The Encounter With the Concept Of Function

2008 ◽  
pp. 161-180
Author(s):  
Elena Nardi
Keyword(s):  
Author(s):  
Kristen M. Harris

Dendritic spines are the tiny protrusions that stud the surface of many neurons and they are the location of over 90% of all excitatory synapses that occur in the central nervous system. Their small size and variable shapes has in large part made detailed study of their structure refractory to conventional light microscopy and single section electron microscopy (EM). Yet their widespread occurrence and likely involvement in learning and memory has motivated extensive efforts to obtain quantitative descriptions of spines in both steady state and dynamic conditions. Since the seminal mathematical analyses of D’Arcy Thompson, the power of establishing quantitatively key parameters of structure has become recognized as a foundation of successful biological inquiry. For dendritic spines highly precise determinations of structure and its variation are proving themselves as the kingpin for establishing a valid concept of function. The recent conjunction of high quality information about the structure, function, and theoretical implications of dendritic spines has produced a flurry of new considerations of their role in synaptic transmission.


Author(s):  
Mikael Borke

An important part of the mathematics syllabuses at the secondary school level in most countries is the concept of function. However, secondary school students often experience difficulties with this concept. These difficulties are well-known in the research literature. The study applies the mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) framework, including the category knowledge of content and students (KCS). Teachers’ ability to anticipate students’ difficulties is one aspect of KCS. The aim of this study is to investigate secondary mathematics student teachers’ KCS regarding the concept of function. Ten mathematics student teachers participating in a Supplementary Teacher Education Program answered a questionnaire about fictive secondary school students’ various difficulties with the concept of function. Follow-up interviews were conducted with four of the respondents. Compared to the findings of previous research on students’ difficulties with the concept of function, the respondents in the study sometimes provide reasonable suggestions about the sources of students’ difficulties. Some of the respondents demonstrate an aspect of KCS when they suggest that students can reason that a function must be defined by one algebraic expression only, and that students only know about continuous functions. However, no respondent suggests that one source of students’ difficulties with a constant function with an implicit domain is the missing domain. In addition, some respondents take for granted that students can interpret the algebraic representation of a piecewise-defined function and translate it into a graph.


1960 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-82,114
Author(s):  
Masamichi Shimmei
Keyword(s):  

Author(s):  
Andrew C. Papanicolaou

Functional brain imaging is based on a set of assumptions. A clear appreciation of those makes it possible to form reasonable opinions regarding the potential range of application and the limits of the functional neuroimaging procedures. Exposition of these basic facts and assumptions is the primary goal of this chapter. A secondary goal is the juxtaposition of the basic concepts involved in them, such as the concept of “function,” “brain mechanism,” “neuronal network,” “activity,” and “activation”; drawing, in broad outline, a description of the methods of neuroimaging, their relative spatial and temporal resolution, and the type of neurophysiological effects each of them captures and renders in images.


Author(s):  
Darrold Laurence Cordes ◽  
Pornpit Wongthongtham ◽  
Greg Morrison

Cities in developing countries are increasingly under stress through urbanization, which leads to the expansion of slum areas or informal settlements due to demand for low-cost housing. This chapter presents the social, environmental, and economic realities facing slum dwellers and discusses their redevelopment into intelligent cities. The concept of ‘function accompanying intelligent' is introduced for the transformation of slums to functional intelligent cities. In this context, a city is intelligent if it serves both the functional and social needs of its entire population. The chapter overviews an approach to integrated data collection, data analytics, and user access to information. Geospatial analysis of demographic, economic, social, and environmental data is introduced to help delineate slums, and to monitor the outcomes of urban planning initiatives and the progress of social wellbeing. The city of Accra in Ghana is discussed as a potential slum city to functional intelligent city transformation.


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