Describes the design and implementation of the Reference Expert, a database based on INMAGIC software which contains problem reference questions and answers for use by library reference desk staff. Topics discussed include staff response to the database and problems encountered in its development. A sidebar describes the use of WORM…

Examined the development of proportional reasoning by means of a temperature mixture task. Results show the importance of distinguishing between intuitive knowledge and formal computational knowledge of proportional concepts. Provides a new perspective on the relation of intuitive and computational knowledge during development. (GLR)

The results of an investigation concerned with sequential reasoning in interpreting the current flow in d.c. electric circuits are presented. Analysis of the results of a questionnaire completed by 236 college sophomores shows the presence of a common misunderstanding based on a "local" interpretation of the current flow. A copy of the…

The effects of students' misconceptions, declarative knowledge, and stimulus conditions on students' solutions to a problem in basic electricity were studied for 80 undergraduates at Iowa State University (Ames). The implications of the findings of influence by knowledge and stimulus conditions are discussed. (SLD)

Discusses thinking skills for college students and describes strategies that can be used by faculty to teach thinking skills in distance education courses. Criteria for teaching thinking skills to distance learners are suggested, and methods are presented for teaching problem solving, how to evaluate information, and decision making. (10…

A total of 87 children, 3- to 7-years old, were examined in a study of children's play and reasoning in games of mathematical logic and social logic. Children's sophistication in reasoning was positively related for two games, suggesting a common three-level progression from mastery of procedures to a competitive attitude to advanced strategy. (SH)

The purpose of this paper is to show, by computer examples, that very different results can be obtained by rearranging selected conditionally convergent series. Computer programs allow the students to select the real number to which they wish the rearrangement to converge. Two computer programs are appended. (KR)

Described are the variations found between the western and African versions of the same logic puzzle. It is demonstrated that mathematical ideas are of concern in traditional non-Western cultures as well as in the West. (KR)

Explored are the distributions of residual components in two model systems. A system of components with exponentially distributed lifetimes and the two-dimensional "leaf model" in which objects fall on a plane with positions independent and normally distributed are discussed. Included are the definition, application, computations, and theorem. (KR)

The problem of determining the most energy-efficient strategy to use in approaching a traffic light that is sighted at an unknown phase in its cycle is discussed. Included are calculations, results, and conclusions. (KR)

Described are some ways in which individual states code driver's license numbers. The encoding of month, date of birth, year of birth, sex, and others involving elementary mathematics and the use of an elaborate system of hashing functions in describing the first, middle, and last names are discussed. (KR)

Presented is a combinatorial problem based on the Hash House Harriers rule which states that the route of the run should not have previously been traversed by the club. Discovered is how many weeks the club can meet before the rule has to be broken. (KR)

Forty 17- to 18-year-old subjects scoring above or below a sample median on the Beck Depression Inventory participated in a controlled study to assess their reactions to solvable and unsolvable problems with and without the interference of noise. Under helpless and nonhelpless conditions, depressive symptomatology affected problem-solving ability,…

Outlines conceptualization and preliminary exploration of phenomenal patterning, a counseling approach used to examine how language expression, theme identification, and guided imagery can reveal basic structure of person's mindset. Examined patterning focusing on theme of problem formation/resolution and three universal modeling processes of…

Describes a study that was designed to investigate the relationship between certain features of interactive video design and the deployment and development of cognitive problem-solving skills. Middle school mathematics students used for the study are described, the use of videotapes and interviews is discussed, and group dynamics are examined. (26…