# AQOTW

## Integration: More Than One Way, More Than One Answer

(An archive question of the week) In searching for answers to include in Monday’s post on calculus fallacies, I ran across a long discussion that illustrates some important aspects of methods of integration. In particular, there are often multiple ways to find an integral (the best not necessarily being the one taught in your textbook); …

## Finding the Radius of a Sphere

(An archive question of the week) An interesting question came to us in 2016, where rather than using a well-known formula, it was necessary to work out both what data to use, and how to calculate the desired radius.

## Principles for Solving a Formula

(An archive question of the week) Last time I discussed issues that arise in solving a simple algebraic equation. In researching that, I found a discussion of solving a formula for a variable (which in some countries is called “making x the subject”, that is, changing an equation involving x into the form “x = …

## What is a Fraction, Really?

(An archive question of the week) One of the things I have learned as a Math Doctor is that it can be dangerous looking up a definition online. Sources vary — not because they are wrong, but because definitions depend on context, so you can easily find what appear to be contradictions because they refer …

## What Are Trig Functions, Really?

(An archive question of the week) Trigonometric functions are sometimes introduced without a deep explanation of their meaning; they are just buttons to push on a calculator, or names to write in an equation. Even when a textbook gives a careful presentation, there are so many facets to the concept that it can be easy …

## Integration by Substitution

(An archive question of the week) Last time, we looked at a method of integration, namely partial fractions, so it seems appropriate to find something about another method of integration (this one more specifically part of calculus rather than algebra). We will look at a question about integration by substitution; as a bonus, I will …

## Subtleties in a Logic Puzzle

(Archive Question of the Week) Logic puzzles can exercise our ability to reason carefully. Interestingly, the use of formal logic in doing so can actually get in our way, because such puzzles often have subtleties in their wording that are hard to capture in formal logic. Examining our thinking carefully can help us see wrong …

## Mathematical Thinking Solves an Operation Puzzle (Or Not)

(Archive problem of the week) Having just written about sequence puzzles, which sometimes can be solved mathematically, and sometimes are just psychological tests, I want to show a different kind of puzzle that I ran across while searching for those. At first, it looks like mere guess-and-check; then we find it can be solved easily …

## What is a Diamond?

(Archive Question of the Week) Having discussed various issues involving categorizing shapes, let’s take a look at a very different shape question, which didn’t fit into the last post. Is “diamond” appropriate? The word “diamond” is not a formal mathematical term; some people take it as equivalent to “rhombus”, while others equate it to “kite”, …

## Open or Closed Intervals? It Depends

(Archive Question of the Week) Students commonly expect that textbooks all say the same thing (in fact, some think they can ask us about “Theorem 6.2” and we’ll know what they’re talking about!). The reality is that they can even give conflicting definitions, depending on the perspective from which they approach a topic. Here, I …