Shelina Posted June 17, 2018 Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 Hi guys! I need help in my maths IA! Are we supposed to prove something in our IA or is it somewhat of a general discussion? I'm really confused... I have these topics in mind: astronomy, human rights and law, abacus, coding, optical illusion, anime and robotics, barcodes, music and also the collins equation (abundance of Katherine's) by John green. which one is best in terms of research content and which one seems more interesting in a mathematical sort of way?? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kw0573 Posted June 17, 2018 Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 IA uses math at or above SL to demonstrate mathematical analysis and/or appreciation for math. For example it is unlikely that a discussion on abacus uses SL content. Basically just pick your strengths in math. It is 6-12 pages on a single topic, so you can imagine the depth expected. Therefore, it is often better to first see what math you are really comfortable with applying and explaining, then choose your topic. In other words it's not general discussion instead the discussion revolves around equations, diagrams, and/or other math tools. Proof is acceptable, but could be hard to show personal engagement. P.E. is just if you able to turn some textbook explanation or approach to solving a problem into your own, such as by giving personal insights. You should decide on your own topic from what math you are comfortable with, but abacus, optical illusion, anime or a novel are unlikely to meet the rigor that IB expects. Popular topics include modelling/regression, proof, solving a real-life problem, discussion and usage of HL or more advanced content, relationships between topics (eg vectors and trig). Many successful IAs may have multiple of the above, eg prove an advanced concept/equation, discuss relationships with SL. then applies it to solve a problem. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelina Posted June 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 Thank you so much for your reply, it has really given me insight on where to begin my IA. The topics you named above sound tremendously difficult or maybe I generally find maths difficult.😅 I had another idea that uses pythagorean diagram to prove numerology and life paths. It is basically a triangle where a persons birthday number is inputted and their fate is calculated. Do you think that this is an SL topic or whether its too shallow as well? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kw0573 Posted June 17, 2018 Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 Could you explain to me how it works? It doesnt sound very mathematical. Although I dont always recommend modelling, it is by far the most popular topic I have seen; in which a shape is modelled using various functions; or using regression or statistical methods to determine correlation (line-fitting). Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelina Posted June 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 It is basically an inverted triangle that deals with numerology where your birth date is entered according to DD/MM/YYYY.It was created by pythogras who was a mathematician and philosopher. You first add the two digits of the day of birth day to get the number (0+5=5) and the fill it to the triangle and repeat with the month (0+4=4.) You shouldn't have a two digit number in the end. For example if you get 12 as a final answer, separate it and add 1+2 to get 3 as final answer. After that, you separate the year into two digits numbers (19 and 72 in this case). (1+9=10, 1+0=1) and (7+2=9) and we continue to work down the pypogorean triangle until we reach its tip. The number at the tip is your life path number and it will determine your personality, fate and relationships. Do you think this could be used as an IA for maths SL or it it to shallow? I also found a scholarly article: https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=udptayxY2E8C&oi=fnd&pg=PA1&dq=numerology+and+the+Pythagorean+diagram&ots=2mE68voKfD&sig=T2830RTLavP2H0KqFql_44kiKoU&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=numerology and the Pythagorean diagram&f=false Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kw0573 Posted June 17, 2018 Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 The math appears to be way below SL. Which topic in math class are you most comfortable with? I cant suggest/prescribe topics but you should try to work along your strengths. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelina Posted June 18, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2018 Thank you too much for your advice! you really helped me! I talked to my tutor and we decided to do a model of fluctuations of heart beats on a heart monitor with trigonometric graphs for different people of different smoking quantities. maybe I didn't phase the question quite well but generally, do you think this will work? Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kw0573 Posted June 18, 2018 Report Share Posted June 18, 2018 Yeah thats sounds like a good topic. It can be made very simple or use a lot of complex math such as fourier transform. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelina Posted June 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2018 I have one more question: the fluctuations on the heart monitor doesn't generally look like trigonometric functions. According to you, is there a way that I could model the fluctuations to look like trigonometric functions or fourier transformations? or do you think that I should choose a topic that has fluctuations that look exactly like trigonometric graphs/fourier graphs? I apologize for so many questions and confusion. 😅😅😅 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kw0573 Posted June 19, 2018 Report Share Posted June 19, 2018 I thought you liked this topic? Basically you should brainstorm several good topics, do some basic research and pick your favorite topic there. I think this is a good topic but I cannot/am not allowed to tell you in detail how to approach it. Fourier transform is way beyond SL and it might not be necessary to fully explore it using such a method. A modelling approach could be enough and add FT only if you understand what you are adding. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelina Posted June 20, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2018 OK. Thank you so much for your help and support, I really appreciate it;) Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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