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Michael Starbird
The University of Texas at Austin
Ph.D., University of Wisconsin at Madison
 

Dr. Michael Starbird is Professor of Mathematics and University Distinguished Teaching Professor at The University of Texas at Austin, where he has been teaching since 1974. He received his B.A. from Pomona College in 1970 and his Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1974.

Professor Starbird's textbook, The Heart of Mathematics: An Invitation to Effective Thinking, coauthored with Edward B. Burger, won a 2001 Robert W. Hamilton Book Award. Professors Starbird and Burger also collaborated on Coincidences, Chaos, and All That Math Jazz: Making Light of Weighty Ideas, published in 2005.

Professor Starbird has won many teaching awards, including the Mathematical Association of America's 2007 Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo National Award for Distinguished College or University Teaching of Mathematics, which is the association's most prestigious teaching award. It is awarded nationally to 3 people from its membership of 27,000.

Professor Starbird is interested in bringing authentic understanding of significant ideas in mathematics to people who are not necessarily mathematically oriented. He has developed and taught an acclaimed class that presents higher-level mathematics to liberal arts students.
 
Courses by this professor:

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$380 		Art and Craft of Mathematical Problem Solving & Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear, 2nd Edition (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Learn to make sense of often intimidating mathematical problems and concepts with this insightful and entertaining two-course set. The Art and Craft of Mathematical Problem Solving reveals strategies, tactics, and tools for overcoming mathematical problems at all levels of difficulty. Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear, 2nd Edition is crafted to make the key concepts and triumphs of this mathematical field accessible to nonmathematicians.
Art of Critical Decision Making & Meaning from Data: Statistics Made Clear (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Master the skills of making decisions and deciphering the meaning behind statistical information with this two-course set. Start with The Art of Critical Decision Making, which explores how individuals, groups, and organizations make effective choices. Then continue with Meaning from Data: Statistics Made Clear, your absorbing introduction to understanding statistical information and the role it plays in everything from political polls to stock performances.
Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear & Joy of Thinking: The Beauty and Power of Classical Mathematical Ideas (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear is crafted to make the key concepts and triumphs of calculus accessible to nonmathematicians. It requires only a basic acquaintance with beginning high-school level algebra and geometry. Calculus is taught by Professor Michael Starbird, a distinguished and popular teacher with an uncommon talent for making the wonders of mathematics clear to nonmathematicians. Professor Starbird also teaches, along with Edward B. Burger, The Joy of Thinking, a course about fun, aesthetics, and mystery—about great mathematical ideas that arise from puzzles, observations of everyday life, and habits of curiosity and effective thinking.
Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear, 2nd Edition  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Calculus has had a notorious reputation for being difficult to understand, but the 24 lectures of Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear are crafted to make the key concepts and triumphs of this field accessible to non-mathematicians. This course teaches you how to grasp the power and beauty of calculus without the technical background traditionally required in calculus courses. Follow award-winning Professor Michael Starbird as he takes you through derivatives and integrals—the two concepts that serve as the foundation for all of calculus. As you investigate the field’s intellectual development, your appreciation of its inner workings and your skill in seeing how it can solve a variety of problems will deepen.
Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear, 2nd Edition & Discrete Mathematics (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Immerse yourself in two important mathematical fields with a pair of award-winning professors. Start by focusing on calculus and the ways it appears around you with Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear, 2nd Edition. Next, in Discrete Mathematics, explore the modern mathematical realm of discrete mathematics, which achieves fascinating results using relatively simple means, such as counting.
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$380 		Games People Play: Game Theory in Life, Business, and Beyond & Meaning from Data: Statistics Made Clear (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Expand your knowledge of two fields vital to business, mathematics, science, and even your everyday life. In Games People Play: Game Theory in Life, Business, and Beyond, explore the fundamentals of game theory in an engaging, comprehensive manner and discover its real-world applications in everything from corporate negotiations to foreign policy. Then, in Meaning from Data: Statistics Made Clear, sharpen your understanding of statistical concepts and discover how, when used properly, statistics can extract useful meaning from otherwise meaningless data.
Joy of Mathematics & Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Exercise your brain cells and see mathematics as both accessible and enjoyable. Joy of Mathematics reveals the amazing utility of this exciting field in everything from science and engineering to finance and games of chance. Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear, 2nd Edition, teaches you the power and beauty of calculus without the technical background traditionally required in calculus courses.
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$380 		Joy of Mathematics & Joy of Thinking (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Embark on two amazing mathematical journeys. In The Joy of Mathematics, learn the amazing utility of this field in everything from science to engineering to finance. In The Joy of Thinking: The Beauty and Power of Classical Mathematical Ideas, uncover and grasp insightful strategies for approaching, enjoying, and understanding the world around you.
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$185 		Joy of Thinking: The Beauty and Power of Classical Mathematical Ideas  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Enjoy discovering the bold and insightful habits of thinking that arise in the world of mathematics as you grasp strategies for approaching, enjoying, and understanding the world. You will come away with a new appreciation of mathematics through these thoroughly entertaining lectures, and an enhanced awareness of the richness, texture, and beauty around you each day.
Mathematics from the Visual World  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Geometry has long been recognized not only as a fascinating skill, but as a gateway to the highest realms of human thought. Mathematics from the Visual World, taught by distinguished Professor Michael Starbird, introduces you to the terms, concepts, and astonishing power of geometry, including topology, conic sections, non-Euclidian geometry, congruence, and much more. In 24 richly illustrated lectures, you discover the important role this profound mathematical field plays in everything from algebra and calculus to cosmology and chemistry to art and architecture. This delightful, invigorating, and enlightening journey will allow you to master one of the most glorious inventions of the human mind.
Mathematics, Philosophy, and the "Real World" & Mathematics from the Visual World (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Embark on two dynamic explorations of how probability, statistics, and geometry have had profound implications on our world with this captivating course set. Start your journey with Mathematics, Philosophy, and the "Real World," which reveals how, throughout history, mathematics has consistently helped determine the course of Western philosophical thought. Then, continue with a fascinating introduction to the terms, concepts, and applications of geometry in Mathematics from the Visual World.
Meaning from Data: Statistics Made Clear  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Statistical information is truly everywhere. You can't look at a newspaper without seeing statistics on virtually every page. Meaning from Data: Statistics Made Clear is your introduction to a vitally important subject in today's data-driven society. In 24 half-hour lectures, which require no background in mathematics beyond basic algebra, you explore the principles and methods that underlie the study of statistics. Professor Michael Starbird puts his emphasis on the role of statistics in daily life: weather forecasts, business, and a host of other applications.
Meaning from Data: Statistics Made Clear & What Are the Chances? Probability Made Clear (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Discover the accessibility of two profoundly important mathematical fields. What Are the Chances? Probability Made Clear explores the fundamental concepts and fascinating applications of probability, while Meaning from Data: Statistics Made Clear helps you understand statistical information and the role it plays in everything from political polls to stock performances.
What Are the Chances? Probability Made Clear  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Learn how to understand the random factors behind almost everything—from the combinations of genes that produced you to the odds of how long you'll have to wait at a bus stop. In What Are the Chances? Probability Made Clear, award-winning Professor Michael Starbird makes the secret of numbers come alive for nonmathematicians. He picks intriguing, useful, and entertaining examples to illustrate the fundamental concepts of probability and teaches you how to apply probability to areas of your life ranging from physics to biology to finance; understand the nature of randomness and probabilistic reasoning; and much more.
Zero to Infinity: A History of Numbers & Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear, 2nd Edition (Set)  
By Professor Michael Starbird, The University of Texas at Austin
Discover fascinating new insights in this two-course set that makes mathematical concepts both intriguing and easy to grasp. First, explore the fascinating history of numbers in Zero to Infinity: A History of Numbers. Then, grasp the power and beauty of calculus—without the technical background traditionally required—in Change and Motion: Calculus Made Clear, 2nd Edition.