Bio

Jul Davis is currently an Assistant Professor of Engineering at the University of Southern Indiana. His earned his degrees from Virginia Tech in Engineering Science and Mechanics focusing on Vibrations and Finite Element Modeling of organs in the inner ear that provides ones sense of balance. His research interests continue to grow into various areas of biomechanics including finite element modeling of the mechanics of biting and butterfly wing mechanics. As his scholarship of discovery continues he also has gained interest in studying the efficacy of online homework systems. Some of his hobbies include visiting museums with his father, swing dancing and building remote controlled cars.

Computational Essay: Vibration Characteristics of a Two Story Building

Project: Video Lectures for a First Year Online “Introduction to the Mathematica” Course for Engineers

Goal

The objective of this project is to develop video lectures for a first-year online “Introduction to Problem Solving with Mathematica” course using the Wolfram Courseware palette.

Summary of Results

Two video lectures have successfully been created using the Courseware palette while at the Wolfram Summer School. These tools are helpful in preparing and delivering video lectures using Mathematica. The ability for lecturers to focus on delivering the lecture and not worry about typing inaccurate code is an excellent feature. In addition, features such as “ThinkPoints” and “CheckPoints” allow for lecturers to briefly engage with viewers in a method mimicking traditional questioning methods.

Future Work

Future work includes completing a set of 8–10 video lectures to be used in the introductory engineering course. The topics will include I. Basic Use & Commands; II. Lists & Plotting; III. Functions; IV. Linear Algebra; V. Derivatives; VI. Integration; VII. Matrices; VIII. Importing Data/Lists; IX. Fun with Images; and X. Fun with Music.