The Functionality 3 of Mathematics The German philosopher Immanuel Kant once said, “Mathematics is the indispensable instrument of all physical researches.” A generation later, the post-Kantian philosopher and educator Johann Friedrich Herbart also argued that “mathematics wards off the dangers of philosophy” and that “it is not only possible, but necessary that mathematics be applied to psychology.” In time, the value of mathematics has gradually become more and more appreciated even in the arts and social sciences. This section presents the link between mathematics and other fields focusing particularly on its diverse applications as far as patterns on nature and in the world are concemed. Mathematics in the Modern World.@ piaGnostics If you think the statement is cortect, write DISAGREE. l Mathematical n models are absolute t . Which can stand 1 usability over Perhaps the most important nature of mathematics is its relevance to a broad spectrum of human concerns. As usually said, knowledge is futile if it is not applied to daily life situations. Mathematics is a rich body of knowledge, and with its distinctive use of abstraction consequently formulating advanced natural concepts, the areas in which it can be applied have been expanding at an unexpected pace. In physics, physical models are formulated in the language of mathematics, specifically through differential equations. Examples are in Kepler’s discovery of planetary orbital periods, Newton’s Law of Gravity, Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, Charles’ Law of the expansion of gases, and Schrodinger’s equation of quantum mechanics, among others. Take the case of the wireless technology that has paved the Way for information to be accessible by everyone anywhere at anytime. The theory behind the wireless technology can be traced to the relationship between the length of a string and the sound ‘Module 1: Mathematics in Our World 2728 it produces such as in guitars and violins. The ancient Greeks observed the sinusoidal behavior of the tones that the strings produce, paving for the formulation of the concepts of frequency and amplitude of vibrations—pitch of a tone is determined by the frequency while loudness is determined by the amplitude. These are discussed in Taylor’s book on vibrational mechanics, further enriched by d’Alembert’s concept of dynamic sinusoidal waves, and eventually Euler’s formulation of “wave equation” for strings. With Einstein’s relativity theory, the wave equations got liberated from the confines of musical domain and established for itself the central focus of what later became the area of mathematical physics. As it continued to evolve, the concepts of electricity and magnetism blossomed, changing the course of human history. Michael Faraday merged the theories of electricity and magnetism as a single entity called electromagnetism. Later on, the theory of electromagnetism was described mathematically by his successor, James Clerk Maxwell, in a system of partial differential equations known widely as Maxwell’s equations. With the help of Maxwell’s equations, humanity made a giant leap from vibrating strings to wireless technology. With these equations, the possibility for electromagnetic waves to travel anywhere at the speed of light was discovered. Soon, German physicist, Heinrich Hertz (1886), discovered electromagnetic waves—at the frequency now known as radio. Then Guglielmo Marconi successfully carried out the first wireless telegraphy in 1895 and transmitted and received the first transatlantic radio signals in 1901. It did not take too long for other technological innovations to follow, opening doors for humanity into the new world of digital universe. So, one must realize that any device or equipment that has something to do with wireless communication can be traced to the concept of string vibrations. ‘Mathematics in the Modern WorldChemistry is another area that has established enduring and expanding interdependence with mathematics. Algebra and calculus are typical tools in reaction kinetics. Graph theory is used to model molecular bonds while group theory is applied to study crystal structures. Linear algebra and matrix theory are used to characterize molecules when they change from one energy state to another. The Michaelis-Menten equation is perhaps one of the simplest and best-known models in reaction kinetics (specifically, enzyme kinetics). For a product X with concentration C, the reaction rate is described by the equation x VC) dt M+C where V(C) is the maximum rate achieved by the system and M is the substrate constant (called Michaelis constant). The model usually applies to biochemical reactions with a single substrate. It has been employed in the treatment of some illnesses of the lungs (Yu et. al., 1997), in the study of species richness (Keating and Quinn, 1998), in forensic investigations (Jones, 2010), and in bacteria control (Abedon, 2009). Meanwhile, Arthur Cayley and J.J. Sylvester are credited for pioneering the graph-theoretic approach of investigating some ideas in chemistry. The concept of graph, a kind of geometric structure that defies metric concepts like distance and slope, will be formally discussed in Module 6. One of the early discoveries of graph-theoretic treatment of chemistry is the fact that molecules may exhibit different physical and chemical properties even if they have the same number of carbon and hydrogen atoms. In the language of graph theory, the issue was settled by the concept of graph isomorphism. The impact of the work of Cayley and Sylvester saw the rise of other names in this area of mathematical chemistry: Harry Wiener, Alexandru Balaban, Danail Bonchev, Module 1: Mathematics in Qur World 29Ante Graovac, Ivan Gutman, Haruo Hosoya, Milan Randic to name a few. The role of mathematics in biology is typically demonstrateq in areas like (but not limited to) biostatistics, bioscience, and medica research. Recently, mathematical biology has gained considerable attention from mathematicians. It focuses on developing new models and carries out simulations of certain biological questions particularly those that have something to do with patterns in reaction-diffusion equations as well as combinatorial problems concerning DNA-RNA configurations. The resulting practical values go all the way to combating physical and mental illnesses like cancer and AIDS. In two independent studies about physiological genomics, mathematical models (using systems of partial differential equations) on the healing process of ischemic wounds were formulated. Similarly, Friedman modeled the growth of cancer tumor that usually occurs in fluid-like tissues like the mammary gland and the brain. Exercise 3.1 Explain how mathematics is used in the following areas. Answer in not more than five (5) sentences. 1. Physics Mathematics in the Modern World2. Chemistry 3. Biology Module 1: Mathematics in Qur World32 Exercise 3.2 p Work. Follow the instructions below. Grou 1, Form groups of 4-5 members. Assign @ leader. id write mathematical vignette about hematics in any of the following areas: d Architecture, Philosophy, Political 2. Each member shoul the application of matl Music, Arts. Design an Science, and Psychology. 3, Each member will present his/her output to the members of the group. 4. The assigned leaders will synthesize the presentations of the members and present it to the entire class. Assignment Watch the video clips and complete the statements that follow. * The Map of Mathematics https://www-youtube.com/watch?v=OmJ-4B-mS-Y * Math is the Hidden Secret to Understanding the World by Roger Antonsen https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=ZQElzjCsl90&t=921s 1. Three things that I significantly leaned from the video clip =o) ee etree er oro errs ee ee Sher ieee ieee Seite Woon ee ‘Mathematics in the Modern WorldThree things that are still unclear to me T used to think that Three questions that I want to ask about the video clips Module 1; Mathematics In Our World 3334 References Readings Adam, John A. Mathematics in Nature: Modeling Patterns in the Natural World. Princeton University, 2003. Gowers, W. T. The Importance of Mathematics. Univesity of Cambridge, https://www.dpmms.cam.ac.uk/~wtg10/ importance.pdf. Jost, Jurgen. Mathematics as a Tool? The Role of Mathematics in the ERA of Data Science. Sta. Fe Institute, 2016. Lenhard, J., and M. Carrier. Mathematics as a Tool. Bielfield University, 2015. Prasanth, G. N. Golden Ratio in Human Anatomy. Thesis, 2012. www.researchgate.net/publication/234054763. Stewart, Ian A. Nature's Numbers: The Unreal Reality of Mathematics. Basic Mathematics Books, 1999. Rutherford, Floyd James. Science: for All Americans Online. AAAS, www.project2061 .org/publications/sfaa/online/ chap2.htm. Video Clips “The Map of Mathematics,” YouTube, uploaded by Domain of Science, | February 2017, https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=OmJ-4B-mS-Y. “Math is the Hidden Secret to Understanding the World by Roger Antonsen,” YouTube, uploaded by TED, 13 December 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=ZQEIzjCsl90&t=92 1s. ‘Mathematics in the Modern World