This curated collection covers a selection of PRIMUS articles published over a roughly 12-year period that focus on modeling and applications. The collection includes sections on individual projects, courses with a significant modeling component, and modeling and applications in extracurricular settings and throughout the curriculum.

In the precalculus curriculum, logistic growth generally appears in either a discrete or continuous setting. These actually feature distinct versions of logistic growth, and textbooks rarely provide exposure to both. In this paper, we show how each approach can be improved by incorporating an aspect of the other, based on a little known synthesis…

The Mathematical Association of America's "Precalculus to Calculus: Insights and Innovations Conference" brought together representatives of mathematics departments from across the country with members of two national research projects to share and discuss both research findings and on-the-ground concerns of faculty. In this article, we…

It is now increasingly recognized that mathematics is not a neutral value-free subject. Rather, mathematics can challenge students' taken-for-granted realities and promote action. This article describes two issues, namely deforestation and income inequality. These were specifically chosen because they can be related to a range of calculus concepts…

Hypermedia provides an easy-to-use option for adding visualization, via the computer, to the classroom. Some examples of this medium are presented, including applications in basic linear algebra and calculus, and a tutorial in electromagnetism. (Author)

Offers calculus students and teachers the opportunity to motivate and discover the first Fundamental Theorem of Calculus (FTC) in an experimental, experiential, inductive, intuitive, vernacular-based manner. Starting from the observation that a distance traveled at a constant speed corresponds to the area inside a rectangle, the FTC is discovered,…

Presents one model for a liberal arts mathematics course that combines probability and calculus. Describes activities utilized in the course to heighten students' interest and encourage student involvement. Activities include use of visualization, take-home tests, group problem solving, research papers, and computer usage with DERIVE computer…

Describes numerical differentiation and the central difference formula in numerical analysis. Presents three computer programs that approximate the first derivative of a function utilizing the central difference formula. Analyzes conditions under which the approximation formula is exact. (MDH)

Discusses experiences teaching mathematics courses in a lecture-free, discussion-based seminar format at all levels of the traditional undergraduate mathematics curriculum. Presents methods for motivating, instructing, and supporting student efforts toward independent reading of mathematical text. Provides a non-scientific assessment of the…

Describes an activity designed to help students develop a good foundation from the beginning of the transition from multivariate calculus to linear algebra. (MM)