Bits, Binary, Binomials and Recursion : Helping it Students Understand Mathematical Induction

Discrete Mathematics is a fundamental subject for Information Technology (IT) majors. For students whose primary orientation is not to mathematics, but computing, it is important to relate fundamental mathematical principles to practical computing realities. At Bond University, Microsoft Excel is the primary practical vehicle used to illustrate these connections, and has proved to be an extremely valuable tool for this purpose. No programming or macro creation is required to implement most of the basic principles taught in Discrete Mathematics. In particular, the topic of Mathematical Induction (MI) poses a considerable challenge to many students, and there are a number of ways in which a spreadsheet such as Excel can assist with the learning process