MATHEMATICS, ART AND TECHNOLOGY: INTERDISCIPLINARITY,

COMPLEMENTATION AND COOPERATION

E. Marques Júnior1, E.M.R. Marques2, A.R. Souza2
1
FAAG – Faculdade de Agudos (BRAZIL)
2
Science Faculty, UNESP – Univ Estadual Paulista (BRAZIL)

Abstract
We developed this Project with the aim to arouse interest in high school students and the general
public for the area of Mathematics, motivated by the great social demand for improving the quality of
teaching in this area. We believe that greater student interest and the ability to understand complex
number applications in various areas, cooperates with the teaching/learning process. Thus we
intended to develop the content of complex numbers and their elementary functions associated with
Art and Technology. For this, we propose interrelated activities: itinerant expositions of pictures
created with computer graphics from complex functions; explanatory lectures on the software and the
process of creation of the charts (Method of the Colored Domains), workshops in computer labs for
production by the students of High School participating in the project, production of material for study
and development of this mathematical content and production of new pictures; preparation of
dissemination material and repository of knowledge generated in the project (e-books, articles); use of
e-learning technology (Hangout, Moodle, etc.) in the preparation and development of activities for
teachers and students of High School; among others. We also aimed at the dissemination of part of
the scientific production of the Research Group "Teaching of Sciences and Educational Technology of
the Faculty of Sciences of UNESP - campus of Bauru", which has been working on the subject for
several years, having produced the software that enables creation of the proposed Pictures in the
development of the project. On the "Matemática e Arte" website, available at http://www2.fc.unesp.br/
matematicaearte/download.php, publications on the subject are available, pictures already produced
and the educational software F(C): Complex Functions for free download. The site also has a brief
history of the research project, teaching and extension and contact addresses with the project
coordination.
Keywords: complex numbers, computer graphics, geometric and aesthetic regularities.

1 INTRODUCTION
The Complex Analysis is a central theme of Mathematics, which has many applications in several
areas of knowledge, where we can highlight: Physics, Chemistry, Aerodynamics, Fluid Dynamics,
Fractions and Arts, among many others. Despite this, research shows that there is a deficiency in the
teaching and learning process of this topic. The usual teaching of complex numbers has been
basically using the algebraic approach, thus being devoid of meaning and / or applications [1], [2], [3].

Figure 1 – Picture of a Complex Function.

Proceedings of INTED2018 Conference ISBN: 978-84-697-9480-7

5th-7th March 2018, Valencia, Spain 9216
The above figure was produced by using the following complex function:

.
Seeking a more meaningful teaching, especially aiming the development and demystification of this
topic for the young public and the population in general, we propose an interdisciplinary approach of
this content, working it through Computer Graphics, highlighting Art looks [4]. In this context, we
propose the Project entitled "Mathematics, Art and Technology" to be developed during the year 2018,
this year which has an indication of the Brazilian Society of Mathematics - SBM - as a member of the
Biennial of Mathematics "Mathematics is in All".
This article is the result of scientific research by the Research Group: "Education of Science and
Educational Technology" of the Faculty of Sciences of UNESP - campus of Bauru. The theme has
been developed by the team, from the post-doctoral stage of Prof. Dr. Emília de Mendonça Rosa
Marques in Portugal [5]. The research group also has scientific cooperation with a group of professors
from the University of Aveiro, Portugal, the place of the stage mentioned above.
In articulation with the teaching of mathematics we see that the possibilities of contact with the
incursions of Mathematics in Art and Technology are uncommon, although it is present. Most of the
time Mathematics is presented as a formal subject with little or no relation to the human enterprise that
generated it as a Science, or the various possibilities that are presented for its diffusion and
presentation to the public. This paradox is what we seek to understand and overcome through the
development of this project linking problems and mathematical theories to Arts and Technologies.
We also intend to show that mathematics is developed by men and women with the most varied
formations and also within various historical periods. The project team itself reflects this reality, in its
heterogeneity of training areas, as well as formal education levels. The knowledge of the academic
biographies of the thinkers who developed this theme can provide the enrichment of our imagination,
enabling us to identify with their problems and discoveries. In this way we can identify with the lives of
great Scientists, reducing the distance between those who seek to solve problems and those who
create theories to solve them. In the present project we will address the discovery and the possible
applications of the Complex Numbers and the Complex Analysis in an Artistic, Technological and
Historical perspective. The period of interest refers to the Italian Renaissance where names such as
Scipione Dal Ferro (1465-1526), Niccolò Fontana Tartaglia (1499-1557), Girolamo Cardano (1501-
1576) and Rafael Bombeli (1526-1572) figure as the exponents in the unfolding of the events that led
to the establishment of the conceptual and theoretical bases for the resolution of equations of the third
degree [6].
The possibility of union between Art and Technology considered as a human enterprise is a rare
opportunity to bring students closer to Mathematics and its intrinsic beauties. Art is a human
manifestation, an artistic work is a human manifestation in search of the incomprehensible, the non-
linearity of our attitudes and emotions. Technology is also a human activity; a computer code reveals
the ingenuity and cunning of those who have developed it in search of solutions that have not yet been
thought out.
Studies involving Mathematics, Art, and Technology can provide the individual with the perception that
ideas that are not yet thought out can be visualized and even concretized. Thus visual artistic
expositions that seek the union between these three human activities is the objective of the present
Project, for this will be made pictures by the students using functions of complex variables, through the
use and development of software proposed by our research group, the which generates colored
domains of such functions [7].

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 Figure 2 – Demonstration of Software using Complex Function.

The software "F(C): Complex Functions" is available free of charge and will be worked on by the
project participants so that they can elaborate, with the help of the members of the executing team,
figures with the various Colored Domains related to such functions. This work may be carried out in
the Didactic Mathematics Laboratory and / or in the Computer Laboratories of the partner schools.
Its development has relevance, since it presents to the young and adult public, possibilities of
interaction between Mathematics, Art and Technology through the creation and development of the
concept of complex numbers. The possibility of creating artistic pictures and the understanding of the
pictures obtained presents a new path in the teaching / learning process of these Mathematics
contents.
The project presents an aspect of scientific and technological innovation when considered from the
point of view of interdisciplinarity between three important areas of human knowledge: Mathematics,
Art and Technology. The innovation that we can visualize is also associated with the development of
new open computer codes and the elaboration of innovative didactic material. The project has a
potential multiplier of the proposed educational activities and a special degree of innovation in terms of
actions that reflect contemporary aspects in the field of public communication of Science and
Technology in Brazil [2].
In this Project we aim to present the complex numbers and their functions in a new context,
associated with Art and Technology. We also aim to arouse interest in high school students and the
general public for the area of Mathematics. Finally, the project also aims to share the scientific output
of the Research Group: Teaching of Sciences and Educational Technology of the Faculty of Sciences
of UNESP - Bauru campus, which has been working on the subject for several years, having
developed the software that will enable the execution of this project [7], [8].
This software that relates Complex Numbers and its representation and graphic interpretation, is
available for free download at: http://www2.fc.unesp.br/matematicaearte/download.php.
The specific objectives of the project are:
1 To promote events entitled "Show of Mathematics, Art and Technology" in public and private
schools in Bauru and in the region.
2 Promote the dissemination and popularization of the area of complex numbers and functions of
complex variables stimulating the mathematical curiosity of the participants, through lectures,
mini-courses and workshops, to be held in Unesp and or in the partner schools, according to
their demand.
3 Perform activities of production of didactic material for the dissemination of concepts of complex
numbers through software "F (C): Complex Functions".
4 Encourage the generation of content on complex numbers through the creation of artistic
activities.
5 Present to the partner institutions involved in the project the possibilities of the union between
Mathematics, Art and Technology.

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2 METHODOLOGY
The methodology of the project is participatory and action research, since according to Thiollent [9],
"Action research is a type of social research that is conceived and carried out in close association with
an action or with the resolution of a collective problem and in which the researchers and the
participants representing the situation of the reality to be investigated are involved in a cooperative
and participative way ".
Initially, in order to implement the project, we propose visits by the team or part of it to the school
institutions with the possibility of being partners in this project, which will be detached from a universe
of schools, after analyzing the effective interest in solving a improving the quality of Mathematics
teaching. Such analysis will be done in the data collected from a research done with leaders of
institutions.
After the implementation of the partnerships will be proposed a collective schedule of activities for the
year 2018, involving the project team and teams of partner institutions. Among the activities that can
be proposed in the planned meetings with the partner schools, we highlight some that we consider
essential to the development of the project, they are:
1 Production of pictures, elaborated by the project team, of the Color Domain of complex
functions and their exposure to partner institutions and the target audience.

Figure 3 – Exhibitions of pictures of Complex Functions.

2 Presentation of lectures by the project team, project participants, students and teachers of
elementary and high school, discussing the historical development of the complex number
concept, on the development and handling of software F (C): Complex Functions highlighting
their potential and interdisciplinary applications.
3 Minicourses and / or work groups composed by the team and the participants, aiming to study
the theme "Complex Numbers and their elementary functions" and workshops aiming at the
knowledge of the software and the production of new pictures by all the participants of the
project.
4 Workshops with the students participating in the project, using material pertinent to the project,
produced by the team with the support of the scholarship holders, and presentation and
discussion of the videos of the Science Watch, sent by CNPq to coordinate this project, on the
occasion of the SNCT 2017.
5 Presentation of pictures prepared by the project participants, whose production will be made
possible in the workshops offered by the proponent team.

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 Figure 4 – Exhibitions of pictures of Complex Functions.

The basic functions to be used by the participants are: Function Identity, Function Conjugation,
Function Module, Real and Imaginary Part of a Complex Number, Polar or Trigonometric
Representation, Sine Function, Cosine and Tangent, Exponential Function and Logarithmic Function.
The computational code was initially written in PASCAL and later in the DELPHI language, due to its
numerous generation and maintenance facilities. The generation of the new pictures will be done from
software F (C): Complex Functions, as well as by compiling new programming in DELPHI [7].
The Mathematics Department of the Faculty of Sciences of the campus of Bauru offers excellent
infrastructure and technical support for the development of the project, such as the Mathematics
Didactic Laboratory, which has a 120-seat amphitheater, a Computer Laboratory with 40 computers
and a Laboratory of Mathematics Teaching with 40 seats and movable flat tables.
As strategies for public dissemination and participation, it is intended to disseminate the project on
social networks linked to the Internet, as well as through posters, folders and also in UNESP News
programs (https://www.tv.unesp.br/unespnoticias) and Information Bulletin (http://www.radio.unesp.br/
boletiminformativo). Another important agency for the dissemination of the event is the UNESP News
agency (http://unan.unesp.br).
Publicity for the participation of the school public will be made directly by the partner schools in their
daily school environment. As part of the development of the Project funded by CNPq in 2017, on the
occasion of the National Science Technology Week - SNCT 2017, the "Mathematics, Art and
Technology" Exhibition was in the Boulevard Bauru Shopping, being appreciated by shoppers (about 4
thousand people by the estimate of the direction of the establishment).
The same Exhibition will be in the Cultural Space Leonidas Simonetti of 94FM radio station, in
February 2018, and we intend to take students from high schools to appreciate it. These visits will be
pre-scheduled and will be guided by team members on this project. These actions are an integral part
of the research project funded by CNPq and will be very important for the development of the first
actions of this project, which will be the meetings with the directions of the partner schools.

3 RESULTS
The expected outputs, as a result of the project's development, will be divided into two categories that
we consider essential: the scientific plan and the educational plan. At the scientific level, we believe
that the production of new computational codes will bring a greater understanding of what parameters
are important when we consider the interdisciplinarity between Mathematics, Art and Technology.
We also hope to produce e-books on the subject and how to work it in high school. From the
educational point of view we envisage the possibilities of dissemination, popularization and
socialization of the knowledge generated by the community as a form of cultural enrichment and
appreciation of the professional involved with these extension, research and teaching activities.

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 Figure 5 – Exhibitions of pictures of Complex Functions.

We also hope to introduce mini-courses and workshops on the subject in the form of extension
courses, in the classroom, in the distance learning and by means of the preparation of materials on
virtual teaching platforms (Moodle and others) and a Virtual Gallery site linked to Unesp.
In this way the project could involve the target public of this project in other projects of the team
opening new possibilities of insertion in the society, discovery and attention of new social demands.
The Faculty of Sciences in the campus of Bauru has a collaboration network already installed for the
development of university extension activities. The Permanent Commission for University Extension -
CPEU supports and offers conditions, within its capacity, for the development of projects as presented
in this article.

4 CONCLUSIONS
The evaluation of the development of the project will be continuous, through the meetings proposed
for this purpose and also through research of satisfaction to the target public that participates in the
actions, which should occur through research sites such as SurveyMonkey, which represents another
use of technology in the proposed project.
Involving students in workshops, mini-courses and in the production of their own exhibitions will be an
indicator of the success of this project. The increase in math teaching activities in partner schools'
computer labs should also be an indicator to be considered in the project evaluation. Certainly the
number of accesses in the research sites and the Virtual Gallery, the number of visits to the
exhibitions are also indicators of the effective participation of the general public in the project proposed
by the team.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Special thanks to CNPq and to the Faculty of Sciences of Unesp for the financial support.

REFERENCES
[1] E.M.R. Marques, A. R. Souza, “A complementary approach to study the real and imaginary
roots of a quadratic function”, GeoGebra International Journal of Romania - GGIJRO, vol.5,
pp.1 - 11, 2016.
[2] E.M.R. Marques, A. R. Souza, E. Marques Júnior, “Aprendendo e ensinando números
complexos: experiência com tecnologia educacional”. Anais do XII Encontro Paulista de
Educação Matemática, vol. 1. pp. 910-919, 2014.
[3] E.L. Silva, A.R. Souza, E.M.R. Marques, “Trabalhando Números Complexos com Software para
Representações Gráficas”, Resumos e Mini-Cursos do I Encontro regional de Matemática
Aplicada e Computacional, vol.1, pp. 56-107, 2008.

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[4] M.T.S. Bombonato, E.M.R. Marques, S.R.Q.A. Zuliani, “O potencial do uso da
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do II Congresso Nacional de Formação de Professores e XII Congresso Estadual Paulista
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[5] E.M.R. Marques, A.R. Souza, A.M.D. Breda, “Matemática e Arte: incursões na
interdisciplinaridade”, REMATEC - Revista de Matemática e Cultura, vol. 7, pp. 73-88, 2012.
[6] E.L. Silva, A.R. Souza, E.M.R. Marques, Números e Funções Complexas: Representação e
Interpretação Gráfica, São Paulo - SP: Editora Cultura Acadêmica, 2008.
[7] E.M.R. Marques, “O software F(C): Funções Complexas no ensino de matemática”, Anais do IV
SHIAM, vol. 1. pp. 1-13, 2013.
[8] E.L. Silva, A.R. Souza, E.M.R. Marques, “Alguns estudos de fluxo de fluido utilizando software
gráfico”, Revista Brasileira de Ensino de Física, vol. 31, pp. 3502-1-3502-9, 2009.
[9] M. Thiollent, Metodologia da Pesquisa-Ação. São Paulo: Cortez,1985.

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