns: The Tradeoff between Content and Critical Thinking Revisited, in The Social Worlds of Higher Education: Handbook for Teaching in a New Century, B. A. Pescosolido and R. Aminzade, Eds.

For college teachers of: all disciplines. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Nelson is Professor Emeritus of Biology at Indiana University (on the faculty 1966-2004). He taught diverse courses in biology, intensive freshman seminars, great books and other honors courses, and several collaboratively-taught interdisciplinary courses. One regular offering was a graduate course on "Alternative Approaches to Teaching College Biology." Dr. Nelson has presented invited workshops on critical thinking and on diversity at numerous national meetings and individual institutions. His publications include several on pedagogy (and even more on evolutionary biology). He is the chair of the organizing committee for the new International society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. His awards include several for distinguished teaching (from IU, Vanderbilt and Northwestern), Carnegie Scholar, Outstanding Research and Doctoral University Professor Of The Year 2000 and, in 2001, the President's Medal for Excellence ("The highest honor bestowed by Indiana University").

Course: 3

Calibrated Peer Review: A Writing and Critical Thinking Instructional Tool
ARLENE RUSSELL, UCLA and TIM SU, City College of San Francisco
June 22-24, 2005 in Los Angeles, CA
Apply: CAL

          Calibrated Peer ReviewTM (CPR), a web-based, discipline-independent, instructional management tool enables an instructor to make frequent writing assignments that probe student understanding of concepts without increasing the instructor's "grading" load. In CPR assignments, students "write-to-learn." CPR instructors can choose materials from the growing library of field-tested CPR assignments in many disciplines or they can create their own assignments. In a CPR assignment, students write short essays on a specific topic. Guiding questions focus both the direction that students should take in organizing their thoughts for the essay and encourage critical thinking about the topic. After electronic submission of the essays, the students are trained as reviewers using "calibration" essays. When students have completed the training, they review three anonymous essays written by their peers and finally their own essays. To launch a "CPR assignment," an instructor selects an assignment, creates a class list, and sets the due dates for essay submission and assignment completion.
          At the workshop, participants will first experience a CPR assignment as a student does and then learn how to implement the program in a class. The group will review the rich set of assessment information that the CPR program can acquire on student performance and learn how to customize the information to specific needs. Participants will then work on the creation and development of new assignments for use in their own classes. Learn how to become proficient in developing new and creative CPR.

For college teachers of: undergraduate science, math, technology and social science courses, graduate students interested in an eventual teaching career. High school teachers are also welcome on a space available basis. Prerequisites: none, but potential proposers of NSF CCLI grants in any science area are encouraged to attend this workshop. To use CPR assignments at an institution, students will need to have regular access to computers with Internet capability. More information may be obtained from the Calibrated Peer Review web page: http://cpr.molsci.ucla.edu.

Dr. Russell, a Senior Lecturer at UCLA in both the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and in the Department of Education, is a co-developer of the Calibrated ReviewTM (CPR) program, a product of the Molecular Science Project, an NSF systemic reform initiative.

The POGIL Classroom: Engaging Students and Developing Learning Skills
DAVID HANSON and TROY WOLFSKILL, Stony Brook University
June 6-8, 2005 at Stony Brook, NY
Apply: SUSB

Note: Participant expenses up to $200 for board and room will be paid by the NSF-supported POGIL project. The NSF grant does not allow payment of other travel expenses, i.e. transportation. Details will be sent upon receipt of the course application. For information about the POGIL project, go to http://www.POGIL.org.

          POGIL (Process-Oriented Guided-Inquiry Learning) is a student-centered method of instruction that is based on recent developments in cognitive learning theory and results from classroom research that suggest most students experience improved learning when they are actively engaged, working together, and given the opportunity to construct their own understanding. POGIL emphasizes that learning is an interactive process of thinking carefully, discussing ideas, refining understanding, practicing skills, reflecting on progress, and assessing performance. In a POGIL classroom or laboratory, students work on specially designed guided-inquiry materials in small self-managed groups. The instructor serves as a facilitator of learning rather than as a source of information. The objective is to develop learning skills as well as mastery of discipline-specific content simultaneously.
          This Chautauqua course models the POGIL classroom appropriate for introductory science courses in disciplines such as chemistry, biology, mathematics, and physics. The philosophy and principles of process-oriented guided inquiry learning are discussed. Text-based and computer-based materials that support this learning environment are examined. Teaching strategies that help make it successful are demonstrated. Activities suitable for use in participants' courses are designed, and plans for implementing POGIL, either to replace or supplement lectures, are developed and shared.
          In the POGIL classroom, students work in teams to acquire information and develop understanding through guided inquiry. They accomplish tasks and examine models or examples, which provide all the information central to the lesson, in response to critical-thinking questions. These questions compel the students to process the information, to verbalize and share their perceptions and understanding with each other, and to make inferences and conclusions, i.e. construct knowledge. They then apply this knowledge in simple exercises and to problems, which require higher-order thinking involving analysis, synthesis, transference, expert methodologies, and integration with previously learned concepts. The teams report their results to the class, assess how well they have done and how they could do better, develop strategies for improving their skills, reflect on what they have learned, and submit a written report. In this environment, key process skills in the areas of information processing, critical thinking, problem solving, teamwork, communication, self-management, and self-assessment are nurtured. These skills, just like skills in laboratory work and athletics, can be strengthened through practice, and including them explicitly in courses not only helps students be successful but also prepares them for the workplace and for life in general.
          The POGIL format is being developed and disseminated through grants from the National Science Foundation and has been described in several publications: J.N. Spencer, J. Chem. Ed. 76, 566-569 (1999); J.J. Farrell, R.S. Moog, and J.N. Spencer, J. Chem. Ed. 76, 570-574 (1999); D. Hanson and T. Wolfskill, J. Chem. Ed 77, 120-130 (2000) and 78, 1417-1424 (2001).

For college teachers of: science and mathematics. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Hanson is a Professor of Chemistry at Stony Brook University. He is an established research scientist with over 125 publications, has served as Chair of the Department and Chair of Stony Brook's Learning Communities Program. He graduated from Dartmouth College and received a Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology. Dr. Wolfskill is a Lecturer and Education Specialist in the Department of Chemistry at Stony Brook. He has taught at both the college and university levels, conducted workshops for undergraduate and graduate teaching assistants and faculty nationwide, developed process-oriented guided-inquiry activities, and currently is developing a computer-based learning system, LUCID (Learning and Understanding through Computer-based Interactive Discovery). He graduated from Albright College and received a Ph.D. from the University of Virginia.

Advanced POGIL Workshop: Writing Materials and Improving Classroom Facilitation
RICK MOOG, Franklin & Marshall College, ANDREI STRAUMANIS, College of Charleston, & RENEE COLE, Central Missouri State University
May 19-21, 2005 in Allendale, MI
Apply: PITT

Note: There is no application fee for this course. Application for this workshop must be made via the POGIL online application form at http://www.POGIL.org/events/GVSU3.php. This course is cosponsored by the POGIL project and is offered at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, MI. The POGIL project support includes complementary on-campus lodging for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights and all meals from breakfast on Thursday to lunch on Saturday. For information about the POGIL project, go to http://www.POGIL.org.

          POGIL (Process-Oriented Guided-Inquiry Learning) is a student-centered method of instruction that is based on recent developments in cognitive learning theory and results from classroom research that suggest most students experience improved learning when they are actively engaged, working together, and given the opportunity to construct their own understanding. POGIL emphasizes that learning is an interactive process of thinking carefully, discussing ideas, refining understanding, practicing skills, reflecting on progress, and assessing performance. In a POGIL classroom or laboratory, students work on specially designed guided-inquiry materials in small self-managed groups. The instructor serves as a facilitator of learning rather than as a source of information. The objective is to develop learning skills as well as mastery of discipline-specific content simultaneously.
          This workshop is specially designed for people who have prior experience with POGIL and are interested in writing classroom materials and/or developing their classroom facilitation skills. Additional information concerning the expected experience of participants this workshop is available from www.POGIL.org/events/GVSU3.php. Please contact Rick Moog (rick.moog@fandm.edu)with any questions.

For college professors of: science and mathematics. Prerequisites: see preceding paragraph.

Dr. Moog is currently Professor of chemistry at Franklin & Marshall College. He is the Project Coordinator for the Middle Atlantic Discovery Chemistry Project (MADCP) and is Principal Investigator for the NSF-funded National Dissemination project in Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL). He is the coauthor of materials used for guided inquiry instruction in general chemistry and physical chemistry, and has developed numerous guided inquiry experiments for use in the general chemistry laboratory. He has organized numerous symposia at national ACS and BCCE meetings concerning active learning throughout the chemistry curriculum, and has given over 40 presentations, posters, and workshops on guided inquiry and group learning. Dr. Straumanis is an Assistant Professor at the College of Charleston. Previously he was a post-doctoral fellow at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, NM.

Inquiry Based Instruction: Enhance the Way You Teach and the Way Your Students Learn
THOMAS LORD, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, TEDDIE PHILLIPSON-MOWER, Indiana University, SHAROLYN BELZER, Idaho State University, KERRY CHEESMAN, Capital University, and KELLY BOHRER, University of Dayton
June 6-8, 2005 in Dayton, OH
Apply: DAY

          Current science education reforms are based on new cognitive understandings of how people learn. Most educational theorists support the belief that attentive people endeavor to make sense of what they are experiencing by applying it to their preconceived understandings. Once meaning of a novel experience is realized, new knowledge is attained. Inplicit in this action is that learners attempt to discover new information themselves. Gaining new understandings is an active, rather that passive, accomplishment; inquiry, therefore, is an important key to learning.
          Studies on effective science instruction conducted by AAAS, NAS, NABT and NSTA support this notion. Each of these organizations has strongly endorsed the use of inquiry in the teaching of science. Many science faculty, however, are concerned about the efficiency and effectiveness of the teaching methods as outlined in the reform documents. In contemporary surveys, science teachers at all levels - professors on down - have expressed that they would be better able to teach with inquiry and other reform methods if they could only see it happening.
          This interactive course will help instructor-participants "see" reform-based teaching. "Modeling" is important, so we will start off with finding out the participant's ideas and possible misconceptions that may or may not result in barriers to their own professional growth. Using this as a starting point, we will build the presentation. How do their ideas fit in with current research and the intent of the reform movement? How would they describe their own teaching? Several examples of reform and more traditional teaching will be shown. Participants will work in groups to discover specific instances that reflect reform and traditional teaching practices. Instrumentation often used in professional development, including the Reform Teaching Observation Protocol (RTOP) developed by the ACEPT group at Arizona State University, the 5-E instructional strategy conceived by Roger Bybee at BSCS and the Secondary Teaching Analysis Matrix (STAM) constructed by Jim Gallagher and Joyce Parker at Michigan State University, will be presented. Participants will discuss the instruments as well as reflect on the implications that they have for their own practice. Groups will choose, practice, and demonstrate a shift from traditional to reform teaching on various items in the instruments.
          This course will encourage communication between and among participants to construct ideas and understanding, equal participation by all, exploration prior to presentation, respect for what all individuals have to say, convergent thinking, participant determination of focus and direction of the discourse, and connection with other content disciplines and/or real world experiences.

For college teachers of: all science, science education, and related fields. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Lord, a biologist at IUP, is a long-time supporter of inquiry-based instruction. After numerous publications, recently he coauthored Understanding Potentials: Spatial Reasoning for the National Federation for Educational Research in the United Kingdom. Ms. Phillipson-Mower is a doctoral candidate in Science Education at Indiana where she has received various awards for teaching and research in undergraduate education. Dr. Belzer is a biologist at Idaho State where she conducts educational research on inquiry-based teaching and learning. In a recent NSF grant she designed an inquiry-based introductory biology lab and is currently evaluating it. Dr. Cheesman is a biochemist at Capital where his current work centers around inquiry-based courses. Kelly Bohrer is the biology lab coordinator at Dayton where she is developing inquiry-based labs and environmental modules for non-majors. All of the presenters are members of the Faculty Development Committee of the four year section of the National Association of Biology Teachers (NABT).

Classroom Management: How to Teach Like a Pro
DELANEY KIRK, Drake University
June 2-4, 2005 in New York City, NYC
July 14-16, 2005 in Seattle, WA
August 11-13, 2005 in Des Moines, IA
Apply: UWA

Note: For course details and a schedule, please see http://depts.washington.edu/chautauq. In your application, please specify at which one of the three venues you wish to attend.

          While most teachers are comfortable with the course content of what they are teaching, many do not feel they have been prepared in "how" to teach. Especially lacking is how to manage a classroom (how to handle absenteeism, tardiness, cheating, difficult students; how to set classroom expectations; how to write an effective syllabus).
          This three-day workshop will focus on various issues of classroom management beginning with the first day of class, and will address issues such as:
• How to establish and maintain your credibility as the instructor from day one
• What to do that first crucial day of class to set class expectations
• How to convince students that your class is critical to their future success
• How to motivate students to take responsibility for their success or failure in class
• What classroom policies to include in your syllabus
• How to deal with those difficult students who come in late, disrupt class, sleep in class, dominate the class discussion, turn papers in late, etc.
• Pros and cons of using teams; how to assign teams, grade assignments, and deal with complaints that team members are not doing their share
• How to prevent cheating and how to handle it if it does occur
• How to get responsible and useful feedback from students to improve your teaching
          In addition, participants of this interactive workshop are encouraged to bring their questions about classroom management. At the end of the workshop, you should feel more confident about your ability to manage your classroom.

For college teachers of: all disciplines. The workshop would be particularly useful to those faculty members who are beginning their teaching careers, new faculty in the first few years out of their educational programs, or experienced faculty with questions as to how to manage this "new" generation of college students. In general, if you want to improve your classroom evaluations and become a better classroom manager, this workshop is for you. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Kirk is a Professor of Management at Drake University with 23 years of teaching experience in both large and small, public and private universities. She has conducted teaching workshops at Duke University, University of Washington, New Mexico State University, Grinnell College, University of Arkansas-Fort Smith, Drake University, and Metropolitan Community College, in addition to numerous academic conferences. She was the featured expert for the Chronicle of Higher Education's online chat on classroom management on September 15, 2004, and has earned the prestigious Drake University Board of Governor's "Excellence in Teaching" Award.

Using Case Studies to Teach Science--A Workshop
CLYDE FREEMAN HERREID, University of Buffalo/SUNY, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
June 23-25, 2005 in Midtown Manhattan, NYC
Apply: SUSB
August 1-3, 2005 at Austin, TX
Apply: TXA

          Case Studies have been used to teach students in law and business schools for over a hundred years. These cases are stories with an educational message. Case study instruction has been used in medicine under the terminology of Problem Based Learning where each patient is a case to be diagnosed and treated. The value of the case approach in the classroom is that it puts the subject matter in context rather than presenting the material as a series of isolated facts and abstract principles. When information is put into story form it is easier to learn and remember. It has particular appeal for students put off by science taught in the traditional lecture style.
          The purpose of the Case Study Workshop is to teach faculty about the different types of case study methods of instruction along with their strengths and weaknesses, how to teach with case studies, and how to write cases and teaching notes so that other individuals can use them This is a highly interactive workshop where participants experience case study teaching from the student's viewpoint first, then they will write their own cases which they can take home and use in their classes. An independent survey of several hundred faculty who have attended our case study workshops indicates that virtually all instructors report higher student satisfaction with this method of presentation compared to traditional lecture method, as well as greater student attendance, and higher grades.

For college teachers of: all science and engineering disciplines. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Herreid holds the State University of New York's title of Distinguished Teaching Professor. He was trained as a biologist at Johns Hopkins University and Pennsylvania State University, and he has held positions at the University of Alaska, Duke University and the University of Nairobi. He has won every major teaching award at the University at Buffalo, and he established the university's Teaching Assistant Training Program. In addition to teaching the large introductory Biology class, he regularly conducts small seminar courses on case studies in science to Honors Students. Dr. Herreid is the Academic Director of the university Honors Program and founding director of The National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science. The National Science Foundation and The Pew Charitable Trusts have supported the Center for many years. Its web site is located at http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/case.html where there are 200 peer-reviewed cases published in all science disciplines including engineering and math. Dr. Herreid writes a regular column on case teaching in the Journal of College Science Teaching. Many of these articles are also published on the web site for The National Center.

Course: 9

Investigative CASES: Contexts for Active Students Engaged in Science
ETHEL STANLEY, BioQUEST and Beloit College and MARGARET WATERMAN, Southeast Missouri State University
May 22-24, 2005 in Allendale, MI
Apply: PITT

Note: This course is cosponsored by and offered at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, MI.

          This highly interactive workshop will engage faculty in learning and teaching science using Investigative Case Based Learning (ICBL). Faculty will develop their own cases that utilize realistic, meaningful and contemporary problems to engage students in scientific investigation. ICBL focuses on decision making in situations where science informs the process, such as:
• investigating the genetics and spread of West Nile Virus,
• controlling gull populations,
• conserving food-stained artifacts,
• identifying illegal whale meat products using bioinformatics.
          There are three phases in ICBL: problem posing, problem solving and peer persuasion (the BioQUEST "3P's") which follow closely the activities of practicing scientists. In problem posing, students read the case and work collaboratively to analyze it, to structure their own learning of both science process and content, and to identify areas they need to learn more about. In the problem solving phase students define and undertake investigations in which they use observational skills, propose hypotheses, design experiments, gather data, use models, interpret graphs, and support their conclusions with evidence. In the last phase of ICBL, peer persuasion, they present their findings to others using one or more of a wide variety of formats.
          Participants will have opportunities to:
• Try out investigative case based learning
• Explore online investigative case modules developed by faculty from over sixtydifferent institutions and departments
• Use computational tools and modeling to investigate biological problems
• Develop their own case module
• Access web-based biology materials for their own courses, and
• Plan for implementation and assessment of student learning in their own classrooms
          We will introduce several case module examples from a variety of sources as examples. Depending on participants' interests, cases will be selected to show use of ICBL in biology, chemistry and earth science. The use of online computational tools, data, and models to support student inquiry in these cases will be emphasized. Our book Biological Inquiry: A Workbook of Investigative Cases (2005, Benjamin/Cummings) that accompanies the introductory majors' text, Biology 7e (Campbell and Reece, 2005) will be distributed at the workshop.

For college teachers of: biology, environmental science, chemistry, or geoscience. High school science teachers of advanced courses are welcome if space is available. Prerequisites: Participants should bring a syllabus for a course in which they would like to develop one or more cases. Basic familiarity with preparing electronic documents (word processing) and with using web browsers and web searching is assumed. No special knowledge of any other software is required.

Professors Ethel Stanley and Margaret Waterman led the NSF funded project LifeLines OnLine (DUE 9952525) in which they developed ICBL with undergraduate science faculty. They have a richly detailed website at http://bioquest.org/icbl. Their interdisciplinary work includes Investigative Cases in Geoscience at http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/icbl/index.html. They have presented over 30 workshops on ICBL to college teachers from many science disciplines, around the nation and internationally, and have several publications on ICBL methodologies and resources. Additional support for their work on ICBL came from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Educational Outreach and Training Partnership for Advanced Computational Infrastructure. As Director of the BioQUEST Curriculum Consortium and member of the Biology faculty at Beloit College, Ethel Stanley participates in several undergraduate science education reform projects at the national level. With two decades of teaching experience in the biological sciences at both two-year and four-year institutions, Professor Stanley strongly supports reforms that encourage the collaborative use of computer simulations and tools as well as the use of cases in student-centered investigations. She has over 30 publications, including co-editor of Microbes Count! (2003, ASM Press). She is also editor of Bioscene: Journal of College Biology Teaching. Margaret Waterman, Professor of Biology at Southeast Missouri State University, studies the use of cases in undergraduate biology courses as one way to make biological inquiry more accessible, meaningful, and useful for majors and nonmajors alike. She also has extensive experience in faculty development while at the University of Pittsburgh and Harvard Medical School. Her publications are in plant pathology and undergraduate science education.

The Five Biggest Unsolved Problems in Science: An Interdisciplinary Perspective
CHARLES M. WYNN, SR., Eastern Connecticut State University and ARTHUR W. WIGGINS, Oakland (Michigan) Community College
June 1-3, 2005 in Austin, TX
Apply: TXA

          Scientific methodology, the underlying theme of most interdisciplinary science courses, is usually presented through a discussion of the evolution of scientific knowledge from ancient Greece to the present. This forum presents a future-oriented extension of this perspective: an interdisciplinary science course that focuses on The Five Biggest Unsolved Problems in Science. In the true spirit of science, and in contrast to the rumored "end of science," it provides an open-ended view of the pursuit of knowledge by physics, chemistry, biology, geology, and astronomy. Discussions begin with an overview of what we know about each (including its most comprehensive idea) and then proceed to what we don't know (including its biggest unsolved problem). Demonstrations as well as teaching strategies will be provided.

For college teachers of: all disciplines. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Wynn is Professor of Chemistry at Eastern Connecticut State University. He is listed in the National Directory of Science Literacy Consultants of the Society for College Science Teachers. Arthur Wiggins is Professor of Physics and Department Head of Physical Sciences at Oakland Community College in Michigan. He is co-author with Dr. Wynn of The Five Biggest Ideas in Science, Quantum Leaps in the Wrong Direction: Where Real Science Ends and Pseudoscience Begins, and The Five Biggest Unsolved Problems in Science.

Peer-Led Team Learning
PRATIBHA VARMA-NELSON, Northeastern Illinois University, MARK CRACOLICE, The University of Montana and DON WINK, University of Illinois at Chicago
May 23-25, 2005 in Fullerton, CA
Apply: CAL
June 20-21, 2005 in Chicago, IL Apply: PITT

          The Workshop Project has developed a model of Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) that has been tested and successfully implemented in chemistry, biology, physics and mathematics courses at a wide variety of institutions. The PLTL model is robust and can be adapted to and implemented in a variety of teaching situations. The course will address the needs of all disciplines of science and mathematics in beginning a PLTL program.
          The PLTL model actively engages students in the learning process by having them solve carefully structured problems in small groups under the direction of a trained peer leader. Peer-led workshops are an effective way to engage large numbers of students with course material and each other. Improved performance and retention, development of communication and team skills, higher motivation and course satisfaction, and increased interest in pursuing further study in science are among the benefits of the PLTL approach.
          The purpose of this course is to introduce the theoretical and practical elements of the PLTL model and prepare participants to implement PLTL programs in biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics. In addition, the course will provide a Workshop experience and will give participants an opportunity to develop Workshop materials. Students who have served as peer leaders will be actively involved in the course and will discuss their experiences with the PLTL model. Recruiting and training of peer leaders will also be discussed as will faculty roles and responsibilities and issues surrounding the implementation and institutionalization of PLTL. Participants will be provided a guide for the implementation of workshops, a handbook for workshop leaders, and workshop materials for chemistry, biology, and physics. We encourage faculty members to assemble a team, which includes a learning specialist and a potential student leader, to participate in this course.

For college teachers of: physical and biological sciences and mathematics at two and four year colleges and universities, graduate students in the sciences interested in an eventual teaching career. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Varma-Nelson is a Professor of Chemistry and Chair of Chemistry, Physics, & Earth Science at Northeastern Illinois University Chicago. She teaches organic, biochemistry, and chemistry for the allied health professions. She has been associated with the Workshop Chemistry Project since 1995 and has introduced workshops in Organic Chemistry and Principles of Organic and Biological Chemistry for the Allied Health Professional. She is co-author of a number of PLTL publications and the program officer for the WPA Program (small grants to facilitate implementation) in chemistry. Dr. Cracolice is an Associate Professor of Chemistry and the Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence at the University of Montana. He teaches introductory chemistry, general chemistry, and graduate courses in chemical education. He received a NSF adapt-and- adopt grant for Workshop Chemistry and is the co-author of a number of PLTL publications. Dr. Wink is Professor of Chemistry and Department Head at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He teaches in the general chemistry and elementary teacher preparation program and upper division and graduate courses in chemistry education. He participates in outreach programs from UIC to the Chicago Public Schools and is an author on a number of publications in the area of college chemistry teaching.

Alternative Energy and Energy Management
GILBERT YANOW, NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory
May 31 - June 3, 2005, in Diamond Bar, CA
Apply: CAL

Note: This course will be offered at the Air Quality Management District (AQMD) Abatement Center in Diamond Bar, CA.

          At the present time, the U.S.A. 25omy is based on fossil fuels. However, these are not in endless supply, as shown by their continual price escalation. At the same time the use of fossil fuels (coal, oil, gasoline, etc.) is a polluting factor of the environment. As time goes on, we will be forced into a wider spread use of not only better energy management, but also more extensive use of alternative fuels.
          This course will examine alternative energy, and the possible future use of these energies in our lives, including transportation. We will briefly examine the history of alternative energy. We will examine the possible uses of Solar Energy, both the system design (solar electric and solar thermal) and manufacture of photovoltaics. This year the course will also spend some time examining a range of other alternative energy sources such as bio-energy production and co-generation. We will visit wind farm and solar electric generating facilities. A final part of this course will look at the application of alternative energy sources for transportation, the Fuel Cell, etc.

For college teachers of: undergraduate science, math and technology courses and graduate students in the sciences interested in an eventual teaching career. Secondary Teachers will be allowed to take the course on a space available basis. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Yanow was the Outreach Coordinator for the Genesis and Orbital Carbon Observatory Missions until his recent retirement, He was at JPL for 29 years. He was a member of the Photovoltaic Lead Center when JPL was conducting extensive research into the utilization of alternative energy. Dr. Yanow is currently the Director for the California Chautauqua Field Center.

Mechatronic System Design: Integrating Mechanical, Electrical, Control, and Computer Engineering
KEVIN C. CRAIG, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
June 15-17, 2005 in Troy, NY
Apply: RPI

          Mechatronics, as an engineering discipline, is the synergistic combination of mechanical engineering, electronics, control engineering, and computers, all integrated through the design process. It involves the application of complex decision making to the operation of physical systems. Mechatronic systems depend on computer software for their unique functionality. Synergism and integration in design set a mechatronic system apart from a traditional, multidisciplinary system.
          This three-day course studies mechatronics at a theoretical and practical level; balance between theory/analysis and hardware implementation is emphasized; emphasis is placed on physical understanding rather than on mathematical formalities. A case-study, problem-solving approach, with hardware demonstrations and hardware lab exercises, is used throughout the course. Topics covered include mechatronic system design, modeling and analysis of dynamic systems, control sensors and actuators, analog and digital control electronics, continuous controller design and digital implementation, interfacing sensors and actuators to a microcomputer / microcontroller, and real-time programming for control. These are the fundamental areas of technology on which successful mechatronic designs are based. Throughout the coverage the focus is kept on the role of each of these areas in the overall design process and how these key areas are integrated into a successful mechatronic system design.
          Starting at design and continuing through manufacture, mechatronic designs optimize the available mix of technologies to produce quality precision products and systems in a timely manner with features the customer wants. If winning designs are to be produced in today's environment, it is imperative that electronics and computer control be included in the design process at the same time the basic functions and properties are defined. The real benefits to industry of a mechatronic approach to design are shorter development cycles, lower costs, and increased quality, reliability, and performance.
          Hardware Systems used throughout the course include:
• Spring-Pendulum Dynamic System
• Two-Mass, Three-Spring, Motor-Driven Dynamic System
• Magnetic Levitation System
• Rotary Inverted Pendulum System
• Pneumatic Actuator Closed-Loop Microcomputer Position Control
• Temperature Computer Control System (Heater and Fan)
• DC Motor Closed-Loop Analog and Digital Speed Control

For college teachers of: any engineering discipline; particularly suited for mechanical and electrical engineering professors. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Craig teaches and performs research in the areas of mechatronic system design, control systems, modeling, dynamics, and the study of active materials and their application in design. He has developed the Mechatronics Program at Rensselaer which includes an extensive teaching and research laboratory, two senior-elective/1st-year graduate courses, Mechatronics and Mechatronic System Design, and the graduate courses Sensors and Actuators in Mechatronics and Advanced Mechatronics. Over the past several years, he has conducted hands-on, integrated, customized, mechatronics workshops for practicing engineers at Xerox, Pitney Bowes, Dana, Procter & Gamble, Plug Power, NASA Kennedy Space Center, U.S. Army ARDEC, and for the ASME Professional Development Program. Since coming to Rensselaer in 1989, he has graduated 28 M.S. students and 19 Ph.D. students. He is the author of over 30 refereed journal articles and over 50 refereed conference papers, Emphasis in all his research is on a balance between modeling/analysis/simulation and hardware verification/implementation. He is a member of the ASME, IEEE, and ASEE.

Nanotechnology and Nanostructured Materials and Devices
R. W. SIEGEL, P. M. AJAYAN, J. DORDICK, S. GARDE, P. KEBLINSKI, L. S. SCHADLER, and F. SCHUBERT, Rensselaer Nanotechnology Center, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
June 13-14, 2005 in Troy, NY
Apply: RPI

          The past decade has seen explosive growth worldwide in the synthesis and study of a wide range of nanostructured materials, the building blocks of nanotechnology. A variety of scientifically interesting and technologically important nanomaterials have now been synthesized and investigated. These have included metals, ceramics, and composites made by means of a number of experimental methods. While these new materials have been synthesized most elegantly from either atomic or molecular precursors, those made from bulk precursors have yielded important results as well. The structures and properties of nanostructured materials have now been elucidated in a number of important areas and a fundamental understanding of the relationships among these areas is beginning to unfold. Most important among these is (1) an understanding of the atomic-scale structures of the nanocale building blocks and their interfaces and (2) the important role of spatial confinement on material properties in general, when the sizes of the nanoscale building blocks become smaller than the critical length scale for any particular property. Investigations of mechanical, chemical, electrical, magnetic, and optical behavior of nanostructured materials have demonstrated the possibilities to engineer the properties of these new materials through control of the sizes of their constituent building blocks and the manner in which these constituents are assembled. It is now very clear that through nanostructuring we can access novel material properties and unique device functions. In this short course, a comprehensive overview of nanoscience and nanotechnology and their relationship to nanoscale materials and devices will be presented in six lectures by leading researchers and educators at Rensselaer. These lectures will be offered within the context of the 2001 U. S. National Nanotechnology Initiative (http://www.nano.gov) and a large number of examples from our own research results in this exciting new area will be discussed.

For college teachers of: physics, chemistry, biology, materials science and the various related engineering disciplines. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Siegel is past Chairman of the International Committee on Nanostructured Materials and chaired the WTEC worldwide study on nanostructure science and technology that led to the National Nanotechnology Initiative. He has authored about 200 publications in the areas of defects in metals, diffusion, and nanophase metals, ceramics and composites, presented more than 330 invited lectures worldwide, and edited nine books on these subjects. He was listed by Science Watch as the fourth most highly cited author worldwide in materials science during 1990-1994. He is an Associate Editor of Materials Letters and was a founding Editor of Nanostructured Materials. Dr. Siegel is a founder and Director of Nanophase Technologies Corporation, and his early work with them was recognized by a 1991 Federal Laboratory Consortium Award for Excellence in Technology Transfer. He is an Honorary Member of the Materials Research Societies of India and Japan, a 1994 recipient of an Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Senior Research Award in Germany, and presented the 1996 MacDonald Lecture in Canada. Dr. Dordick the Howard P. Isermann Professor of Biochemical Engineering. He received the NSF Presidential Young Investigator Award in 1989, the 1989 University of Iowa Faculty Scholars Award, and the 1998 Iowa Section Award of the American Chemical Society. Presently he serves on the Scientific Advisory Boards for several biotechnology companies. Dr. Dordick has published over 130 papers and is an inventor/co-inventor on 20 patents. Dr. Schadler is a professor at RPI and has co-written and published several papers, and has won numerous outstanding honors and awards of excellence. Dr. Keblinski is an Associate Professor in Materials Science and Engineering and is a recipient of an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship. Professor Keblinski has authored or co-authored over 80 scientific articles on topics ranging from mesoscopic-level modeling of vapor deposition and phase separation to atomic-level structure and property relationships computer simulations of metals, covalent materials and ceramics. Dr. Ajayan is the Henry Burlage Chaired Professor in Materials Science and Engineering (RPI). He has worked on the synthesis, characterization and modification of nanotubes for almost a decade and has published over 100 papers in this field. He is also an expert in electron microscopy techniques. Dr. Garde is an assistant professor of chemical and biological engineering at RPI. He works on a broad range of problems in the areas of bio and nanotechnologies using the techniques of statistical mechanics and molecular simulation. In particular, he is interested in understanding the role of water in biomolecular structure, function, and interactions. Dr. Garde received the CAREER award from National Science Foundation in 2001. He has published over 35 papers in scientific and technical journals. Dr. Schubert is Senior Constellation Chair of the Future Chip Constellation at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He has made pioneering contributions to the field of compound semiconductors. He is co-inventor of about 25 US patents and co-authored about 190 publications. He authored books on doping in III-V semiconductors (1992), delta doping in semiconductors (1996), and light-emitting diodes (2003). He is a Fellow of the APS, IEEE, OSA, and SPIE and has received several awards.

Increasing the Retention of Under-Represented Groups--And the Learning of All Groups--In Science, Mathematics, Engineering, and Technology Courses
CRAIG E. NELSON, Indiana University and ROBERT GROSSMAN, Kalamazoo College
April 20-22, 2005 in Dayton, OH
Apply: DAY

          This course will make your semester. If you are one of the minuscule minority of science, mathematics, engineering and technology (SMET) professors whose classrooms are really free of discrimination, you will go away feeling deeply affirmed (and will have been a resource of immense help to the rest of us). If not, you will go away with clearer ideas as to how bias is unintentionally built into (virtually) every SMET professor's classroom practices and content (yes, even into the content). More importantly, you will have some strategies to make your classes fairer without sacrificing learning. Indeed, several of the procedures radically increase learning.
          Specifically, we will use attribution theory and hidden differences between novices and experts to explore opportunity and bias in our classroom practices. Key questions and examples will include: How has calculus been taught so as to eliminate Fs without sacrificing content? How have D and F rates for African-Americans been reduced from 60% to 4% in some SMET courses, again without sacrificing content? What changes in pedagogy are most important in radically increasing learning? How can the development of more sophisticated modes of thinking be used to make our address to diversity more effective? And: How do assessment and grading practices often unfairly bias SMET courses? As time allows, we will experiment with some additional questions and examples that may help us learn to see both opportunity and bias in aspects of content such as word- choice, metaphors, and questions asked and not asked. Brief development of these ideas and examples will help the participants provide additional examples, discuss applicability to their own teaching, and design specific ways to implement these approaches.

For college teachers of: all disciplines. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Nelson is Professor Emeritus of Biology at Indiana University (on the faculty 1966-2004). He taught diverse courses in biology, intensive freshman seminars, great books and other honors courses, and several collaboratively-taught interdisciplinary courses. One regular offering was a graduate course on Alternative Approaches to Teaching College Biology. Dr. Nelson has presented invited workshops on critical thinking and on diversity at numerous national meetings and individual institutions. His publications include several on pedagogy (and even more on evolutionary biology). He is the chair of the organizing committee for the new International society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. His awards include several for distinguished teaching (from IU, Vanderbilt and Northwestern), Carnegie Scholar, Outstanding Research And Doctoral University Professor Of The Year 2000 and, in 2001, the President's Medal for Excellence ("The highest honor bestowed by Indiana University"). Dr. Grossman is a Professor of Psychology at Kalamazoo College who has been using case studies and other cooperative learning techniques in his college teaching for the past thirty years. His specialty in psychology is in the clinical area though his doctoral research was in physiological-experimental psychology at Michigan State University. He did his post-doctoral clinical internship at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Cognitive Therapy in a program supervised by Aaron Beck, M. D. In 1993-94 he did a sabbatical leave with Craig Nelson studying innovations in college science teaching. This fall Dr. Grossman was awarded the Florence J. Lucasse Lectureship for Excellence in Teaching at Kalamazoo College in recognition of both his outstanding teaching and work with pedagogy at the college.

Women and Minorities in the Sciences: How Faculty Can Make a Difference
CATHERINE DIDION, International Network of Women Engineers and Scientists (INWES) and JAMES H. STITH, American Institute of Physics
June16-18, 2005 in Washington, DC
Apply: SUSB

          This course, after a brief review of the current status of women and minorities in scientific fields, will emphasize how one can develop effective strategies for recruiting and retaining women and under-represented minorities students in all scientific disciplines. This course is highly interactive and was developed to be a resource for science educators on encouraging under-represented populations to participate in the sciences. We will explore the role of mentoring in developing future scientists and engineers, the current research on women and minority scientists, and how it can have an impact on one's teaching style and strategies. Our focus will be on evaluating current methods, and on devising solutions to increase the number of women and minorities in the sciences. Readings will include accounts by women and minority scientists. The course will include feminist and minority critiques of some scientific research. We will analyze a series of actual case studies on faculty-student interactions as a tool to review how one can encourage all students in the classroom. Participants are encouraged to bring examples of courses, programs, and other activities they have developed to address women and/or minorities in science. This course will use external speakers, including young scientists of color, to share their experiences and give feedback on how faculty can make a difference.

Possible readings include: Nobel Prize Women in Science; Journeys of Women in Science and Engineering; Minorities: Trying to Change the Face of Science; and a collection of case studies on faculty interaction with their students.

For college teachers of: all disciplines. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Didion is the Director of the International Network of Women Engineers and Scientists (INWES). Previously she was the Executive Director of the Association for Women in Science (AWIS) for 14 years. During her tenure at AWIS, she developed an award winning mentoring program and was the principal investigator for several studies on the academic climate for women faculty and students. She is a frequent speaker on women in science, has provided testimony on several occasions to Congress, and wrote a bimonthly column Women in Science for the Journal of College Science Teaching for over a decade. As one of the official representatives for AWIS to the U.N., she headed the delegation to the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, and she co-chaired the first science and technology caucus at a U.N. women's conference. Didion works closely with the European Commission's Women in Science Unit and was appointed as an international member of the South African Ministry of Science and Technology's Reference Group on Women in Science. She is a fellow of AWIS (2001) and of AAAS (2005). James H. Stith is the Vice President, Physics Resources for the American Institute of Physics. He directs a broad portfolio of programs and services that includes AIP's Magazine Division, the Media and Government Relations Division, the Education Division, the Center for the History of Physics, the Statistical Research Division and the Careers Division. His Doctorate in physics was earned from The Pennsylvania State University, and his Masters and Bachelors in physics were received from Virginia State University. A physics education researcher, his primary interests are in Program Evaluation, and Teacher Preparation and Enhancement. Throughout his career, he has been an advocate for programs that ensure ethnic and gender diversity in the sciences. Dr. Stith was formerly a Professor of Physics at The Ohio State University and also spent 21 years on the faculty of the United States Military Academy at West Point. He has also been a Visiting Associate Professor at the United Air Force Academy, a Visiting Scientist at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, a Visiting Scientist at the University of Washington, and an Associate Engineer at the Radio Cooperation of America. He is a past president of the American Association of Physics Teachers, past president of the National Society of Black Physicists, a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a Fellow of the American Physical Society, a Chartered Fellow of the National Society of Black Physicists, and a member of the Ohio Academy of Science. Additionally, he serves on a number of national and international Advisory Boards and has been awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters by his alma mater, Virginia State University.

Pedagogy and Methodology of Using Maple in the Classroom
ROBERT LOPEZ, Maplesoft, Inc.
June 13-15 2005 in Allenda.e, MI
Apply: PITT

Note: This course is cosponsored by and offered at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, MI.

          This course will address the pedagogical aspects of bringing the computer algebra system Maple into the math and science classroom. The full power of Maple in education is attained when it is used to explore and enlighten, not just to reproduce calculations done by hand. Learning to use Maple as an effective educational tool certainly requires a certain expertise with Maple, and this course will provide that.
          But more, this course will show how to use Maple to enrich the mathematical experiences of math, science, and engineering students. The curriculum will include an introduction to Maple's ease-of-use and syntax-free features that let students begin using Maple before having to master a great deal of syntax. Then, by means of specific examples in calculus, differential equations, linear algebra, vector calculus, boundary value problems, complex variables, and numerical analysis, we will demonstrate how Maple can make teaching both more effective and more efficient.

For college teachers of: mathematics, physics, engineering, and any other subject that uses mathematics routinely. Prerequisites: basic computer literacy and an interest in using Maple in the classroom.

Dr. Lopez is classically trained applied mathematician, recently retired from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology where he pioneered the use of Maple in the classroom. For thirty months in 1992 through 1995, he was on leave from RHIT and was the leading Maple Ambassador, giving numerous seminars, invited addresses, and workshops in the use of text, supported by 273 Maple worksheets, and a solution manual with Maple solutions to all 7,000 exercises in the text, was published by Addison Wesley. He presently works full time for Maplesoft, Inc., in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

Abandoning Dead Ends: Presenting the Heart of Mathematics to All Students
MICHAEL STARBIRD, The University of Texas at Austin
May 24-26, 2005 in Austin, TX Apply: TXA

          Question to typical college graduate majoring in the liberal arts: You graduated from college 15 years ago. What was the final mathematics course you took? Former student: Pre-calculus.
          Interviewer: What was your final literature course? Former student: Pre-Shakespeare.
          Students study the best paintings, the most glorious music, the most influential philosophy, and the greatest literature of all time. Mathematics can compete on that elevated playing field, but we must offer all students our grandest and most intriguing ideas. Infinity, fractals, and the fourth dimension; topology, cryptography, and duality--these ideas and many more can compete well with any other subject for depth and fascination. In addition, the powerful methods of analysis that generated these fabulous ideas can enrich every student's ability to think. Unfortunately, instead of grappling with culturally significant high points of mathematics, students are often asked to struggle up the first few rungs of a long ladder they will never climb. We should abandon educational strategies that lead to dead ends. Mathematicians have a great story to tell and that story could and should be an important part of the education of all students. Participants in this short course will develop effective ways of presenting intriguing, deep ideas in mathematics to all students and the general public.

For college teachers of: mathematics. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Starbird is University Distinguished Teaching Professor in Mathematics at The University of Texas at Austin. He is a member of the Academy of Distinguished Teachers at UT and has won many teaching awards. Among them are several student-selected awards that were awarded largely in response to his required liberal arts mathematics course, thus proving that, in the minds of students, mathematics can compete well with any subject at the university. With co-author Edward B. Burger, he has published The Heart of Mathematics: An Invitation to Effective Thinking, a textbook based on his and his co-author's 15 years of experience in developing lively mathematics courses for students who are not technically inclined.

Teaching A Course In Combinatorial Mathematical Games
MORTON BROWN, University of Michigan
June 16-18, 2005, Midtown Manhattan, NYC
Apply: SUSB

          Play is a powerful teacher. It can be used effectively in the mathematics classroom. I've developed and have taught (three times at Michigan) a course in "mathematical games" for students who have had a year of undergraduate mathematics and might be interested in a possible minor or major in math. Its goal is to attract into math, students who like math but may believe, unfortunately, that math consists only of calculus or calculus/linear algebra. The course consists of analyses of a variety of two person combinatorial games (NOT classical matrix game theory), that is, two person, finite 0-sum games of perfect information. The goal of the course is to introduce students to basic generic ideas of mathematics: searching for patterns, thinking logically and systematically, problem solving (modifying problems, breaking down problems into smaller easier problems, generalizing and abstracting), choosing effective notation, careful attention to the logic of arguments including argument by contradiction, generalizing, abstracting (ex. recognizing 'isomorphism'), and finally, seeing how "real mathematics" enters into ordinary problems. The course fits comfortably with a cooperative learning environment. Participants will receive an overview of this Michigan course, strategies for teaching it, student solutions to the games, and student reaction to the concepts and the mathematics.

For college teachers of: undergraduate mathematics. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Brown is Professor of Mathematics at the University of Michigan. His research interests have included topology and dynamical systems. He is a recipient of the American Mathematical Society's Oswald Veblen Prize in Geometry, and has served on numerous national oversight, and review committees concerned with calculus and educational reform. He has served as the Mathematics Department's Associate Chair for Education, and on the policy board of the University's Center for Research on Learning and Teaching. He was an original member of the MAA-AMS CRAFTY sub-committee concerned with calculus reform and elementary undergraduate teaching. He was principal investigator for an NSF grant that helped implement Michigan's well-known Calculus Reform Program. He is an advisor to the AMS/MAA. NeXT program for new mathematics Ph. D's. As a result of his teaching efforts and innovations, he received "Excellence in Teaching" awards from the University in 1992 and in 1993 and was named Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of the College of Literature, Science, and Arts.

Introduction to Molecular Cell Biology for Mathematicians
JOHN TYSON, Virginia Technical Insitute
June 26 - July 16, 2005 in Park City, UT
Apply: PITT

Note: Cosponsored by the Institute for Advanced Study/Park Cith Mathematics Institute (PCMI). Application forms are available at the PCMI web site www.ias.edu/parcity or by contacting the PCMI office: pcmi@math.ias.edu; (800)726-4427 or (609)734-8025. Applications will b e processed beginning on February 15, 2005. Those unable to meet that deadline should contact the PCMI office directly.

          For the faculty members whose main focus is teaching undergraduate students, PCMI offers the opportunity to renew excitement about mathematics, talk with peers about new teaching approaches, address some challenging research questions, and interact with the broader mathematical community. Each year the theme of the UFP bridges the research and education themes of the Summer Institute.
          Topics addressed during the PCMI summer session will include:
* Cell structure: space and time scales in MCB
* Informational macromolecules of the cell: proteins and nucleic acids
* Bioenergetics: implications of the first and second lawss of thermodynamics
* Enzyme catalysis, kenetics and regulation
* Metabolic pathways: glycolysis in detail, metabolic control theory
* Replication of gene expression
* Cell cycle regulation and cancer
* Membrane structure, function and transport
* Membrane potential and electrical signaling in cells
* Membrane receptors, ligands and signal transduction pathways
* Calcium and cyclic AMP as second messengers
* Cytoskeleton, mobility and contractility
          Recommended text(s): The World of the Cell, 5th Edition, Wayne M Becker, et. al.

For college teachers of: undergraduate mathematics. Prerequisites: basic chemistry.

Dr. Tyson is University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Biology at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He was a Visiting Professor of Mathematics, at the University of Utah in 1985 and 1996. He was the recipient of The Bellman Prize, Mathematical Biosciences (1989) and received the Alumni Award for Research Excellence in 1992. He is Co-Chief Editor of the Journal of Theoretical Biology. He served as President, Society for Mathematical Biology (1993-95) and is currently on the Advisory Board of the Journal of Mathematical Biology, and Chaos--An Interdisciplinary Journal of Nonlinear Science. He directs the Computational Cell Biology Lab where the primary interest is in building mathematical models of biological cells.

The Mathematics of Phylogenetic Trees
ELIZABETH S. ALLMAN, University of Southern Maine, and JOHN A. RHODES, Bates College
June 26 - July 16, 2005 in Park City, UT
Apply: PITT

Note: Cosponsored by the Institute for Advanced Study/Park Cith Mathematics Institute (PCMI). Application forms are available at the PCMI web site www.ias.edu/parcity or by contacting the PCMI office: pcmi@math.ias.edu; (800)726-4427 or (609)734-8025. Applications will be processed beginning on February 15, 2005. Those unable to meet that deadline should contact the PCMI office directly.

          Until recently, the inference of the evolutionary history of currently living species was based primarily on painstaking studies of their morphological similarities, together with comparison to the fossil record. Now a vast new source of evolutionary data is available through genetic sequencing. While similarities in DNA sequences among species suggest close ancestoral relationships and differences suggest greater evolutionary divergence, how to infer an entire evolutionary tree from biological sequences is a rich mathematical question.
          This course begins with an overview of the sorts of biological questions of interest, and a look at thenature of biological sequence data. We then develop several of the modern approaches to sequence-based phylogenetics, focusing on the modeling of the process of molecular evolution along a tree. Shortcomings of the various methods and models, both theoretical and practical, will be used to motivate new ones.
          Necessary mathematical and biological background will be kept minimal: basic probability and linear algebra are helpful but can be picked up along the way. The course will also include elements of combinatorics, algorithmics, Markov models and statistics, as well as hands-on computer work with real and simulated data.

For college teachers of: biology and mathematics. Prerequisites:basic biology and mathematics.

Dr. Allman is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Southern Maine. Her research interests include Biomathematics, including techniques of phylogenetic tree construction, models of evolution Statistics, Computational Algebraic Statistics, Singular and Macaulay 2 Division algebras; Brauer groups; Galois Theory, particularly computational Galois theory. She is the author (with John Rhodes) of Mathematical Models in Biology, Cambridge University Press, January 2004. Dr. Rhodes is a Professor in the Department of Mathematics at Bates College. His interests focus on Number Theory (Automorphic Forms), Mathematical Biology (Phylogenetics), and Mathematics in the Undergraduate Science Curriculum. He is the author (with Elizabeth Allman ) of Mathematical Models in Biology, Cambridge University Press, January 2004.

Statistics in Action: An Activity-Based Approach to Teaching Statistical Concepts
RICHARD L. SCHEAFFER, University of Florida, Gainesville
June 9-11, 2005 in Philadelphia, PA
Apply: TUCC

          Data are hot! Everywhere one turns - on the job, in the home, at play - one is engulfed by more data. As the discipline that deals with the logical collection and analysis of data, statistics (or at least statistical thinking) is in greater demand than ever. In fact, the education must become the province and a priority of all quantitative fields, most significantly mathematics, science, and social science. It must start at grades K through 12 and continue through undergraduate and post-graduate education. Quantitative reasoning skills are essential if one is to be an informed citizen or productive worker.
          How then can we make statistics interesting to modern students, who have grown accustomed to rapid-fire TV commercials and video games? One way is to get the students actively involved in their own learning through hands-on activities that engage their attention and interest. This workshop is built around a set of activities designed to involve the student in learning fundamental concepts of statistics through experience, rather than through listening to lectures. Concepts covered include the basics of univariate and bivariate data exploration, designing sample surveys and experiments, sampling distributions for summary statistics, confidence intervals and tests of significance, in short, those concepts found in most introductory statistics courses.
          Time will be set aside for participants to share their own favorite activities and teaching experiences. Computers will be used on occasion for the analysis of data, but the workshop is not intended to provide an in-depth look at statistical software.

For college teachers of: mathematics and statistics. Prerequisites: some knowledge of elementary statistics and interest in teaching statistics.

Professor Scheaffer is Professor Emeritus of Statistics and was chairman of the Department of Statistics for a period of 12 years. Research interests are in the areas of sampling and applied probability, especially with regard to applications of both to industrial processes. He has published numerous papers in the statistical literature and is co-author of five textbooks covering introductory statistics and aspects of sampling, probability and mathematical statistics. In recent years, much of his effort has been directed toward statistics education throughout the school and college curriculum. He was one of the developers of the Quantitative Literacy Project in the United States that formed the basis of the data analysis emphasis in the mathematics curriculum standards recommended by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. He continues to work on educational projects at the elementary, secondary and college levels, and was the Chief Faculty Consultant for the Advanced Placement Statistics Program from 1994 through 1998. Dr. Scheaffer is a Fellow of the American Statistical Association, from whom he has received a Founder's Award. scheaffe@stat.ufl.edu.

Cryptology and The Breaking of the Axis Codes During WWII At Bletchley Park, England
ROBERT E. LEWAND, Goucher College, FRANK CARTER and JOHN HARPER,(Bletchley Park Trust)
August 2-5, 2005, Milton Keynes, England
Apply: CAL

          During WWII, the German High Command was convinced that the Enigma cipher machine produced unbreakable cipher messages. That was not the case. At Bletchley Park the British gathered together some people of unequalled dedication and ingenuity who broke the codes by means of certain techniques, some requiring new developments in technology such as the first electronic programmable computer. Later on a group of cryptographers from the United States joined these people.
          The accomplishments made at Bletchley Park were considered to be so sensitive that its existence was known only to a handful of people, and its operations were kept under a veil of secrecy for decades after the war. People who worked there during the war were so "compartmentalized" that they only knew what was going on in their very small work location. Almost all of the special equipment developed during the war was dismantled at the end of hostilities and all information about it was kept secret for many years. In 1992 the Bletchley Park Trust was formed to allow the world to become fully aware of the amazing people, their feats and the technologies developed at this institution during the war years.
          This course will take the attendees back in time to learn for them the basic mathematics of cryptology that are the foundation of ciphers. We will learn the details of the Enigma machines that were used during the war, and the operating principles of the Alan Turing "Bombe" (the electro-mechanical machine designed to help break Enigma messages). Students will also be given an introduction to the 'Lorenz' cipher system, used exclusively by the German Army High Command, and some of the mathematical procedures that were developed to break it (these procedures motivated the development of 'Colossus', the world's first electronic programmable computer). There will be some class activities that will give the attendees exercises that can be taken back and used in their own classes, including a set of "Code Rods", similar to the ones used to break early German messages. Dr. Lewand is an expert on the mathematics of codes while the other instructors have been intimately involved with the history and rebuilding of Bletchley Park facilities. John Harper is the lead engineer of the team that has been rebuilding the Bombe Machine. Frank Carter is an expert on the methods used to break the Enigma and similar codes and is the designer of the code rods to be given out.

For college teachers of: undergraduate science, math and technology courses and graduate students in the sciences interested in an eventual teaching career. Teachers of the social sciences are also invited to apply. Secondary teachers will be admitted on a space available basis. Prerequisites: none.

Dr. Lewand is a professor of Mathematics and Computer Science at Goucher College where his work has been recognized with awards for both outstanding teaching and research. He is co-author of several books on artificial intelligence and has published and delivered papers on topics as diverse as algorithmic music and recursion theory. In 2002 he was awarded the John M. Smith Prize for Distinguished College or University Teaching by the Maryland-DC-Virginia Section of the Mathematical Association of America. His most recent book is titled Cryptological Mathematics. The Bletchley Park Trust has brought together a group of people who are the outstanding experts on the technology and science developed at this installation during the WWII time period. Frank Carter and John Harper are part of the team that has been rebuilding the tools used to break the German codes.

Ancient Maya Mathematics in the Ruins of Quintana Roo, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico
ED BARNHART, Maya Exploration Center
June 30 - July 6, 2005 in Mexico
Apply: TXA

Note: Participants will be responsible for all costs and fees associated with transportation, lodging, meals, entrance, and tour fees, as well as transportation during the course. Cost estimates for the course are as follows: transportation during the course $200 (not including airfare), lodging $400, meals $180, and entrance fees $80.

          The ancient Maya of Mexico and Central America were the most advanced mathematicians in the entire New World. They were the only culture in the Pre-Columbian Americas to create the concept of "zero", essential to higher math. Their complex calendar system remains one of the most accurate ever created. With it, the Maya were able to calculate astronomical events thousands of years into the future or the past. Recent studies have begun to show that they were also adept users of "sacred geometry", otherwise known as the basic geometric forms and proportions found in nature. This five-day course will teach about Maya mathematics as its participants visit various ruins in Quintana Roo, Mexico. Playa Del Carmen, just 40 minutes south of Cancun, will be the home base for the course. The first day will be an orientation to traveling in Quintana Roo and a series of seminars on Maya calendars, astronomy, and geometry. The next two days of the course will be tours of the Classic Period site of Coba and the Contact Period ruins of Tulum. On day three the group will head south to stay in Bacalar, on the shores of the beautiful Laguna de Siete Colores (Lake of Seven Colors). From there, the ruins of Kohunlich will be visited and an afternoon will be spent in Chetumal's Maya Museum, perhaps the finest of it's kind in Mexico. The group will then return to Playa del Carmen for a final day of discussion and Maya math exercises.

For college teachers of: mathematics, archaeology, anthropology, astronomy, architecture, engineering, art, history, art history, sociology, philosophy, and other related social sciences fields. Prerequisites: While not required, participants are encouraged to have at least some knowledge of Ancient Maya culture. Dr. Ed Barnhart can recommend readings for those interested in learning more before the trip. The tours will involve climbing pyramids in hot, humid weather. Participants in weak physical condition are encouraged to build strength and stamina before the trip.

Dr. Barnhart has worked in Mexico and Central America for the last fourteen years as an archaeologist, an explorer and an instructor. During his four years as the student of Dr. Linda Schele (world renowned for finally breaking the Maya code of hieroglyphics in 1973), he developed a strong background in Maya hieroglyphics, iconography and archaeoastronomy. From 1998 to 2000 he was the Director of the Palenque Mapping Project, an archaeological survey that discovered over 1000 new structures in the Maya ruins of Palenque. He received his Ph.D. in Anthropology at The University of Texas at Austin in 2001 and is now the Director of the Maya Exploration Center, a non-profit research center