Linear Algebra in the Wild

Intended Audience

Students enrolled in an introductory linear algebra course.

Learning Outcomes

After completing this project, students will be able to...

1. Identify at least one career (other than "mathematician") which uses linear algebra.

2. Explain, using a specific example, why linear algebra is necessary for that career.

3. With explicit reference to topics covered in this course, distinguish the pure linear algebra concepts and ideas necessary for the example from the applied ones.

Core Concepts

The goal of this project is not to teach linear algebra per se. Rather, it is to help students realize on their own, rather than by presenting artificial "real-world" application problems, that linear algebra is actually useful outside of just mathematics. The hope is that, by allowing students to gain such insight on their own, they will be more motivated to engage in the learning activities of the course itself. With that in mind, it seems reasonable to say that the core concept is that linear algebra is actually useful.

Project Description

Find someone outside of mathematics (i.e. someone who would not consider mathematician their primary job) who regularly uses linear algebra in the course of their work. Ask this person to choose a specific example of how they do so, and then interview them about it. Finally, in your own words, submit a summary of your interview; be sure to cover all the points listed in the rubric!

• I had the students submit using VoiceThread.

• I allowed any type of submission---written, oral, video, or any combination thereof.

Suggested Timeline

It is helpful to give students a timeline for when they should have parts of the project finished by. The students were given 6 weeks to complete the project.

• By start of Week 2 – Email/call potential interviewees: Choose 3-4 people you might want to interview, and either call them or send them an email. Don't count on the first person you ask agreeing or even responding! There are many reasons they might not agree to an interview (e.g. their work is proprietary, they don't have time, etc.); plus, people in the "real world" get a lot of emails/calls, and it's very easy for a single email/call to fall through the cracks.

• By start of Week 3 – Have someone who's agreed to be interviewed, plus a backup who's also agreed: There's always a chance that scheduling the interview doesn't work out or that something forces your interviewee to cancel last-minute. That's why I suggest having two people willing to be interviewed.

• By end of Week 3 – Have your interview scheduled.

• By middle of Week 5 – Conduct your interview.