Functions and Change: A Modeling Approach to College Algebra and Trigonometry

Intended for precalculus courses requiring a graphing calculator, Functions and Change emphasizes the application of mathematics to real problems students encounter each day. Applications from a variety of disciplines, including Astronomy, Biology, and the Social Sciences, make concepts interesting for students who have difficulty with more theoretical coverage of mathematics. In addition to these meaningful applications, the authors' easy-to-read writing style allows students to see mathematics as a descriptive problem-solving tool. An extended version of the successful Functions and Change: A Modeling Approach to College Algebra, this text includes three chapters of trigonometry.

Bruce Crauder received his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1981, after which he spent a post-doctoral year at the Institute for Advanced Studies. Since then, he has held positions at the University of Utah, University of Pennsylvania, University of North Carolina, Colorado State University, and is now at Oklahoma State University as a Professor of Mathematics. Crauder has held NSF research grants in algebraic geometry and has worked with several NSF grants for mathematics curricular reform and development with Benny Evans and Alan Noell. He is currently the Associate Dean for Instruction of the College of Arts & Sciences at Oklahoma State.

Benny Evans received his Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Michigan in 1971. After a year at the Institute for Advanced Study he came to Oklahoma State University where he has served as Undergraduate Director, Associate Head, and Head. He has been the recipient of both public and private grants in the areas of topology and mathematics education. He has held visiting appointments at Rice University, Texas A&M University, and University of Nevada, Reno, and is currently Professor Emeritus at Oklahoma State University.

Alan Noell received his Ph.D. in Mathematics from Princeton University in 1983 and had a two-year postdoctoral position at Caltech. His scholarly activities include complex analysis and curriculum development. He has been a Co-Principal Investigator on grants funded by the National Science Foundation. He has served as Undergraduate Director and Graduate Director in the Department of Mathematics at Oklahoma State University, where he is currently an Associate Head and Professor of Mathematics.