Lesson Plan: Numerical Methods in Real-Life Situations
This lesson plan includes the objectives, prerequisites, and exclusions of the lesson teaching students how to use numerical methods to solve real-life problems.
Objectives
Students will be able to
- formulate the Newton–Raphson method for real-life problems,
- identify whether a function that describes a real-life parameter has at least one root in a given interval by considering the signs of the function at the ends of the interval,
- apply iterations of the Newton–Raphson method or a given iterative method to a real-life problem given an initial approximation,
- understand the physical constraints of a real-life problem, identify issues with a model, and suggest possible improvements.
Prerequisites
Students should already be familiar with
- the Newton–Raphson method,
- locating roots using changes of signs,
- derivatives, including trigonometric, exponential, and logarithmic functions.
Exclusions
Students will not cover
- inverse trigonometric and hyperbolic functions.
