The Math You Need, When You Need It
Math Tutorials for Students in Introductory Geosciences

by Dr. Jennifer M. Wenner, University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh Geology Department and
Dr. Eric M. Baer, Highline Community College Geology Program

What Is The Math You Need, When You Need It?

You're probably here because you want help with math in your geoscience class. You've come to the right place!

If you've landed here, you were probably searching for something having to do with a mathematical topic, perhaps one in the geosciences. The Math You Need, When You Need It provides web modules to help students succeed with mathematics in introductory geoscience classes. Recent studies show that these tools help to "level the playing field" by supporting you in learning and reviewing mathematical skills. If you need some help with math in geology (or even other sciences), you've come to the right place!

The Math You Need, When You Need It modules give you the quantitative skills that you need, just before you will use them in your geoscience course. Each individual module addresses a single math topic in your geoscience course and is divided into three parts:

1. 
   a page that introduces and explains the concept (Why is it important? Where is it used?) and provides a set of steps that you can use to solve mathematical problems in lab or class,
    
2. a set of practice problems in the context of geology with worked answers (using the steps provided on the introduction page), and 
    
3. (optional) a set of quiz questions that provide an opportunity to show what you learned. If your instructor uses this part of the website, you will be provided with a login and password by your instructor. 
    

There is also a single page for the instructor that gives information about what we do not cover in the page and some insight into why a given topic is hard for students.

learn how to use TMYN here

What Mathematical Topics Can I Find Here?

We've designed the pages to touch on topics that occur in a wide variety of geoscience courses. Many will be revisited more than once. 
 

In all likelihood, your instructor will not assign all the modules found here. However, all of them may be touched on in a geoscience course and our module topics reflect quantitative concepts that instructors of geoscience ranked as being most important in their geoscience courses. The available modules are broad quantitative concepts that have many geoscience contexts. The links below will take you to the appropriate introduction/explanation page:

• Calculating density
  
• Plotting points
• Constructing a best-fit line
• Hypsometric curve
• Rates
• Rearranging equations
• Slopes
• Trigonometry
• Unit Conversions

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Funding Sources

This project is supported by the National Science Foundation, Division of Undergraduate Education through awards
DUE-0633402, DUE-0633755, DUE-0920800 and DUE-0920583
Disclaimer: Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NSF.