What role can technology play in research?
Advanced calculators and computer software can promote research because, in the exploration of functions, numbers, and shapes, they can change the nature and number of questions that students ask. It can be quite exciting when students take advantage of technology s ability to facilitate rote work and expedite deeper conjecturing about patterns in mathematics. For example, a student might look at how xn 1 factors for different whole numbers n using a computer algebra system (CAS) such as Mathematica or the TI-92. But, they are unlikely to be willing to factor x18 1 without computer help any more than we would be likely to do long division of 6-digit numbers. The field of fractals and chaos would not have blossomed without the aid of computers that freed researchers up to ask questions that would have been unanswerable in the past. Many of these questions only yielded to analysis after simulations and number crunching revealed patterns. Similarly, access to a spreadsheet or dynamic geom
