In the May 22-23 edition of the Wall Street Journal, T. J. Stiles, biographer of Cornelius Vanderbilt and Jesse James, recommends a few "mogul biographies": Andrew Carnegie (1989) by Joseph Frazier Wall The Life and Legend of Jay Gould (1986) by Maury Klein Morgan: American Financier (1999) by Jean Strouse Fallen Founder: The Life of Aaron Burr (2007) by Nancy Isenberg Pulitzer: A Life in Politics, Print, and Power (2010) by James McGrath Morris I really liked the book Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist (1995) by Roger Lowenstein Buffett is still an active investor.

If your son is a good math student -- as is likely for someone who reads physics books for fun -- a more mathematical physics textbook than a "Conceptual Physics" one could be appropriate, when it comes to formal study.

Mary P. Dolciani co-authored several books in the Houghton Mifflin Modern Mathematics Series, starting in the 1960s, and the books were used widely. I think a sequence that could be used from grades 7 on are Pre-Algebra: An Accelerated Course (1996) by Mary P. Dolciani Modern Algebra Structure and Method (Book 1), revised ed. (1973), by Mary P. Dolciani and William Wooton Modern Algebra and Trigonometry: Structure and Method (Book 2) (1963) by Mary P. Dolciani, Simon L. Berman, and William Wooton Modern Geometry: Structure and Method (1965) by Ray C. Jurgensen, Alfred J. Donnelly, and Mary P. Dolciani Modern introductory analysis (1964), by Mary P. Dolciani, Edwin F. Beckenbach, Alfred J. Donnelly, Ray C. Jurgensen, and William Wooton A calculus book in the series, not co-authored by Dolciani, is Limits; a transition to calculus (1966) by O. Lexton Buchanan I have used the publication dates of the books I own -- there have been several editions of many of the books. I wonder what experiences have had with the Dolciani series. The books have good reviews on Amazon, and I think they are especially suitable for strong math students. The books have many problems, divided in A (basic), B (intermediate), and C (challenging) categories.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704314904575250570943835414.html A Guilt-Free Hamburger By RON WINSLOW Maybe that juicy steak you ordered isn't a heart-attack-on-a-plate after all. A new study from the Harvard School of Public Health suggests that the heart risk long associated with red meat comes mostly from processed varieties such as bacon, sausage, hot dogs and cold cuts—and not from steak, hamburgers and other non-processed cuts. The finding is surprising because both types of red meat are high in saturated fat, a substance believed to be partly responsible for the increased risk of heart disease. But the new study raises the possibility that when it comes to meat, at least, the real bad actor may be salt. Processed meats generally have about four times the amount of salt as unprocessed meats. In a report that pooled data from 20 different studies from around the world, the researchers found that daily consumption of about two ounces of processed meat was associated with a 42% increased risk of heart disease and a 19% heightened chance of diabetes. By contrast, a four-ounce daily serving of red meat from beef, hamburger, pork, lamb or game wasn't linked to any increased risk of heart disease. There was, however, a small, but statistically insignificant risk of diabetes. While the study is far from definitive, researchers said the findings suggest that people, especially those already at risk of heart problems or with high blood pressure, should consider reducing consumption of bacon, processed ham, hot dogs and other packaged meats that have a high salt content. Salt increases blood pressure, a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. <rest of article at link> Good, I like hamburgers.

I suggest that parents interested in early college for their children read the book "The Academic Acceleration of Gifted Children" (1991), by Jones and Southern, where research on early college entrants (mostly finding good results) is presented. My 6yo boy is doing 5th grade math and will be ready for college math courses long before he is 18. I am using Singapore Math as well as EPGY. If he exhausts the offerings of EPGY, we will have him take math classes at a nearby university.

Alas, most children are not as smart as you daughter, as people like Charles Murray would explain.

The book First Course in Mathematical Logic by Patrick Suppes and Shirley Hill (1964), Dover reprint (2010) is similar to a book Suppes used to teach logic to elementary schol students in the 1960s, as dicussed in a 1965 paper he co-authored, "Experimental teaching of mathematical logic in the elementary school" http://suppes-corpus.stanford.edu/article.html?id=54-3 Suppes is the main person behind the EPGY online courses of Stanford.

The following message rambles, sorry. My general question is "How do you use spreadsheets and other mathematical software to improve students' learning of math and science?" On p580 of the TWTM 3rd ed. the authors write "Knowledge of [...] a spreadsheet program such as Quicken will boost the student's employability." Quicken is an accounting and investment tracking program -- I would not call it a spreadsheet program. I think students ought to learn how to use a spreadsheet program such as Excel, both because it is widely used in business but also because it is an easy way to demonstrate mathematical concepts, for example graphing mathematical functions or showing how variables are used. Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) can be used withing Excel to learn programming. Students can construct spreadsheet models to solve many physics and chemistry problems. There is a book "Excel for the Math Classroom" by Bill Hazlett and Bill Jelen (2007), but I don't find the table of contents interesting. The spreadsheets for the book can be downloaded from http://www.mrexcel.com/mathfiles/html/mathfiles.zip . There is a journal "Spreadsheets in Education" with a review article "Spreadsheets in Education – The First 25 Years" http://epublications.bond.edu.au/ejsie/vol1/iss1/2/ The book "Mathematics with Excel" by David Sjostrand (1994) looks interesting based on the review at http://www.economicsnetwork.ac.uk/cheer/ch9_2/ch9_2p32.htm'>http://www.economicsnetwork.ac.uk/cheer/ch9_2/ch9_2p32.htm'>http://www.economicsnetwork.ac.uk/cheer/ch9_2/ch9_2p32.htm'>http://www.economicsnetwork.ac.uk/cheer/ch9_2/ch9_2p32.htm and the description at http://www.chartwellyorke.com/excelbks.html , but it is out of print. Mathematica is arguably the premier symbolic mathematics program, with the student version costing $140 and the full version for home use costing $295. A recent book illustrating its use for students is "The Student's Introduction to MATHEMATICA ®: A Handbook for Precalculus, Calculus, and Linear Algebra", 2nd ed. (2009) by Bruce F. Torrence and Eve A. Torrence Mathematics on the PC: Introduction to DERIVE, by Bernhard Kutzler, looks interesting based on the review at http://www.economicsnetwork.ac.uk/cheer/ch9_2/ch9_2p32.htm . It is based on the Derive software which, unfortunately, has been discontinued, although a trial version can be downloaded from Texas Instruments http://education.ti.com/educationportal/downloadcenter/SoftwareDetail.do?website=US&appId=6217 . Students of statistics and linear algebra should experiment with software such as R http://www.r-project.org/ and Octave http://www.gnu.org/software/octave/ .

There are many books on "recreational mathematics" (as an Amazon title search reveals) AKA "math puzzles", with one of the most prolific authors being Martin Gardner. Has anyone tried to incorporate such books into their child's math studies in a systematic way? Math puzzles can motivate the study of abstract math subjects by showing how they can be applied to solve problems. Solving many puzzles may help students who want to do well on competitions such as Mathcounts or the Math Olympiads. My son is 6yo but doing 5th grade Singapore Math -- he is talented at math. He has browsed a few books by Martin Gardner I have brought home. There is a Journal of Recreational Mathematics http://www.baywood.com/journals/previewjournals.asp?Id=0022-412x that costs individuals $67 for for 4 issues a year.

College has an educational function, but it is also in large part a credentialing scam and jobs program for professors and administrators. The article says some colleges have stopped giving credit for 3's. That is plausible. But I'd like to know if students who get C's in introductory chemistry at college do better than a 3 on the AP Chemistry exam. That would not be difficult experiment to conduct -- have them take the AP exam at the end of the course. If the C students in college chemistry get college credit but cannot score a 4 or 5 on the AP exam, and the college gives credit for C's but not 3's, I think it is just trying to maximize tuition revenue.

About 30 years ago when I was growing up, some families bought sets of encylopedias for their children -- my parents bought the World Book (from a saleslady who was taught at my elementary school). I was the kind of kid who read the encyclopedia for fun. It is more convenient to look things up by subscribing to the online version of an encyclopedia or to do a general web search (although the content is of variable quality). Do you think it is worthwhile to buy a print set of encyclopedias, and if so, which ones? I know of World Book and Britannica. The list price for the latest set of World Books is about $1200, but I can buy sets from recent years for a few hundred dollars on Amazon. My 6yo boy reads almost anything in the house, and I have two younger kids, so I am leaning towards buying a set of encylopedias. If each of them dip into the books from time to time, I think it will be worth it. I'll probably read it myself on occasion.

Thanks, I did not know the field of "comparative politics" had a name or that there was an A.P. exam for it.

In the recent U.K. elections, the Conservatives won a plurality but not a majority of the seats in parliament, and they are jockeying with Labor to see who can form a government. The Liberal Democrats' share of seats was much lower than their share of the popular vote, because they won a plurality in few districts, and the LibDems want a proportional system that would increase their representation. What are some good books for high school students and adults that discuss and evaluate the ways a democratic government can be structured?

Besides Amazon used books, Ebay, this swap forum of this board, and yard sales, two of my favorites sources of inexpensive books are Dover Books http://store.doverpublications.com/ (they republish many out-of-print books and "classics") and HamiltonBook.com (They sell new publishers' overstocks online, and a paper catalog is available. The selection is extensive.) What are some other good sources for American residents? Reading TWTM, I've occasionally wondered how people afford all the books listed :001_smile:.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/07/health/policy/07cuts.html Group Backs Ritual "Nick" as Female Circumcision Option By PAM BELLUCK Published: May 6, 2010 New York Times In a controversial change to a longstanding policy concerning the practice of female circumcision in some African and Asian cultures, the American Academy of Pediatrics is suggesting that American doctors be given permission to perform a ceremonial pinprick or “nick†on girls from these cultures if it would keep their families from sending them overseas for the full circumcision. The academy’s committee on bioethics, in a policy statement last week, said some pediatricians had suggested that current federal law, which “makes criminal any nonmedical procedure performed on the genitals†of a girl in the United States, has had the unintended consequence of driving some families to take their daughters to other countries to undergo mutilation. “It might be more effective if federal and state laws enabled pediatricians to reach out to families by offering a ritual nick as a possible compromise to avoid greater harm,†the group said. But some opponents of female genital mutilation, or F.G.M., denounced the statement. “I am sure the academy had only good intentions, but what their recommendation has done is only create confusion about whether F.G.M. is acceptable in any form, and it is the wrong step forward on how best to protect young women and girls,†said Representative Joseph Crowley, Democrat of New York, who recently introduced a bill to toughen federal law by making it a crime to take a girl overseas to be circumcised. “F.G.M. serves no medical purpose, and it is rightfully banned in the U.S.†<rest of story at link> This is a shocking story. I don't want the indefensible to be normalized in the U.S. Immigrants who are bent on female genital mutilation should not come to the U.S., and if they practice it here (or abuse American children while abroad), they should be prosecuted as other child abusers would be.

It's my impression that most (not all) terrorism in the Western world is committed by Muslims. What do you teach your children about the reason for this association, at what age do you teach them, and using what books? The whole topic is politically incorrect but vitally important IMO.

Your Florence King quote is funny. I enjoyed reading several of her books, including "Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady".

There are 34 multiple choice questions at http://www.educationworld.com/a_issues/TM/WS_college_history_survey.shtml with a link to the answers at the end . A report at https://www.goacta.org/publications/downloads/LosingAmerica'sMemory.pdf says the average score was 53%. Certainly a student who followed the WTM curriculum would do well on this quiz, provided he retained what he earned. Parents whose children do well can be satisfied that they have taught their children about American history and government better than the "elite" colleges have.

Ugh, should be "smarter" in the title.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/18/education/edlife/18quiz-t.html I thought the questions were reasonable for late elementary school. What books or sites would people recommend for similar quizzes?

Nice story, good luck to her and her brothers. http://www.pinnaclenews.com/news/contentview.asp?c=267285 Ready for the Ivy League Friday, March 19, 2010 By Katie Moeller Mackenzie Donovan, a Hollister [CA] resident, exceeded the average expectations of excellence even as a child. Adopted at birth into the home of Ron and Tammi Donovan, Donovan has always been considered "very special," the mother said. At an early age Donovan learned how to read by herself, excelling in home school and constantly striving to do her best. In fifth grade, Donovan and her mom heard about Johns Hopkins EPGY (Education Program for Gifted Youth), for which she applied and into which she was accepted. The program enabled her to take advanced classes in English and math. At the age of 12, Donovan received an award through the program for being a seventh-grader and scoring higher than the average college-bound senior on the high school SATs. After debating whether Donovan should continue with a home schooling program or try regular high school classes, the family's questions were answered when Tammi heard about the Stanford University EPGY Online High School program through the local news. The program works as an international independent school for gifted youth students from grades 7-12. The teachers are professors from Stanford, and "are incredible," according to Donovan. "They push you to your next level," said Donovan, who described her classes as relatively small, some with 15 to 20 students. The classroom setting is a webcam and microphone set up in Donavan's house, which gives the students the ability to instant message each other and have "lively conversation," just like a regular class. <rest of story at link>

I took the SAT in 6th grade about 30 years ago as part of the CTY talent search. After getting good scores I took algebra I over the summer after 6th in a course designed for talent search qualifiers and took Algebra II along with the 9th graders in 7th grade, taking calculus in 10th grade. Your child's math course may not have covered all the topics on the math SAT, so I suggest he/she take some practice tests and read an SAT prep book. I think taking a prep course, as many 11th and 12th graders do, would be overkill.

Hoagies' Gifted is a great site for gifted children and their parents, and several parents discuss their experiences with EGPY at http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/epgy.htm . EPGY has also been discussed at the Davidson Gifted Issues Discussion Forum http://giftedissues.davidsongifted.org/BB/ and on the TAGFAM (Families of the Talented & Gifted) mailing list http://www.tagfam.org/ .

I see that Teaching Textbooks is a CD-ROM based course that many WTM members have tried (there have been several threads).

My son, 6yo, wants to make a web site. A kid in his 2nd grade class wrote out some HTML basics for him. Of course, there are privacy and security concerns. How can I have him make a site where (1) only people I have given a password to can access it (2) he can only edit it when I have logged him. (It would be natural for a child to list on his site his address, the names of his brothers and sisters, etc. That info does not need to be on the Internet). I use Verizon FIOS for an internet connection.