Bridges 2012 Workshop Paper

Mathematics is an abstract language that often attempts to explain real world observations. Generalizations often emerge that become useful in explaining the physical world around us. Too often the abstract concepts are assumed to give precise solutions to physical realities. Hopefully, this workshop will give educators and their students' hands-on experience to understand the differences between theoretical abstraction and the reality of applying physical restraints. Each participant in the workshop will receive a modeling kit to assemble and take with her/him. The model will illustrate the physical realities of applying the mathematical principles of rotation and translation transformations of a linkage of triangles from one symmetry form to another. Each participant will also receive an animated film that will illustrate the theoretical application of the same mathematical abstractions.